Persuasive media messages are everywhere--commercials, the Internet, billboards, etc. In order to properly understand persuasive media, I observed three different places. Said places were the Internet, the television, and the radio. I looked and listened for specific words in each message and asked myself a few simple questions: were the messages effective in their attempt to persuade me and why were the messages effective or not?
On the Internet, I visited google.com. Since I was interested in purchasing a ring online, I searched "rings." Right away I was guided to a web page with tons of different links of places to buy rings online, but there were three that were at the top, highlighted. These were the ads that Google provided, persuading me to visit those websites, even if they didn't really have to do with my specific search. This time, however, the messages were indeed effect in their attempt to persuade me. With the simple but catchy summary of what was on the website, they made me want to click on the website and buy what they were advertising--and I liked it! The messages was effective because it had a slight relation to what I was searching for in the first place, and they used persuasive and straight-forward words to get their point across; there was nothing boring about it.
However, on the radio, it was quite the opposite. I heard plenty of commercials filled with persuasive media messages that were trying to convince me to buy their product. The one that stuck out to me was a commercial for a plastic surgery clinic. It was definitely not effective in their attempt to persuade me because it seemed as if they were trying to guilt the consumers into buying the surgeries, rather than show what's good about their products using persuasive words, which are especially important over the radio since I could not see anything!
Lastly, I turned on the television and tuned into the TLC channel. On there I saw a commercial for a new type of makeup. It was effective in their attempt to persuade me because they made me feel as if I needed the new makeup! Their "new" technology intrigued me and made me want to go out and buy it. The messages were effective because they used aesthetically pleasing videos and used impressive statistics to prove that their product actually works. They also guaranteed that if you don't like it, you can send it back for free! Their use of descriptive words also helped make the persuasive message work. I'm definitely interested in buying their product now.
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