Research into ancillary texts

These newspaper posters are once again set out in a very typical English newspaper advertisement style layout, with the headline in big bold black with lexical choices made by the producers to try and attract their target audience, with the newspaper companies name in the masthead position. The headlines on this poster are both to do with cats, and how they are 'killers' of a sort. Once the reader sees the word 'Cat' immediately their mind softens and the word 'kill' isn't quite so powerful anymore, as of course if it was a human being accused as being a killer, then we enter a totally different mindset as it is always a lot worse if a fellow human being has killed someone/something. So we almost approach this poster and the newspaper itself in a more joking manner, as we would laugh at what they have done instead of feeling angry, as cats are pets to us and looked upon mainly as being cute and beings that can't be held responsible for any wrong doings as they are just cats. Also the poster on the left has a picture above the headline, which you do not often see on these posters, and an image on this is used because the headline is also not big/long enough to cover the whole poster, and also as the onlooker will get a feel for what the newspaper will actually be about and images can draw even more people in as it is more visual and adds an extra dimension to the poster while also giving the onlooker more knowledge about the featured story in the newspaper.        

This newspaper advertisment is of a local paper which is reporting on things being destroyed by local students. Instead of a more hard hitting story, for example someone dying, this is of something which you would expect to find in a local newspaper, as this sort of news would never make the national newspapers. This is set out in the typical manner in which these posters are usually set out in, with the bold headline in the center of the poster, and with the name of the newspaper (masthead) at the top. However, unlike some other stereotypical papers, at the bottom of the poster there is another mini advertisement, with half of a front page of the newspaper shown with text to go with it (News, stories, events catering to all your local needs),which i think looks out of place, and the onlooker will not notice this as the bold headline is what draws you to this poster. So i think that this bit of the poster is included to at least give another dimension. The headline on this poster (Edgbarrow's destroyed by it's own students) is reasonably eyecatching, and as soon as you see 'Destroyed' (which is immediately the first word you take note of) you want to see what has happened, and also it says that it has been been destroyed by students, which makes you think of students and also teenagers in a bad light and fits the stereotype of them being 'yobs' and commiting antisocial behaviour, and also who are supposed to be mature, as 'students' makes you think of more mature people who are choosing to study rather than 'pupils' who have to study whether they want to or not, so we look down on these 'students' and immedaitely think of the stereotypical teenager in their late teens (lazy, rough, and ruins good things that they are given).        

1. I have been researching into newspaper advertising posters, and I have found that they always have a typical layout of a newspaper poster, a white background, and with the masterhead of the newspaper covering the top part of the poster, and with the main headline in bold black writing, which immedately grabs the attention of a passer by. The design is very simple, but very effective, as their is not anything to take away the on-lookers attention when they see this, they will immediatetly be drawn to the text, and also to the masterhead to see who publishes/sells this newspaper, so i find this poster very effective. If this text had more text and pictures, it would make the poster not effective at all, because it would over shadow the main bold text that stands out well without any other text/pictures. This poster follows the codes and conventions of a newspaper advertising posters, and if it went against the codes and conventions, it would not be so effective in attracting people to purchase their newspaper.

This is a different kind of newspaper poster, and in my opinion it is just as effective in attracting it's target audience. Instead of the typical newspaper advertising poster, which is solely black and white with only text and no images, whereas this image has a image as the centre of the poster and it is the thing which will grab the onlookers attention first rather than text.
                                                     The image is also quite startling and will definetly make the onlooker want to take a closer look, as the image of 2 men kissing each other is quite shocking and is deemed as wrong and immoral even in this day and age. There is text to accompaay this image right above it, and this is effective as it is short, sharp and to the point.
                                                     The image is very different, and the fact that is white man kissing a black man is quite shocking as the skin colours directly conflict each other and although is nowhere near as bad or big anymore, i still think that it is quite shocking/surprising to see a black and white man kissing each other and you immediately want to see what it about and read this, and see what this is about (this headline is in reference to the 2008 American elections-the battle between Barack Obama and John McCain).
                                                     I also think it is also making a play on the images with the black and white hands together which shows togetherness and unity, whereas this image is all about the opposite, as the black and white man in this image are fighting against each other for power and who is better than each other (also is the black race better than the white race, so it is in stark contrast to the other pictures that show unity between black and white people).                            
                                           The masterhead is in yellow and this is effective as it stands out well from the rest of the front cover as the background colour behind this is black so the yellow is reasonably effective. Also the front cover has plenty of different colours on it, rather than the typical newspaper poster which is not very colourful and bland to look at while it is still as effective and still as eyecatching, they are just both very different styles but both equally effective in reaching out to their respective target audiences.
                                          Also the second advertising poster is Italian, and this shows how different the English and Italian cultures are, as the Italian poster is much more vibrant compared to the English poster which is quite bland and boring in comparison to the Italian poster, but still, no less effective, just a big difference is how the ideas are presented and this shows how different the cultures are.


















