Advertising. There is no doubt that we live in an overcommunicated society

There is no doubt that we live in an overcommunicated society. Advertising as a communication function was born thousands of years ago. These days it is increasingly invading public spaces. According to most experts the average citizen of an urban centre today is exposed to over 500 commercial messages a day. Some give even higher figures.

Advertising is defined as a paid, non-personal sales communication, directed at a large number of potential buyers. Throughout history, the purpose of advertising – to inform and per­suade – has not changed.

The two basic types of advertising are: product and institutional. Product advertising involves selling a good or service. Institutional advertising involves promoting a concept, idea, or philosophy, or the goodwill of an industry, company, organization, or government entity.

With so many products from which we can choose (over 10,000 in the average supermarket), companies must often shout to be heard, and advertising is their megaphone.

The fact is, to do its job, advertising must speak to people. It must be understandable and readable. Advertising research shows that people re­spond better to a down-to-earth, conversational tone than to a more digni­fied, formal one. Therefore, good copywriters develop a style that is de­scriptive, colorful, and even picturesque as well as warm, human, and personal. Because of the need for brevity, they try to use words that are simple, lively, and full of personality and to use punctuation to build a conversational tone rather than to construct purely grammatical sentences.

Advertisers like language that suggests:

· their product is of especially high quality;

· value for money;

· luxury and comfort;

· scientific backing for their product;

· their products make us more attractive.

The economic effect of advertising can be likened to the opening “break” shot in pool or billiards. The moment a company begins to advertise, a chain reaction of economic events takes place. Usually the extent of this chain reaction is very difficult to measure: but as in billiards, its scope is certainly related to the force of the shot.

Vocabulary Notes:

1. doubt [daut] – неясність; сумнів, вагання;

2. overcommunicated [ֽəuvəkə`mju:nıkeıtıd] – такий, що характеризується гіперкомунікацією (прискореною комунікацією; надмірною комунікацією);

3. invading (public spaces) [ın`veıdıŋ] – той, що вторгається (захоплює; оволодіває; окуповує) (громадські місця);

4. public spaces [`pAblık `speısız] – громадські місця;

5. average citizen [`æv ə;rıG `sıtızən] – обиватель; середньостатистичний громадянин;

6. urban centre [`ə:b ə;n `sentə] – місто; міський центр;

7. exposed (to) [ık`spəuzd] – такий, що піддається (чомусь); той, що зазнає впливу (чогось);

8. commercial message [kə`mə:∫<sup>ə</sup>l `mesıG] – комерційне звернення;

9. (higher) figure [`fıgə] – (вища) цифра;

10. non-personal [ֽnOn`pə:s^ən ə;l] – неособистісний; неперсональний;

11. sales communication [ֽseı^əlz kəֽmju:nı`keı∫^ən] – засоби поширення комерційної інформації; комерційна інформація;

12. throughout (history) [θru`aut] – протягом, упродовж (історії);

13. to per­suade [pə`sweıd] / [p<sup>ə</sup>r`sweıd] – умовляти, переконувати;

14. product advertising [`prOdAkt `ædvətaızıŋ] – товарна реклама (реклама товарів / послуг); конкуруюча реклама (реклама різними виробниками одного й того ж самого продукту; виробники змагаються між собою за збільшення ринку збуту продукції, яку рекламують);

15. institutional advertising [ֽın^tstı`tju:∫<sup>ə</sup>n ə;l `ædvətaızıŋ] – реклама самої фірми, а не її товарів; рекламування достоїнств організації;

16. goodwill [ֽgud`wıl] – престиж фірми; умовна вартість ділових зв’язків; ділова репутація; “шанси”; добра воля; непомітні активи компанії; нематеріальні активи компанії (підприємства); вартість репутації, престиж (фірми, компанії), гудвіл;

17. government entity [`gAv<sup>ə</sup>nmənt `entəti] – урядова організація;

18. megaphone [`megəfəun] – рупор; мегафон;

19. down-to-earth [ֽdaun tu `ə:θ] – розумний, практичний;

20. conversational (tone) [ֽkOnvə`seı∫^ən ə;l] – розмовний (тон);

21. digni­fied [`dıgnıfaıd] – поважний; величний;

22. copywriter [`kOpiֽraıtə] – копірайтер, текстовик, укладач рекламных текстів (творчий співробітник, який укладає рекламні тексти, створює сюжети для рекламних ілюстрацій);

