The Art of Ad Analysis: What It Is and How to Do It
Have you ever been so impressed by a television or online advertisement that you wanted to take a screen capture? Have you ever pondered the criteria for selecting which celebrities to use in which commercials? If you find yourself pondering things like these, you may have already taken your first steps into Ad Analysis.
So, you may be wondering, what exactly is Ad Analysis? Simply said, it's the process of analyzing a commercial to determine its purpose and efficiency.
Unlocking the Mystery of Ad Analysis Methods
Ad Analysis may be carried out using a wide variety of frameworks and approaches, each of which has its own specific advantages. The 5Ms model and Gunn's Principles are only two such examples. However, the method we use around here isn't called anything special. It's a straightforward and simple strategy for understanding the confusing realm of marketing that everyone can use.
Distinguishing Between the Two Facets of Ad Analysis
If you separate the process of ad analysis into its strategic and tactical parts, you'll find that it's not as onerous as it first seems. These components are the foundation on which every advertising rests.
Strategies: Exposing the 'Insight' and 'AIDA Target'
When a business chooses to make an advertisement, it does so to accomplish a number of goals. The first phase of any Ad Analysis is to determine what these goals are, often known as the "Insight." This is commonly combined with the "AIDA Target," which stands for "Awareness," "Interest," "Desire," and "Action" and describes the basic objectives of every advertising campaign.
Elements of Strategy:
Every time a business decides to run an advertisement, it has specific goals in mind that it hopes to accomplish. Finding that goal, or what I used to refer to as the "Insight" behind the advertisement, is the first rule of any ad analysis. The main insight is, therefore, the first thing you look for in an advertisement, which frequently calls for some research on the brand's present operations.
The 'AIDA Target' is the second strategic component. AIDA, or awareness, interest, desire, and action, are the four fundamental goals of any advertising campaign. You should be able to tell after seeing the advertisement which the firm is aiming its message towards. As soon as you have the insight, you can deduce it.
Tactical Elements:
These are the filmmaking components that were employed for the advertisement. They consist of the following:
Tone:
You can tell right away what the tone of the advertisement is by watching it just once. Fact-based, Emotional, Humor, and Testimonial are a few examples. These kinds, influence how the advertisement affects the viewer; thus, they must align with the goal. A new brand with "Awareness" as its AIDA aim should adopt a "Fact-based" tone for optimal impact.
Characters:
Every advertisement has a few characters. They could be famous people, regular people, or animated characters. The selection must be consistent with the defined objectives. Using the preceding illustration, a new company should pick celebrities to increase recognition.
Music:
Background music may assist in creating tension, fear, happiness, and other emotions. Therefore, it must be consistent with the ad's "Tone."
Visuals:
In general, two categories of visuals need consideration. The setting of the narrative comes first. The viewer finds it easier to comprehend an advertisement if the tale's setting is conveyed in the first paragraph. Brand identification is the second visual. Even before the advertisement closes with that disclosure, the brand name might be emphasized using other ad components.
Message:
The words that the characters use or say or are highlighted on the screen significantly influence the viewer's subconscious. For the spectator to understand them, they must be spoken.
Evaluation:
The next stage is to examine the previously indicated seven criteria—Insight, AIDA Target, Tone, Characters, Music, Visuals, and Message—and determine whether they all work well together. Sometimes you'll also need to run some numbers to see if that advertisement successfully generated the desired awareness rate or sales statistics. However, it is frequently impossible to accomplish that outside of the business.
A Case Study
To demonstrate how ad analysis is carried out, let me give a particular instance:
Ad Analysis
Strategic Elements:
Insight - You can figure out what Cadbury was attempting to do with this advertisement by looking online or by giving it some more thought. The fundamental premise of the play is that most people thought of chocolate as a kid's delight. By claiming that even grownups can experience the pleasure of a chocolate bar in this advertisement, Cadbury hopes to entice adults.
AIDA Target - You may infer from the insight that Cadbury's goal is to stimulate "Interest" among the adult audience in chocolate as a luxury commodity.
Tactical Elements:
Tone - The advertisement has a very emotive tone. The entire narrative contains a joyful factor. Since Cadbury was already a well-known brand among adults, a fact-based tone was not employed. Adults would not have responded to humor as strongly as they would to delight.
Characters - If you've noticed, characters in the age range that Cadbury wants to target are regular people. The man's appearance, which is reminiscent of a little kid in his early 20s, represents the inner child in all adults. Celebrities are frequently used in factual advertisements. Here, the regular people help adult viewers visualize themselves more readily.
Music - If you watched the advertisement again, you would note that the music begins softly before becoming more upbeat as the tale progresses. The music is at its best and leaving a lasting impression on the spectator right as the man starts dancing on the ground, and the crowd gets up to applaud.
Visuals - The advertisement opens with a cricket match and the crowd. But the most significant image was the scoreboard, which said "99," which you might not have even noticed consciously. When you view the advertisement, your brain creates stress as a result of this. You sincerely hope the batsman scores a hundred. The second aspect of brand identification is referenced frequently in the advertisement. The man is initially shown consuming Cadbury Dairy Milk before another image of him panicking because he thinks the batsman will be caught stealing comes. The chocolate is still in his palm as he dances on the ground before the advertisement's conclusion, which portrays Cadbury as the brand behind the ad.
Message - The final picture and the music convey that Cadbury is the taste of life. Choose a Cadbury whenever you are experiencing joy or happiness.
Conclusion
The ad's overall review demonstrates that it is one of the most remembered advertising of its period, responsible for adult chocolate consumption in India.
A critical step is called ad analysis to evaluate an advertisement's effectiveness and define its goal. Understanding the strategic and tactical components of advertising, such as the Insight and AIDA Target, Tone, Characters, Music, Visuals, Message, and Evaluation, is required. Splitting this procedure into two sections becomes less intimidating and more doable. Some several theories and methods may be used for ad analysis, but the best way is to view these elements as the cornerstone of each advertising campaign. An understanding of ad analysis is crucial for companies and marketers who want to produce effective advertising that meets their objectives and connect with their target market.
I hope that, especially if you're interested in marketing, this will help you form the habit of analyzing ads. The advertising sector has consistently sparked my curiosity. This was one of my earliest attempts to write something unrelated to my area of expertise. In that case, please let me know whether you appreciate it and would want more postings like these.