Radio Advertisements-  I have researched into existing radio advertisements, and I have found that these advertisements often have some sort of jingle to make their advertisement stand out from the rest, making it original, and to make sure that the listener will take note of the product that is being advertised, and eventually make them want to purchase the product. They must be very different to other rival advertisements as of course they are very capable of overshadowing others. These advertisements always include a story line i have found, and i have also personally listened to some radio avertisements, and they always seem to have sime sort of story to keep the listener listening and engaged, whereas if they are boring the the listener will automatically switch off and not pay attention. The jingle is of course very important, as if the jingle is very catchy, then this will obviously make the reader remember it more and of course the product that goes with it, and word of mouth will also come into play, if the listener then goes and tells their friend about what they heard on the radio and the product that was being advertised, then this will increase the popularity of the product and therefore increase sales as people are drawn in my this advert.

Below is an example of a radio advetisement website which has samples of radio advertisements on it and they are a company for people to go to them and advertise their product through their company. This shows how they work and also how they are produced and also how they are specifically targeted to their target audience and successful they are in taking in sales from after the people have listened to the advertisement and then it will tell us how effective they are in pulling in sales and if people really like what is beng advertised then they will go and search what the product does and if they will be useful to them.

'Babble-On represents and licenses production music from hundreds of different production music libraries, covering an inordinate amount of themes and styles. We're constantly receiving shipments of new discs and libraries to keep things current and interesting. If there's a musical genre you can think of, or an artist you need to match, it's a pretty safe bet that we'll have more than a few choices for you to sample. Many of our production music libraries are in our Soundminer audio file database - so, with the simple troll and click of a trackball, we can get you achingly close to that Yanni/Oasis/Jay-Z mash-up your bank client just "has to have."

Want to hear what's new? We typically post a sampling of newly arrived production music on our Babble-Blog. Look for the posts called “Dropping In'. This shows that the production company are good in attracting people to produce advertisements with them as it is made to be very attractive, with the offers of being able to offer production music of high quality e.g 'close to that Yanni/Oasis/Jay-Z', so the audience will want to produce a radio advertisment with them.       

Things that are important while producing/planning a radio advertisement. 

Every radio buy must begin with a clear understanding of the listeners you want to reach. Write a one-sentence target audience profile based on the demographics of your prospects. This should include their age, gender, where they live and other factors, such as household income. Then share this information with the sales reps from the stations you're considering. They'll tell you what percentage of their stations' listeners match these demographics and at what times of the day or during which programming you'll reach your best prospects.

There also may be qualitative characteristics of your ideal prospects you should consider when making your radio buy. A restaurant owner, for example, would look for a radio station whose listeners dine out frequently. The radio station sales reps have access to both qualitative and quantitative information concerning their listeners and should be able to give you customized proposals that include schedules with ratings breakdowns. They should also provide signal coverage maps that show precisely where their stations are heard


How radio advertisements are produced:

A well-produced radio spot can inspire the imagination like nothing else. Without a video aspect, the listener's mind is free to wander--to conjure up splendid and impossible scenarios to hold their interest, make them laugh, and, most of all, to pay attention! People listening to radio are usually doing something else at the same time--driving, working in the home or at the office, or exercising--so they don't necessarily hear every word in a commercial. It has to be good!
Obviously your production will need to be done at one of the stations you will be using. But once you have tried the production at a few stations and you feel comfortable with the quality of one particular station, use that production facility for as much of your work as you can.
Generally, you will be running a 60-second spot. This gives you plenty of time to get your business name and location in at least three times. The name and location of your business should be mentioned at least twice in a 30-second ad and three times in a 60-second ad.
Since radio production is so inexpensive and often free, you don't have to be worried about changing your ad often. You can therefore be very specific with each script and make the ad generic or dedicate it to a special sale or promotional event. If you are having a sale, give price and item (jargon for "mention specific products and prices"), a percentage off, or a specific brand being sold at a discounted price.
One of the wonderful things about radio production is that you have the option of having each station you use produce its own version of the same script. This saves you talent fees and the cost of dubs. The message will be the same--but the delivery will end up being very different, unless you give instructions that will standardize the spots.
Standardizing is very important, because you want people to know they are hearing a commercial for the same businesses when they hear slightly altered versions on different stations.
To standardize the sound of the spots done on different stations:

• Request a female or male voice on all spots.
• Request the same music.
• Spell out the kind of energy you want put into the voice ("energetic read" or "laid-back, casual read").