23. de­scriptive [dı`skrıptıv] – описовий; образний; наочний;

24. brevity [`brevəti] – короткість, стислість;

25. lively [`laıvli] – живий; пожвавлений; веселий;

26. punctuation [ֽpAŋ k t∫u`eı∫^ən] – пунктуація;

27. luxury [`lAk∫ ə;ri] / [`lAgჳ ə;ri] – розкіш; предмет розкоші;

28. scientific backing (for) [ֽsa ı;ən`tıfık `bækıŋ] – наукове підкріплення;

29. to liken (to) [`laık ə;n] – уподібнювати (чомусь); прирівнювати (до);

30. (opening) “break” shot [ֽbreık `∫Ot] – початковий удар (розбиття);

31. pool (billiards) [pu:l] – пул (вид більярдної гри);

32. chain reaction [t∫eın ri`æk∫^ən] – ланцюгова реакція;

33. extent (of) [ık`stent] – ступінь, міра;

34. to measure [`meჳə] / [`meჳ^ər] – міряти, вимірювати; оцінювати, визначати (характер тощо).

Task 4. Complete the sentences making the proper choice.

 

1. According to the text we live in … society.

A. underpopulated;

B. overcommunicated;

C. underestimated;

 

2. Most experts claim that the average citizen of an urban centre today is exposed to over … commercial messages a day.

A. 50;

B. 500;

C. 5000;

 

3. Throughout history, the …of advertising hardly changed.

A. purpose;

B. forms;

C. tools;

 

4. There are … basic types of advertising.

A. two;

B. three;

C. four;

 

5. Statistics says that customers can choose from among … products in the average supermarket.

A. 1,000;

B. 10,000;

C. 100,000;

 

6. Advertising research shows that people re­spond better to a … tone.

A. down-to-earth;

B. dignified;

C. formal;

 

7. Advertisers like language that suggests that their products …

A. are of especially high quality;

B. make us more attractive;

C. all the above;

 

8. The economic effect of advertising can be likened to …

A. a bullet in ice hockey;

B. referee’s final whistle in football;

C. the opening “break” shot in pool or billiards;

9. The moment a company begins to advertise, a … reaction of economic events takes place.

A. chain;

B. explosive;

C. irreversible;

 

10. To do its job, advertising must be …

A. readable;

B. understandable;

C. all the above;

 

Task 5. Agree or disagree with the following statements.

 

1. Advertising as a communication function was born in the 20^th century.

2. Advertising is defined as a non-paid, personal sales communication, directed at a large number of potential buyers.

3. Since ancient times the purpose of advertising has remained the same.

4. The two basic types of advertising are: distributional and institutional.

5. Institutional advertising involves selling a good or service.

6. To do its job advertising must shout at people.

7. Because of most customers’ illiteracy copywriters try to use words that are simple, lively, and full of personality.

8. Purely grammatical sentences are preferable in advertising messages.

9. Advertisers like language that suggests exclusiveness of their product.

10. The economic effect of advertising is related to its initial impact.

 

Task 6. Use the prepositions / articles from the box in the following phrases. Refer to the text “Advertising” (Task 3) to check your answers.

a	in ×2	of ×2	over
at	to ×4	for ×3	throughout

 

1.… day; 2.… history; 3.exposed …; 4.directed …; 5.the need …;

6.… billiards; 7.is related …; 8.value … money; 9.re­spond better …; 10.can be likened …;

11.the force … the shot; 12.… the average supermarket; 13.… 500 commercial messages; 14.scientific backing … a product; 15.a product … especially high quality.

 

Task 7. a) Make up the words using the following stems.

 

earth				good
	out		to
market		communicated		through
	will		over
super				down

 

b) Which of the derived words means:

 

· with no illusions or pretensions; practical and realistic;

· a large self-service store selling foods and household goods;

· characterized by excessive communication; the one in which there is too much communication;

· happening during the whole of a particular period of time; from beginning to end of (an event or period of time);

· the established reputation of a business regarded as a quantifiable asset and calculated as part of its value when it is sold?

 

c) Translate into Ukrainian paying special attention to the words in italics.

