Persuasion Techniques

using a sense of urgency to support your claim.

• transfer

• kairos

• bribery

• weasel words

using a list of reasons to support your claim. Example: "Here are five reasons why Tide is better."

• plain folks

• kairos

• card stacking

• snob appeal

using the common, ordinary person to support your claim

• plain folks

• snob appeal

• patriotism

• weasel words

when the good qualities such as beauty, 'coolness', health, wealth of someone in an ad is passed onto the user of a product.

• bribery

• transfer

• plain folks

• snob appeal

offers you something 'extra' - Buy a burger; get free fries

• transfer

• card stacking

• kairos

• bribery

appeal suggest that you can be like the wealthy, well-dressed people who support this product

• plain folks

• weasel words

• snob appeal

• bribery

terms or phrases intended to mislead listeners by implying something that they don't actually say - 'may, might, can could, some...'

• kairos

• card stacking

• transfer

• weasel words

the suggestion that purchasing this product means that you love your country - 'proudly made in the USA,' for instance.

• patriotism

• weasel words

• snob appeal

• plain folks

Many ads use testimonials to back up claims about a product with a personal endorsement. Testimonials come in many forms. Sometimes the endorsement comes from a regular, relatable person. This shows that everyday people—just like you—use and enjoy a product. In other cases, a testimonial comes from a celebrity to lend a product credibility or suggest that using the product will make you more interesting, glamorous, or talented—in other words, more like that famous person. Testimonials also come from experts in a certain field. If a toothpaste is recommended by an actual dentist, you may be more likely to use it.

Why might an advertiser use a testimonial in their ad?

• To make a product seem relatable

• To make a product seem exciting

• To make a product seem credible

• All of the above.

There are many more persuasive techniques out there beyond bandwagon, avant-garde, testimonials, statistics, glittering generalities, and transfer. Next time you see an advertisement, try to spot some of these techniques. The more you practice, the more informed you will be when it comes to evaluating advertising messages. Advertising isn’t inherently bad, but a bit of skepticism goes a long way as you work toward becoming an informed consumer.

What is the main idea of the passage?

• The majority of advertisements are deceptive and should be avoided at all costs.

• There are only six persuasive techniques in advertising.

• The most effective persuasive technique is a testimonial.

• To be an informed consumer, it’s important to understand and critique ads.