This way, each audience will hear the same words and receive the same message at little or no production cost to you. While it may be more appealing to have the same exact commercial on all stations, new businesses do not always have funds to pay even for the modest cost of radio production. And in that case it is smarter to put whatever money you have into the frequency of the schedule and run a basic but informative ad. However, if you can manage the cost of having one commercial produced (including talent fee and the cost of copies to give to other stations you are using), it's a plus to have the same commercial running on all stations.
Use 60-second ads when:

• Your message is complex. Better to write a 60 that makes your message clear than a 30 that leaves doubts and questions.
• You need to include specific details to help persuade. Specifics are always more believable than generalities. Close the loophole. Answer the question lurking in the listener's mind. But don't bore your audience by answering questions no one was asking.
• You're in a business category that's new and not easily understood. If you need to create the realization of need before you can sell your solution, it can easily take 60 seconds.
• You need to "baffle them with bull." If you sell a generic commodity, and your strategy is for people to buy from you simply because they like you better, you're going to need a world-class creative team. These ads are, without question, the hardest of all ads to write. But they can also be the most entertaining. These are the times when your production people can shine like the sun. Inspire them but don't instruct them. Buy them food, give them praise, and remind them that they're geniuses and that yes, everyone misunderstands them but you. Production people live to create ads like these, but you've got to give them time, encouragement and freedom. Use 30-second ads when:
  
  • Your product or service category is clearly understood and you're making an easy-to-understand offer. Say it plain. Say it straight. Eliminate all but the most essential adjectives and adverbs. Replace clichés and predictable phrases with unanticipated wording. Focus on verbs and use as many as possible. Make one point per ad, but make it powerfully in the script. Whatever you do, don't write a weak message and then try to compensate for it with powerful delivery (vocal inflection, dramatic music, sound effects.) The '70s are over.
  Use 15-second ads when:
  
  • You have an incredibly powerful, simple message. Don't screw it up by blah, blah, blahing for 30 seconds when you can say it more powerfully in 15. Sadly, many ad writers fall into the trap described so eloquently by
  •  French philosopher and mathematician Blaise Pascal: "I have made this letter longer than usual because I lack the time to make it shorter." At least 25 percent of the 30-second ads on most stations would really work better as 15s. But most stations aren't willing to sell 15-second ads at a price that makes them attractive. Even more difficult is training ad writers how to uncover the vital, core message that can be powerfully communicated in 15 short seconds. Tight, powerful ads are hard to write, but definitely worth the effort.
  • You're in a business category in which no one advertises but you. When path dominance has been acquiesced to you by your competitors and simple name recognition will likely be enough to make customers think of your name when they need what you sell, don't be an idiot-buy 15-second ads and mentions. Use mentions when:
    
    • You sell a commodity in a crowded marketplace and your strategy is to go for top-of-mind awareness.
    • You merely want to add additional frequency to a schedule that is delivering barely sufficient frequency of your 30- or 60-second message. But don't fool yourself by calculating a TAPSCAN reach and frequency analysis that lumps the mentions into the same schedule as the 30s and/or 60s. The schedule of the full-length ad must deliver sufficient frequency on its own. Mentions are merely gravy for these schedules. Like gravy, they're really not worth much when there's insufficient meat on the plate.
    The most common mistake is allowing the ad budget to dictate the length of your ad. Never try to squeak by with 15s and mentions when you really need 30s and 60s. Reduce the number of people you're reaching instead of cutting the length of your ad, or buy a less expensive time of day or from a smaller station. Always make your message exactly as long as it needs to be.

This is all showing how radio advertisements are produced, the processes the companies go through to come up with their final product that is targeted at their target audience, and why they make certain choices in their creation proccesses to achieve what they have had in mind when they set their plans out.

Also with radio advertisements, the tone of voice means a lot. For example if the tone of voice is welcoming and gentle, the listener is much more likely to take note of what is being said, and is much more likely to buy/make use of the service that is being advertised, than say if the voice was sharp and aggressive sounding.