CHAPTER I
INTRODUCTION
“Photography is defined as the art or practice of taking and processing photographs. Aesthetics in photography is how people usually characterize beauty in this form of art. There are various ways in which aesthetics is defined by different people. There exists no single consent on what it exactly pertains to. The broad idea is that photographic images that are pleasing to the eyes are considered to be higher in terms of their aesthetic beauty. While the average individual may simply be interested in how soothing a picture is to the eyes, a photographic artist may be looking at the composition of the picture, the use of colours and light, and any additional meanings conveyed by the picture.”1 In advertising, it is well known that a picture is worth a thousand words. Advertisements bombard us with the photograph of new products. Advertisers want to communicate, persuade, influence and lead the consumers to take some action.
Every year Billions of dollars are spent on advertising. Out of these billions are born the messages that tell us where to invest, what to eat, how to dress, how to gain weight, how to get slim and they even claim to offer solutions to anything that we find difficult in our life. . Advertisements have the capacity to shape our everyday plans and decisions.2
In the advertising world, creating impressions is the key issue. Ad campaigns are measured based on impressions –what are customers impressions of the product (favourable?), can the user recall it (especially after being exposed to hundreds of advertisements a day) etc. And so marketers and advertisers had to stretch their imaginations to create ads that last, that stick. Despite the pervasive use of images in advertisements, there is little understanding of how consumers perceive visual information and process it and few studies have focused on this area of research (Kim, Damhorst, & Lee, 2002; Oh & Jasper, 2006).
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1 Studying Aesthetics in Photographic Images Using a Computational Approach by Ritendra Datta, Dhiraj Joshi, Jia Li James Z. Wang, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16802, USA .
2The Semiotics of Visual Communication in Print Advertisements: How to Read between the Lines Gajendra S Chauhan, Ph. D
The importance of images as a means of persuasion in advertisements, with a few exceptions, has been viewed as secondary to copy (text) in advertisements (Messaris, 1997). However, these views are slowly changing as research on cognition and perception suggest that even images such as sketches or stick figures may trigger the same kind of cognitive processes as verbal information (Messaris, 1997). Unfortunately, the framework to assess the effects of images in advertisements is not as well developed as that of copy (Forceville, 1996; Messaris 1997; Scott, 1994a, 1994b).“Picture or illustrations accompanied by the client’s logo are the only means of attention-grabbing and desire building.”3
1.1Definition of Terms
1.1.1 Marketing
According to a social definition, marketing is a societal process by which individuals and groups obtain what they need and want through creating, offering, and exchanging products and services of value freely with others. As a managerial definition, marketing has often been described as “the art of selling products.”4 But Peter Drucker, a leading management theorist, says that the aim of marketing is to make selling superfluous. The aim of marketing is to know and understand the customer so well that the product or service fits him and sells itself. Ideally, marketing should result in a customer who is ready to buy.
1.1.2 Advertising
Advertising is the means by which the goods or services are promoted and presented to the target audience. Advertising is one of the most effective tools of promotion. It includes those activities by which visual or oral messages are addressed to the public for the purposes of informing them and influencing them either to buy merchandise or services or to act or be inclined favourably toward ideas, institutions, or persons featured.
Contrasted with publicity and other forms of propaganda, advertising messages are identified with the advertiser either by signature or by oral statement. In further contrast to publicity, advertising is a commercial transaction involving payment to publishers or broadcasters and others whose media are employed. Advertising has 2 general goals which are, increase consumer awareness of the company, product, or service; persuade consumers to try the product or service and return to buy them.5
1.1.3 History of advertisement
Advertising in ancient and medieval times: The basic reason for employing the advertising techniques during earlier times was the same as now: to communicate information and ideas to groups of people in order to change or reinforce attitude. Knowledge of advertising in ancient times was fragmentary. The digging of archaeologies in the countries rimming the Mediterranean Sea have turned up evidence that the Romans and some of their predecessors had learned that “It pays to advertise”, Three forms of advertising were used prior to the time the printing press began to open the door to the development of modern mass communication media. 5
1.1.4 The Print Ads
Advertisements are found in many places and in many forms. One of those forms is known as print advertising. Advertisements in this category include those that are printed on some type of paper handled by the potential audience. This includes offers sent through the mail and posted in newspapers. A print advertisement can only be effective if people see it. When people are looking through publications, they have a tendency to be receptive to new information and observant of things of interest. One method of print advertising aims to attract people to products and services as they are reading or scanning publications. 6
A great deal of planning generally goes into this type of advertising. This often requires a team of individuals. There may be other individuals who deal with placement. Generally, the larger the advertisement, the more it costs to place it in a publication. Also, some areas of publications can be considered premium spots, and these are expensive. It is, therefore, important for a publication to make sure its clients get the exposure they pay for. The designers of the print ads mostly use pictures, which are coupled with minimal linguistic material.
