Aidan Duke

Writer

Advertising is a very important and unique tool in today’s society that allows consumers to have endless options for products or services.

Though there are many different techniques used in advertising, the ultimate goal of all advertisers is to gain the attention of possible customers.

Over the years many people have contributed to the science and technology of advertising including Greek philosopher Aristotle.

Aristotle is best known for his ideas of the three categories used to divide and separate advertisements: logos, pathos and ethos.

First, logos is the logical side that marketers use to try and appeal to their consumers.

Secondly, pathos is the emotional side of reasoning, and lastly, ethos is the ethical or credible type of reasoning.

These three concepts are still highly useful today in marketing and can have a major impact on people and the choices they make when purchasing goods.

Not only have companies used traditional ways of advertising, many are also using science in advertising including psychology to influence customers even more.

Psychology is used in ads to give people a boost of encouragement so the commercials stay on the consumers minds at all times.

There are various types of psychology used in commercials, one of these types being cognitive psychology.

According to psychcentral.com, cognitive psychology is the science of how human minds process information.  Advertisers use this to influence one’s thoughts or convince individuals that they need to buy their product.

Psychcentral.com also found that the psychology of advertising helps focus on building empathy for a product so consumers are more likely to buy or use it. 

Research has shown that physical aspects of ads including colors, people and images influence the way people react and relate to the commercial itself. This in turn affects the way consumers view and feel about the brand or product that the promotion includes.

With all the tactics advertisers use to market their products, it is important to understand the different ways companies or others use to convince consumers to buy their products.

One person who has taught her students about this important part of today’s society is Marlow High School sophomore English teacher Ann Field.

“I chose to have my students learn about ethos, pathos, and logos so they can learn to recognize techniques that are used to send them messages and to realize that there is a strategy behind arguments,” stated Field. “I think that advertising definitely influences the things we purchase and enjoy.”

The lessons about advertising that Field has taught her classes have helped many students including sophomore Morgan Lane.

“I feel that there is an art to advertisements that is important to learn because of how it can impact your decisions,” expressed Lane. “The commercials that I am usually very interested in would be logos because it provides facts so I can decide if it is trustworthy.”

Another student who has benefited from the lessons about advertising is sophomore Jessica Bayless.