Emotional Appeal Elements in Advertising
Why is Attractiveness Important in Advertising?
Attractive elements are an effective method to facilitate attention-grabbing and memorability, which is the primary purpose of advertising. Advertisements aim to purchase a product or service by offering emotional or rational reasons to the consumer. Attractive elements used for increasing interest in the advertisement and for giving the desired message in a short and memorable way, create a reason for the consumer to take action.
Pros of Emotional Attractiveness
Emotional elements: It appeals to the consumer's emotions rather than rational and logical information. It seems that emotional elements are more successful than rational elements in terms of attracting attention and being remembered. In addition, emotional appeal elements can be read and explained more easily than rational elements.
Emotional appeal elements go beyond rational decision-making processes and appeal directly to consumers' feelings. In this way, it allows the brand and the consumer to establish a long-term relationship.
Campaigns that consumers can identify with their own life experiences and emotional states make it easier to establish a personal bond with the brand. Therefore, emotionally strong and original campaigns are needed.
Humor Appeal
Humor appeal is among the most frequently preferred methods to raise awareness and keep attention high. Advertisements that contain humorous elements attract more attention than other advertisements. However, such content, which is successful when done correctly, has a very high risk of failure. In addition, humor may vary according to different age groups, cultural and sociological situations. For this reason, it can be difficult to produce content that contains humor appeal. Successful humor content must be based on consumers' common understanding and experiences.
Sexual Attractiveness
It is an undisputed fact that sexuality attracts attention. Most people pay more attention to ads that contain sexual elements than other ads. In this sense, using sexuality in advertisements achieves the primary goal of advertising, which is to "attract attention". However, although sexuality is an interesting topic, it carries the risk of damaging brand reputation if used incorrectly. Another disadvantage of using sexuality as an attractive element is that sexual impulses override the message given.
Although sexuality is a part of daily life, it is still seen as a strict taboo in some societies. When using this type of advertising, research should be done on the sociocultural characteristics of the society in which the advertisement will be published, and advertisements should be prepared and presented accordingly.
Nostalgia Appeal
There are cultural touchpoints that do not recognize every generation. Nostalgia appeal aims to stimulate a sense of longing for the past by appealing to these touchpoints. Nostalgia appeal enables the consumer to associate the brand with nostalgic feelings by recalling positive memories of the past or old times.
Telling the brand's founding story or important milestones in a nostalgic way can be given as an example of nostalgia appeal. In addition, making consumers feel a sense of nostalgia through elements such as redesigning old product packaging, retro themes or cultural elements of past periods are among the factors that support nostalgia appeal.
Status Attractiveness
This approach, which emphasizes the promise of prestige, success, social status or social acceptance, creates an emotional connotation for the consumer to feel superior and special.
This type of attractiveness, which is generally associated with luxury, elitism and high standards of living, aims to make the consumer feel special when using the product or service offered. Status appeal is supported by elements of high quality, elegance and exclusivity. In this way, the promise of a prestigious and privileged life is created.
Products that are produced in limited numbers, appealing to a special audience or social group, and are a symbol of belonging to a certain group are part of status appeal.
Fear Appeal
Fear is a powerful emotion that leaves a lasting impact. This emotional response increases the likelihood that the advertising message will be remembered and will activate the consumer.
Fear can create a sense of urgency in consumers and can also be a source of motivation for behavioral change. The consequences of not taking action at the right time may lead the consumer to take an action.
It is extremely important that the fear evoked in the advertisement is related to the product or service. Fear should not be used as an emotional exploitation tactic to gain attention without a real connection to the brand or products being offered. Advertisers must balance creating an emotional impact and maintaining ethical standards.
Horror Elements Used
FOMO
Fear of missing out aims to create a fear in the consumer that he will miss the existing opportunity if he does not act early. FOMO is frequently used in situations that create a sense of urgency in the consumer, such as discount campaigns and limited production.
Fear of Change
This tactic aims to create fear that the order to which the consumer is accustomed will be disrupted. It emphasizes that the consumer must do something or change something to prevent this change from occurring.
Fear of Rejection and Exclusion
Fear of social rejection is a method that targets people's needs for acceptance and belonging. This type of advertising aims to motivate consumers by promising that certain products or services will ensure social harmony or avoid social embarrassment. For example, advertisements for skin care products that emphasize the fear of being judged for their imperfect skin are examples of this.
Fear of Personal Safety and Security
This method creates a feeling of vulnerability and the need for protection by highlighting the risks and dangers individuals may face without the product or service. These fear-based advertisements are used to persuade consumers to take action to protect themselves and their beloved ones.
Conclusion
When emotional appeal elements are used correctly and effectively, they create effective strategies to attract the consumer’s attention and increase brand awareness. Humor, sexuality, nostalgia, status and fear appeals can be used to increase the success of advertisements under appropriate circumstances. However, it is of great importance that these elements are used in accordance with ethical, cultural and social values.