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3“No copy ads.”DzamicLazar
4 “Marketing Management Millenium Edition.”Philip Kotler, Tenth Edition
5“Advertising.” B.N Ahuja, and S.S Chhabra, Surjeet publications, Delhi
1.1.5 Early Printed Advertising:
The first known printed advertisement in the English language appeared in 1943. With time, printing gained popularity around the world, and later was being used in a fashion which led to the gradual growth and development of advertising, by providing a practical, readily available medium public. Most early newspaper advertisements were in the form of announcements. Prominent among early advertisers were importers of products new to England. For instance, the first offering of coffee was made in a newspaper ad in 1652, followed by an offering of chocolate in 1657, and of tea in 1658. 6
At the beginning of the 19th century, the main printed media- newspapers and magazines were less important to advertisers than posters, handbills, trade people’s “cards” listing their wares, “advertising engines”, horse-drawn wooden towers covered in posters and the “sandwich men” who walked the streets with poster boards strapped to their bodies. However by the middle of the century, newspapers and magazines were fast becoming the main sources for advertisers, as would commercial television and radio in the 20th century. 6
Today, we live in an image saturated society, and advertisements account for a significant proportion of this media stream. In newspapers and magazines, large, bold “display” advertisements are used to promote the products and services of well-known commercial names. In Britain, William Tayler founded the first advertising agency in 1786. Better known, however, is the agency founded by James white around 1800, which specialised in official recruitment advertising. The first independent advertising agency in North America was established by Volney Palmer in Philadelphia in 1842. Originally, people wanting to advertise their goods and services designed their own advertisements and gave them top relevant media for publication. Or they paid those already working in these media to design advertisements for them. 6
The last two decades of the 20th century witnessed the development of entirely new forms of communication, as well as rapid and fundamental changes in the existing media. In European countries, an explosion in the number of new commercial channels was greatly aided by the development of cable and satellite broadcasting of digital technology.
Meanwhile, the fact that powerful computers were now cheap enough to enable many people to purchase them for home use gave a huge boost to new forms of communication such as sending e-mails and surfing the Internet. Advertisers were quick to spot the commercial possibilities of these and many other forms of new technology. There are now more media than ever in which to advertise, and competition between the media for advertising has never been more intense.6
1.1.6 Photographic images
Pictures enjoy a superiority effect, meaning that they are cognitively processed much quicker than words, or other abstract concepts (Paivio, 1971; Kroeber-Riel, 1996). They are experiential, richer, more personally relevant, more closely linked to long-term memory, and therefore more effective in advertising (Lutz and Lutz, 1978; Rossiter, 1982; MacInnis and Price, 1987; Burns, Biswas and Babin, 1993). It is not astonishing, therefore, that advertising, has made extensive use of images in communication. 7
Photography as advertising is usually illustrative which is to express a predetermined idea. An aim is set before shooting pictures so that the objective of the photograph is accomplished. The photographs used for advertising always have a message more precise to be conveyed unlike normal photographs.
Advertising photography is a visual illustration of a story or a ‘promotional statement’. Usually in advertising photography the emphasis is on the product and also the model for e.g. a glamorous picture of a girl in a dress might be to say that this dress looks good on others too. The objective of any advertising photography is to get the product sold by making people develop interest in the product and create a positive attitude that creates desire in the mind of the viewer. Advertising photography is mainly used in newspapers and magazines “advertising illustration is the most encompassing area in the field of photography” (Encyclopaedia of practical photography)
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7Images of Nostalgia- Effects of Perceived Authenticity and Nostalgia on the Evaluation of Visual Images. Andrea Hemetsberger, Clemens Pirker.
In an advertising photography, it is important to have an idea as it is the starting point and also some sort of end to the story. It may be a simple message or a complex to be conveyed to the public though most of the time messages are interpreted by the viewer. The idea the photograph carries should be well communicated, only then the sale will follow and the job the photographer is entailed to will be well accomplished. Thus in Fashion, through the lens of photography, is shown remarkable diversity and innovation in the formative years of style and popularity. 7
1.1.7 Aesthetic
The sensitive selection or appreciation of formal, expressive, or symbolic qualities of the product or environment, providing non-instrumental benefits that result in pleasure or satisfaction (Fiore, 1997, p.4)
Colours:
According to Czinkota and Ronkainen (2004) colours are often used as a mechanism for brand identification, feature reinforcement, and differentiation. The authors also states that black, for instance, is considered the colour of mourning in United states and Europe, whereas white has the same symbolic value in Japan and most of the Far East. 8
According to Wells et al. (2003) colour can be used as an important visual element in addition to photos and illustration in a print advertisement. Colour can be used to attract attention, provide realism, establish moods and build brand identity. There is also different ways in how to use colour such as full-colour or spot-colour is the use of a black and white ad with an accent colour to highlight important elements. The use of spot colour is highly attention-getting, while full-colour ads are best used in order to convey realism. This is further discussed by Moriarty (1991) who argues, that the use of colour creates a contrast effect, which easily grabs the attention of the reader. 8
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8“Organising Print Ads Containing Scent -A case study on the organisation of print ad elements.” Anna Pulijeva, Peter Widen.