 

1. Changing minds in our overcommunicated society is an extremely difficult task. 2. The word “overcommunicated” uses 16 letters: A C C D E E I M M N O O R T U V. 3. Their ideas seem to be far more down-to-earth and sensible. 4. Gloria is probably the most down-to-earth person I’ve ever met. 5. The first true supermarket in the United States was opened by Michael J. Cullen, on August 4, 1930, inside a 6,000 square foot (560 m²) former garage in New York City. 6. Supermarkets have changed the look of our high streets, and as some argue, are causing the disappearance of small independent shops. 7. Goodwill was originally used to reflect the fact that an ongoing business had some “prudent value” beyond its assets, such as the reputation the firm enjoyed with its clients. 8. Goodwill can be negative. Negative goodwill is recognized as a liability. 9. House prices continued to rise throughout the 1980s. 10. As we have tried to show throughout this book, companies that provide outstanding service don’t do it by luck.

 

Task 8. In the text “Advertising” (Task 3) find antonyms of the following words.

 

1. rural; 2. illegible; 3. repulsive; 4. ugly; 5. informal; casual; 6. decreasingly; less; 7. incomprehensible; 8. undercommunicated; 9. colourless; neutral; dull; 10. impractical, unreasonable, unsensible.

Task 9. Find synonyms among the following words from the text “Advertising” (Task 3).

 

1. idea; 2. scope; 3. entity; 4. extent; 5. to build; 6. concept; 7. colorful; 8. picturesque; 9. to construct; 10. organization;

Task 10. Which words do the following attributes describe? Refer to the text “Advertising” (Task 3) to check your answers.

 

-----------	-----------	-----------
warm;	formal;	lively;
human;	digni­fied;	simple;
colorful;	down-to-earth;	full of personality.
personal;	conversational;
de­scriptive;
picturesque;

 

Task 11. Relate the words in the box with the actions denoted by the following infinitives. Refer to the text “Advertising” (Task 3) to check your answers.

 

people	companies	advertising	economic events
products	advertisers	copywriters	citizens of big cities

 

1.to shout; 2.to speak; 3.to be born; 4.to be heard; 5.to advertise;

6.to take place; 7.to develop styles; 8.to be likened (to); 9.to be exposed (to); 10.to be directed (at);

11.to re­spond (better to); 12.to invade (public places); 13.to like (specific) language; 14.to build a conversational tone; 15.to make (somebody more) attractive.

 

Task 12. a) Make the difference between the following words.

Because the words sound alike, copywriters are sometimes confused with people who work in copyright law. These careers are unrelated.   · Copyright is the set of exclusive rights granted to the author or creator of an original work, including the right to copy, distribute and adapt the work. These rights can be licensed, transferred and / or assigned. Copyright lasts for a certain time period after which the work is said to enter the public domain. Copyright applies to a wide range of works that are substantive and fixed in a medium. Some jurisdictions also recognize “moral rights” of the creator of a work, such as the right to be credited for the work.   · Most copywriters are employees within organizations such as advertising agencies, public relations firms, company advertising departments, large stores, marketing firms, broadcasters and cable providers, newspapers, book publishers and magazines. Copywriters can also be independent contractors freelancing for a variety of clients, at the clients’ offices or working from their own, or partners or employees in specialized copywriting agencies. A copywriter usually works as part of a creative team. Agencies and advertising departments partner copywriters with art directors. The copywriter has ultimate responsibility for the advertisement’s verbal or textual content, which often includes receiving the copy information from the client.

 

b) Translate into Ukrainian paying special attention to the words in italics.

 

1. Copywriters are similar to technical writers and the careers may overlap. 2. The Internet has expanded the range of copywriting opportunities to include web content, ads, commercial emails and other online media. 3. The Statute of Anne 1709, full title “An Act for the Encouragement of Learning, by vesting the Copies of Printed Books in the Authors or purchasers of such Copies, during the Times therein mentioned”, is now seen as the origin of copyright law. 4. Since the 19^th century copyright is described under the umbrella term intellectual property along with patents and trademarks. 5. Copyright has been internationally standardized, lasting between fifty and one hundred years from the author’s death, or a shorter period for anonymous or corporate authorship.

Task 13. Some words can be used both as a noun and as an adjective (noun / verb). Complete the table with the appropriate words from the text “Advertising” (Task 3).

