BTEC Level 3 Diploma in Creative Media Production UNIT 30: Advertisement Production for Television LO1 Assignment No. 1. Title: Analysing Television Adverts Date Set:
September 2014
Date Due:
7th January 2014
Assessor:
Deb Lemmer
Learner:
Rationale: Advertising is all around us and is integral to everyday life. It is one of the largest sectors of the media industry, adverts being presented in a wide range of media such as television, film, radio, magazines, posters, billboards, the press, and the internet. Some television advertisements are so effective and memorable that they become classics and part of the cultural background for a whole generation of viewers. Television is used to market almost every product one can imagine from everyday consumables, like washing powder, to extravagant sports cars, whilst some advertisements promote a service such as insurance, banking or vehicle breakdown cover. Television advertising has become more and more sophisticated, utilising the very latest digital production techniques. Content and style can be simple or complex, using traditional narrative structures or less obvious surrealist imagery, and messages can be overt or understated. There seems to be no single approach which can be said to be more effective than another. This assignment considers how advertisements are structured, how they try to work and how persuasive messages can be constructed. Understanding these things will create a firm basis on which to plan the production of advertisements for television, as well as enabling you to become more discerning consumers. Through research and analysis, you will need to examine advertising production and explore the relationship between audience, medium
and message. Advertisers invariably aim at a highly specified target audience which, it is hoped, will associate with a particular brand and so choose to buy it. An understanding of how those audiences are thought about and how they are found is therefore essential. Scenario Brief: You are applying to become an apprentice at an advertising agency and they want you to show your awareness of persuasive strategies, media language and specific audiences by analysing a range of existing advertisements for television. Learning Outcomes: On completion of this Assessment Brief a learner should:
1. Know about the structures and techniques of television advertisements Grading Criteria: Pass
Merit
Distinction
To achieve a pass your work must:
To achieve a merit your work must:
To achieve a distinction your work must:
P1
Describe structures and techniques of television advertisements with some appropriate use of subject terminology [IE]
M1
Explain structures and techniques of television advertisements with reference to detailed illustrative examples and with generally correct use of subject terminology
D1
Comprehensively explain structures and techniques of television advertisements with elucidated examples and consistently using subject terminology correctly
What you need to complete this assignment You will be expected to present: ● an analytical essay focusing on comparing the use of persuasive strategies and media language to target specific audiences in a range of advertisements made for television.
Important information about the assignment ● You need to complete each of the P tasks in order to meet the requirements for a Pass grade. ● You need to meet all of the Pass and Merit grade criteria to be awarded a Merit grade. ● You need to meet all of the Pass, Merit and Distinction grade criteria to be awarded a Distinction grade.
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You should check carefully over each task and look at the assessment criteria before you submit your work for assessment. Remember copying work from another student, a textbook, an internet site or any other source is plagiarism. You need to sign a statement when your assignment is completed to state that your assignment is all of your own work! You must meet the deadline or you will fail the unit. The Lead Internal Verifier must authorise any resubmissions. The learner must have met the initial deadline (or an agreed extension deadline) and authenticated their work. The resubmission date must be within 10 working days of the learner receiving the results of the assessment.
References Relevant books: Teaching Television Advertisements, Wendy Helsby, Auteur Publishing Creative Advertising, Mario Pricken, Thames & Hudson Relevant Websites: A range of advertisements with commentaries to support, links to advertising agencies, production companies, the ASA and advertising industry online publications found at: http://tallismedia.weebly.com/level-3-unit-30.html P1, M1, D1
Learning Outcome 1: Know about the structures and techniques of television advertisments
Task Write an analytical essay which demonstrates your understanding of the advertising industry’s use of persuasive strategies and media language to target specific audience groups in a range of television commercials. In order to cover the content criteria you will need to demonstrate your understanding of: ● The structure of TV advertisements: form, eg realist narrative, antirealist narrative, animation, documentary, talking heads, stand alone, series; style, eg humorous, surreal, dramatic, parodic; codes and conventions (camera angle, shot, iconography, editing, lighting, sound, music); computer graphics; special effects ● The techniques TV advertisers use: hidden and overt messages; emotional responses or association, eg solution to a problem, fear, concern, compassion, selfperception, social position; celebrity endorsement
● The characteristics of products or services: benefits offered; advantages over other similar products; unique selling proposition (USP); lifestyle appeal; brand identity ● The regulation of TV advertisements: Advertising Standards Authority (ASA); Ofcom ● Audience classification: Standard Occupational Classification; psychographics; geodemographics; by age; by gender ● Sources of information: rates cards; advertisers’ information packs; research agency websites The remaining content criteria for LO1: Unit 30: Advertisement Production for Television ● Audience information: audience measurement panels; ratings; facetoface interviews; focus groups; questionnaires; programme profiles; Broadcasters’ Audience Research Board (BARB); television research agencies will be assessed in the assessment assignments for LO2 and 3 of this unit.