Wels et al.(2003) argues that colour can be an important part of a brand image and help convey a mood in an advertisement, which could be used by the advertisers who should know which colours convey different moods. Warm colours such as: red, yellow and orange, are used to convey happiness. Pastels are soft and often bring a friendly tone to a print ad. Earth tones are natural and no-nonsense. Cool colours such as: blue and green are calm, serene, reflective and intellectual. Yellow and red have the most attention getting power. Red may symbolize alarm and danger, as well as warmth. Black communicates a high drama and can express power and elegance. Because colour affects impressions of realism, as well as mood, and can be used to reinforce brand identity cues, its use sis not only an aesthetic decision, but also a strategic one(Wells et al.,2001)
According to Moriarty (1991) the objectives of colours use is:
Attention: Bright colours such as yellow and red, in general, are attention getting. A strong attention getting colour can be used with the centre of interest to make sure the eye is attracted to the most important element.
Emphasis: Using strong attention getting colours is another way to emphasis what is the most important element to be seen. In other words the colour is used to create emphasis through contrast.
Colour-coding: Sine colours are easy to remember, the retention process can be assisted if there is an indelible association between a colour and a product.
Finally, Moriarty (1991) argues that colour communicate, it speaks a language of its own. Successful advertising and successful advertising campaigns use colour as a powerful part of the message design. The author also emphasizes that the way a message is put together, both words and visuals, determents how the viewer proceeds middle elaborate and explains, and the ending is to anchor something in memory. Ineffective communication can result from poor order. Logic is also a function of organization; therefore the logic of the argument must follow clearly from point to point. Big jumps in logic, as well as faulty, can cause confusion.
1.1.8 Copy
All written or textual material in an advertisement (Imber & Toffler, 1987, p.119) 9
1.1.9 Intensity of the Imagery
As advertising is a lot about strong images and perceptions, the intensity of the imagery is quite understandable. Apart from the intense imagery, advertising also generates a lot of heated debates and ‘opinions’ among people. Yet, opinions, likes and dislikes on ads will keep coming from all corners because having opinions and expressing them is part and parcel of being human. The subjectivity of such opinions will also continue. After all advertising is seen and felt by most of us in our ‘personal’ domain, what we can identify with (what we like) and what we cannot (what we don’t like) (Tiwari Sanjay 2003). 9
1.2.0Teenagers
Teenagers, in this context of study mean only those between the age group of 13 to 19. Teenagers have purchasing influence and power far greater than ever, which accounts for the growth of marcom programs aimed at this group. They are noted for being highly conformist, narcissistic and fickle consumers. These characteristics pose great opportunities and yet challenges for marketing communication. 10
1.2.1 Advertising to teens
“Teenagers are a notoriously difficult to reach target group. This is because many teens rarely read newspapers and magazines, and their TV, radio, and online preferences are highly divergent, because of this it is difficult to reach teenagers with traditional mass media channels. Marketers are constantly on the lookout for non-traditional, cost effective ways to connect with this shifty target audience.” Advertising Promotion, and Other Aspects of Integrated Marketing Communications By Terence A. Shimp. There are number of reasons due to which marketers love teenagers, as they have money to burn, and the items they buy are largely “luxury” items, like clothing, electronics, and music. Most of their purchasing decisions are done independently. And they have significant influence on family purchases. Perhaps most importantly, companies know that once they have “branded” a teen, he or she is likely to be a customer for life, or from “cradle to grave. 10
1.2.2 Perception
Perception means to perceive. Audience perception thus means the way the consumers perceive the advertisement. Before an advertisement can accomplish its objective, it must enter in the mind of the receiver, it must be perceived. Perception is the process by which an individual receives, interprets and responds to stimuli in his environment. From the advertising viewpoint, it is the process by which a mental impression is formed from the stimuli within the consumer’s field of awareness. The consumer gives significant means of what is observed because this meaning depends on personal experience, memories, belief, and fantasia and so on. No two people will have the same impression of any given intensity. 11
1.2.3 Mangalore City
Mangalore is the chief port city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It is located about 350 kilometres west of the state capital, Bangalore. Mangalore is one of the fastest growing cities in country and important city in Karnataka. It is recognized as the educational hub because of its easy accessibility through road, railway, air, and sea transport. Mangalore is bound in the east by the Western Ghats and in the west by the Arabian Sea. Mangalore has housed diverse educational courses ranging from health, Management, Hospitality, technical and many more. Mangalore is a much preferred destination for higher education particularly professional courses in the world map. It hosts many Engineering Colleges, Medical Colleges and a number of other institutes. Students from all over the world flock to Mangalore in pursuit of quality education.
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9“The Semiotics of Visual Communication in Print Advertisements: How to Read Between the Lines.”Gajendra S. Chauhan, Ph.D.
11“Advertising and Sales Promotion.”Dr ShailaBootwal, Dr MD Lawrence, Sanjay R Mali
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