The advertising claim is talked in the unit 6. We are familiar with advertisement. We can see them on TV, in the newspapers, in magazines and in Internet, etc. Even you take a bus; you can see the advertisement on the body of bus. It is full of our life; of course, it Influences our life in certain way. Many people trust themselves that they can not ease to believe the advertising. Furthermore, when they see the advertisements on TV, they can criticize this product. They always say that the good product is not need to propagate by advertising. They don’t know that when they laugh at, belittle, and ignore the advertising, as a fact, they have been affect by advertising. This is known better by advertisers. And what product of advertisement you see more, the more possibility you choose it when you are shopping.
The claim is an important part of advertisements which can express the advertisers’ thoughts. The author says “they balance on the narrow line between truth and falsehood by a careful choice of words”. I think it is a difficulty work. An advertisement is successful or not dependences on the sale of its product. However, the customers are sensitive, they get the first information of this product may from its advertisement. So the words of it must be found the balance between truth and falsehood. I don’t understand the most of advertisements fall into the category of neither bold lies nor helpful consumers’ information. Could they not fall into the category of honest statement or downright lies? Why their statement includes truth and falsehood?
The author explains why so many ad claim fall into the category of false information. From the sentence which is “since no one superior product exists, advertising is used to create the illusion of superiority”. The author tells us the claim is very important in an advertisement. As we know, “best” is the top of good. Apparently, the “better” is lower than it. However, in advertisement, better means “best” but “best” only means “equal to”. A best product is not the best in its category but equal to others at most. The brand plays an important role in the advertising. The world brands have very high valuable. It can obtain more consumers of same products but different brands.
For the true superior product, it doesn’t need more words to describe it and its advertising-claim analysis is simply even if it is asked to offer some kind of convincing evidence of the superiority to show its true superior which is easy and clear. But for the non-superior product, it’s hard to use simply words to dress up it
The author tells us six basic techniques to create the necessary illusion of superiority.
