A list of advantages and disadvantages for the different positionings of film adverts.

1. Georgina Gilbey A2 Media Studies
1
PLACE ADVANTAGES DISADVANTAGES
BUS STOPS
 It isrelativelyeasyto
judge whowouldbe most
likelytouse thismode of
transport
 For example:
The elderly,astheywould
mostlikelyhave free bus
passesif theyare unable
to drive
Students,as theyare
unlikelytoowna car and
busesare a convenient
alternative forgetting
aroundthe city
Thismeansthat the
youngerandolder
generationscanbe
targeted fairlyefficiently
 Evenif those at bus stops
ignore the adverts,people
goingby themincars may
see them.
 As aforementioned,those
at bus stopscouldignore
the advertsquite easily,
unlesstheyare interactive
insome way (suchas a
scrollingboardthathas ads
on rotation).
 People atbusstopsare
usuallyonlyinthemfora
short time andso maynot
pay attentiontothe
adverts.
 Similarly,driversgoingpast
the stop are more likelyto
be concentratingonthe
road.
BILLBOARDS
 Billboardadvertisements
are oftena lotlargerso it
iseasierto capture the
audience’sattention;
especiallyif the billboard
isunclutteredandhasa
minimalisticstyle.
 For example:
If the posterwassimplya
large image of a pairof
eyesstaringdirectly
forwardswitha tagline
“He’swatching”,itwould
be instantly attention
grabbing,bothin the form
of directaddressthrough
the eye contact and
throughitsminimalistic
style,asif a billboardwas
clutteredinsteadwithlots
of textandimages,it
wouldbe easiertoignore.
 Billboardsare alsoan
opportunitytoshow off a
large filmandmarketing
budget;itis usuallyhigh
 Thisplatformmeansitis
hard to targeta specific
audience;people incars
can be of all agesand there
isno guarantee thatit will
be seenbythe correct age
group,gender,orany other
potential demographic.
 Advertisingwithabillboard
can be verycostlyandthey
are usuallyonlyupfora
short while,unlikeadson,
for instance,social media
platforms,where they
couldbe repeatedlyshared
and circulatedovertime.

2. Georgina Gilbey A2 Media Studies
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conceptfilmsthatare
advertisedinthisway.
 Billboardsare placedin
largelypopulatedareas;
for example,inthe city
centre.
MAGAZINE
 Magazinesare soldacross
the nationand itis not
uncommonforAmerican
filmstobe advertisedin
Britishmagazinesandvice
versa,due to the mutual
benefitsintermsof the
filmindustry.
 There are magazinesof
manydifferentgenresso
the advertisercanchoose
a magazine basedonthe
audience theywantto
target.
 Magazines’audiences
oftenvarydependingon
whetherthe genre isfor
the massesor more niche:
if the advertiserchose a
more popularmagazine
withthe broad genre of
filmsingeneral,the film
wouldgeta lotmore
exposure.
 Conversely,if the filmwas
niche intermsof itsgenre
and the audience’s
interests,aniche
magazine couldbe the
betterchoice because the
target isso specific.
 Magazinesare oftenkept
incirculationforlonger;
people are lesswillingto
throw themaway after
use and theymaybe
passedbetween
acquaintances.
 Magazinesare oftenweekly
so those whobuythem
mightdiscardan issue
whenthe nextarrives.With
these people,the
advertiserdoesn’thave
much time toget their
attention.
 Magazinesare made in
advance so the film
producershave to be well
prepared.
 It isveryeasyfor the
audience toflickpastads in
a magazine,unlessthe film
has sucha bigbudgetandis
so anticipatedthatit
featuresonthe magazine’s
cover.
 Larger and more popular
magazineswill likely be
veryexpensive tofeature
in.
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3. Georgina Gilbey A2 Media Studies
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CINEMA
 Cinemasare a good place
to advertise inbecause
more oftenthannot,
there isa filmof the same
genre showing,soif a
trailerforthe filmwasto
be shownbeforehand,
there isan almost
guaranteedchance of the
rightaudience seeingit.
 Trailersin cinemasmeans
there isthe opportunityto
appeal tothe audience
throughmore than justan
image ona poster;the
trailercan be showninall
itsglorywithhigh-
definitionpicture quality
and greatsurroundsound.
It alsomeansyoucan use
star appeal and show off
any special effects.
 Additionally, itisa lot
easiertoconveythe plot
througha trailerthan in
an image.
 Unlike inonline orsocial
media,the advertscan’t
be ‘skipped’.
 Many enjoyseeingtrailers
inthe cinemabecause itis
a lot more of an
immersive experience and
theygeta glimpse into
whatit wouldbe like to
see the filmincinema.
 The audience maynot be
payingattentionduring
advertsas they’re waiting
to see the filmtheyhave
chosento see:some may
be on theirphonesor
chattingto friends.
 There isa lotof
competitionwhenshowing
trailersina cinema;often,
more than 3 will be shown
consecutivelysoall of these
producerswill be lookingto
impressthe audience.
 Eventhoughthe advertiser
can choose a filmof a
specificgenre andtryto
judge the ages/genders
that will be inthe cinema,a
filmmaystill fail atthe box
office andsothe trailer
mightnot be seenbyas
manyas the producer
wouldlike.
 Dependingonthe cinema,
filmchosen,etc,this
methodof advertising can
be veryexpensive.