 

№	ІМЕННИК	ПРИКМЕТНИК	ПЕРЕКЛАД
1.	публіка; громадськість; народ	громадський; державний; народний, загальнонародний; публічний, загальнодоступний;	-----------
2.	комерційна реклама; рекламний ролик, рекламне оголошення; комерційна радіо- чи телепередача (оплачена рекламодавцем);	торговельний, комерційний; такий, метою якого є отримання прибутку	-----------
3.	потенціал; можливість;	потенційний; можливий;	-----------
4.	постріл; стрілець; гарматне ядро; удар; спроба;	переливчастий; що вилискує різними барвами;	-----------
	ІМЕННИК	ДІЄСЛОВО
5.	отвір; тріщина, розколина, щілина; розкол, розрив (стосунків);	ламати(ся); розбивати(ся); рвати(ся); розривати(ся); руйнувати(ся); зламувати;	-----------
6.	число, кількість; номер; сума; випуск, примірник (газети тощо);	нумерувати; нараховувати; рахувати; бути в числі (among, in); зараховувати;	-----------
7.	міра; одиниця виміру; мірка; масштаб, мірило, критерій; ступінь; межа	міряти, вимірювати, відміряти; знімати мірку; оцінювати, визначати (характер тощо); мати розміри	-----------
8.	вирок; рішення (судове); речення; сентенція, вислів;	засуджувати, присуджувати.	-----------

 

Task 14. Translate into English.

 

1. Ми живемо в суспільстві, в якому спостерігається надлишок комунікації. 2. Реклама виконує функцію комунікації. 3. Реклама, що народилася тисячі років тому, сьогодні заполонила громадські місця. 4. Експерти вважають, що середньостатистичний житель великого міста щодня зазнає впливу понад 500 рекламних повідомлень. 5. Реклама спрямована на велику кіль-кість потенційних покупців. 6. Основні функції реклами – інформувати і переконувати – не змінилися за всю історію. 7. Основними типами реклами є корпоративна реклама та товарна реклама. 8. У звичайному супермаркеті ми можемо знайти понад 10 тисяч найменувань продукції.

9. Реклама є мегафоном компаній, які змушені “кричати”, щоб бути почутими покупцями. 10. Реклама повинна бути зрозумілою і читабельною. 11. Дослідження свідчать, що покупці краще реагують на практичний, розмовний тон, а не на більш поважний, формальний. 12. Копірайтери повинні розробляти описовий, яскравий і навіть колоритний стиль. 13. Копірайтери намагаються використовувати прості та сповнені особистості слова. 14. Рекламодавці віддають перевагу словам, які передбачають, що їхній товар особливо високої якості. 15. Економічний ефект реклами можливо порівняти з початковим ударом (розбиттям) у пулі чи більярді. 16. Як тільки компанія розпочинає рекламувати, стається ланцюгова реакція економічних подій.

 

Task 15. Answer the questions.

 

1. Do we live in an undercommunicated or overcommunicated society? Support your opinion with the facts from the text.

2. Is advertising an invention of modern overcommunicated society?

3. How is advertising usually defined?

4. Has the purpose of advertising changed throughout history?

5. What are the two basic types of advertising?

6. Which type of advertising involves selling a good or service?

7. Why do companies need advertising?

8. What language do advertisers prefer?

9. What tone in advertising do most people respond better to?

10. What can the economic effect of advertising be compared to? Why?

 

Task 16. Practice reading the following words.

1. advert[`ædvə:t] 2. advertisement[əd`və:tısmənt] 3. brochure[`brəu∫ə] 90% / [brou`∫uər] 10% 4. code[kəud] / [koud] 5. commercial[kə`mə:∫əl] 6. contemporary[kən`tempər ə;ri] 7. dawn[dO:n] 8. decent[`di:sənt] 9. digital[`dıGıtəl] 10. to distribute[dı`strıbju:t] 74% / [`dıstrıbju:t] 26% 11. to ensure[ın`∫O:] / [ın`∫uər] 12. excerpt n [`eksə:pt] 13. feature[`fi:t∫ə] / [`fi:t∫ər] 14. flyer[`fla ı;ə] / [`flaıər]

15. format[`fO:mæt] / [`fO:rmæt] 16. frontier[`frAntıə] / [frAn`tıər] 17. honest[`Onıst] / [`α:nəst] 18. impact n [`ımpækt] 19. jingle[`Gıŋgəl] 20. legal[li:gəl] 21. logo[`lOgə u ] 22. media[`mi:diə] 23. otherwise[`Aðəwaız] / [`Aðərwaız] 24. pleasant[`plezənt] 25. Popunder (pop-under)[`pOp`Andə] 26. Popup (pop-up)[`pOpAp] / [`pα:pAp] 27. spam[spæm]

Task 17. Read the text.