Most people know what commercial advertising is, but they don’t really understand how it works. Commercial ads are everywhere. They’re on TV, the Internet, and even in your mailbox. But have you ever wondered how commercials are made? Or why do companies spend so much money on them?
We’ve created a short guide to help you learn more about commercial advertising and how to make a successful commercial ads campaign. We hope that our guide will help answer all your questions!
What is commercial advertising?
Commercial advertising is a part of the marketing communication mix.
The marketing communication mix consists of four types of activities: Product (what you sell), Price (how you price your product), Place (where you sell your product), Promotion (how you inform consumers about your product).
Commercial advertising is the promotion of a product or service by an identified sponsor. It can be in any medium, including print, broadcast, outdoor and direct mail, but not usually social media.
How to make effective commercial ads?
The four basic steps are: plan the concept; write the script; produce the commercial; and, finally, test it before you air it.
Plan the concept
First, you need to consider your target audience. This will help an advertisement appeal to its purpose and the people who would most benefit from it.
Next, what is it that your product or service offers? What makes your company unique and better than others? Now think about what sort of tactics and strategies you want to use to convey this information to your target group. What are the most effective strategies that would help you achieve this?
Write the script
Once you have decided on an idea for your commercial, write the script. Keep it tight, between 30 and 45 seconds.
Think of what creative aspect will work best with the message, company brand, and audience. Think about color schemes, sounds, graphics, actors/actresses who would fit well with your product or service. Make sure all creative elements work well together and adjust accordingly.
Produce the commercial
This usually involves hiring a production company to put your concept on film or tape. This part can be tricky – so it’s important that you plan ahead as much as possible for this stage.
In what outlets would you like to release your advertisement? What time of day is best for an advertisement’s exposure, and what time zone would you like this exposure to take place in? Who are the most popular media sites for this type of content, and which ones would work well with your target audience?
Test the commercial before you air it
Once you have produced the commercial, you should test it with patients or customers before airing it in its final version. Testing a commercial in a focus group is a good way to get feedback on the commercial and identify areas that need revision.
This is a list of things that you need to consider when your business ran a commercial ads campaign.
What are Commercial Advertising Techniques?
There are several techniques for commercial advertising:
Demographic Positioning
For decades, commercial advertisers have used demographic data to target their ads towards specific audiences. Demographic information is useful for these advertisers because it allows them to ensure that their target audiences are exposed to their ads. Demographics can include age, gender, race, income level, and profession, just to name a few. Demographic targeting is often seen in television commercials and magazine advertisements, where the advertiser tries to reach out to potential consumers of their product or service.
Dramatic Conflict
Dramatic Conflict is a technique in which the advertiser tries to connect with an emotionally invested audience. For example, if their product was used in some way to help someone in need or save lives, people would be more likely to remember this fact when exposed to an advertisement for that product.
Emotion
One major technique that advertisers use to reach out to the intended audience members is through emotion. Advertisers know their audience and, as a result, know exactly what emotions to trigger in order to make people feel compelled enough to purchase their product or service.
For example, if a commercial for a car shows a single mom driving her child around in one, people are more likely to purchase that car because of the positive emotion they associate with it.
Big Exaggerations
One technique that advertisers use to grab viewers’ attention and make the product or service seem more appealing is an exaggeration. Big exaggerations might include features in a car’s interior or its speed, for example. One example of this would be in a commercial for a sports car, where it says it can go from 0-60Mph in 3 seconds.
Interesting Characters
Interesting Characters are a technique where advertisers use characters that the audience can relate to. For example, if an advertiser was advertising athletic shoes, they would choose a teenager who was involved in sports and showed how well he or she could perform while wearing the shoes.
Promise Benefits
A popular technique used in advertising is the Promise of Benefit. An advertiser using this technique is essentially promising that their product or service will provide some kind of benefit to the consumer. An example would be a car ad that talks about how fast the car goes or how many cup holders it has, while promising that owning the sports car will make people feel important or attract members of the opposite sex.
Common mistakes when using commercials advertisement
Avoid these comment mistakes below before you start your commercial ads campaign
Focusing on the business
The first mistake most companies make during a commercial is focusing on the business itself. This will cause potential customers to forget about your offer, and they’ll have no reason to purchase what you’re selling. A good way to avoid this problem is by making a commercial that focuses on a single person or small group of people; after all, people like to relate to other people, not a company.
Using the wrong tone
The second common mistake that most companies make is trying too hard with the commercial’s tone. Your commercial doesn’t have to sound exactly like a nighttime drama or some other popular show. You should be yourself and let your voice and personality shine through in what you say. If you try too hard, you’ll sound fake and that will turn off potential customers before they even know your company exists.
Not including important info
The third common mistake is forgetting to include crucial details about your product or service in the commercial itself. If people can’t tell what you’re selling during the commercial, they’ll forget about it before they can make an informed decision.
Using cheap gimmicks
Another common mistake is using cheap gimmicks to boost your ad’s appeal. Just because something worked for one company doesn’t mean that it will work for yours too. Be original and find ways to give your commercial a unique feel that will make it stand out from the rest.
Having overused graphics
Top-notch graphics won’t hurt, but using the same graphic style in every commercial can bore viewers to tears. Be creative and think of new ways to attract potential customers each time you produce a commercial.
What are the types of commercial advertising?
The types of commercial advertising:
- Print (newspaper, magazine, and outdoor)
- Electronic (television, radio, and cinema)
- Digital (internet and mobile).
What are the advantages of using commercial advertising?
Commercial advertising helps companies to inform their target audience about new products or demand current products. Using this type of advertisement also helps brand building because it makes consumers remember your company or product. It can be done through several channels and promotion types and the advantages of that are:
- It helps companies inform the target audience about new products or promote current ones
- It helps brand building and making consumers remember the product.
What are the disadvantages of commercial advertising?
The main disadvantage of commercial advertising is that it can be very expensive. Another disadvantage is that using this type of advertising can be very confusing for consumers, and they might buy the wrong product, which will not give them any benefit.
Commercials advertising is great for boosting awareness about your business. Understanding what is commercial ads, how it works and these common mistakes, your business can produce an effective commercial ad without wasting your resources. Just make sure to follow these steps to set your commercial ads campaign before you air it.
