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1 The Gruen Transfer describes water advertising as creating differences (USPs) between products that are essentially the same. Can you think of other products/services that might fall into this category?
2 Looking at your answer to Question 1, what are potential USPs that could be used to distinguish these products/services from each other? Why do you think these would be effective?
3 Both the Coca-Cola case study and The Gruen Transfer discuss a product's branding and target demographics as potential differentiators. Take two brands in each of three different product/service categories (e.g. two chocolate bars, two brands of moisturizer, two airlines) and compare and contrast within each category:
- a. The target demographic of each product/service
- b. The primary brand values of each product/service
4 "Advertisements are now so numerous that they are very negligently perused, and it is therefore become necessary to gain attention by magnificence of promises and by eloquence sometimes sublime and sometimes pathetic." Samuel Johnson (1709-1784)
- What do you think Johnson meant by this? Do you think his comment still has relevance today?
- What do you think are the main differences between advertising in Johnson's day and now? You may like to consider such things as target demographics, advertising mediums and branding. How do you think these differences have affected advertising as a whole?
- Do you think that the changes in our society have made advertising more or less powerful since Johnson was writing?
EXTENSION ACTIVITIES
1 Advertising is part of the way a business promotes itself to the public and its potential customers. What is the difference between advertising, marketing and PR? How do they fit together? What are some of the potential activities within each?
2 Read the following quotes. Which one do you agree with more? Give reasons for your answer.
These quotes could form the basis of an essay, group discussion, or class debate.
"History will see advertising as one of the real evil things of our time. It is stimulating people constantly to want things, want this, want that." Malcolm Muggeridge, quoted in Eric Clark, The Want Makers: Inside the World of Advertising, 1988
"Doing business without advertising is like winking at a girl in the dark. You know what you are doing, but nobody else does." Steuart Henderson Britt |
MLA Case Studies