Нармухаметова
Н.М., Бондарь А.В.
L.N.
Gumilyov Eurasian National University
The language of adverts
Advertising
is a strong communication device and an important marketing instrument that
helps to merchandise ideas, goods and services.
Language
plays an essential role in advertising to convey specific ideas with the
intention of influencing people. Thus, language has a very powerful impact on
people and their behaviour.
According
to Leech the structure of language in advertising has a peculiar form and many
factors prompt the copywriter to choose his vocabulary. For this reason, the
copywriter puts into account language variety as regards the target audience
and also ensures that his choice of language. Leech outlined four basic
characteristics for successful advertising. These are:
Ø Attention value: This refers to the unorthodox use of language to
provoke the consumer’s attention and curiosity by presenting something
surprising and unexpected.
Ø Readability: The advertisement must be easy to grasp and assimilate.
Ø Memorability: An advertisement gains nothing unless the name of the
product is remembered. In fact, it is desirable that part of the stylistic
message should memorised. This includes brand names, slogans, key phrases,
couplets of songs.
Ø Selling power: One of the most striking features of the language of
advertising is
an
extreme infrequency of imperative clauses aimed at attracting potential buyers
to goods and services being advertised.
Competitive
market demands informative, instructive, distinctive, alluring, persuasive, brief and concise language.
Merchants
use rhyme and rhythm in order to make an advertisement attractive to the ears
of the customers. The use of language in advertising could be subjective and
objective. The subjective factor is that the writer’s linguistic competence
regulates his vocabulary usage, style and creative ability to conform with the
stylistic tendencies peculiar to the agency and his consciousness of the
advertisers objectives successfully in good write-ups would portray the
language use as being objective.
One way in which
advertisers adapt language to their own use is to take compound words and use
them as adjectives. These compounds often later become widely used in normal
situations. Examples of these compounds which have become part of the English
language are: top-quality, economy-size,chocolate-flavoured, feather-light and longer-lasting.
The language of
advertising is, of course, normally very positive and emphasizes why one
product stands out in comparison with another. Advertising language may not
always be "correct" language in the normal sense. For example, comparatives
are often used when no real comparison is made. An advertisement for a
detergent may say "It gets clothes whiter", but whiter than what?
Advertisers have
in their arsenal list of common adjectives and verbs affectively persuade consumers.
|
Adjectives |
Verbs |
||
|
1. |
new |
1. |
make |
|
2. |
good/better/best |
2. |
get |
|
3. |
free |
3. |
give |
|
4. |
fresh |
4. |
have |
|
5. |
delicious |
5. |
see |
|
6. |
full |
6. |
buy |
|
7. |
sure |
7. |
come |
|
8. |
clean |
8. |
go |
|
9. |
wonderful |
9. |
know |
|
10. |
special |
10. |
keep |
|
11. |
crisp |
11. |
look |
|
12. |
fine |
12. |
need |
|
13. |
big |
13. |
love |
|
14. |
great |
14. |
use |
|
15. |
real |
15. |
feel |
|
16. |
easy |
16. |
like |
|
17. |
bright |
17. |
choose |
|
18. |
extra |
18. |
take |
|
19. |
safe |
19. |
start |
|
20. |
rich |
20. |
taste |
|
|
|
|
|