1. What style of radio advert is it? (humorous, serious, factual, fiction, pastiche, repetition,
simple, complex, nostalgic, modern, futuristic, aggressive, seductive, persuasive, surreal,
immediacy, long term)
First of all, theadvertis very factualand seriousas it is teaching thelisteners how to take betterand
moreinteresting shotsforthe Christmastime.Asit is an advertthatis intended to teach the listener,
it shouldn’tbehumoursoranything complex and fortunately forthelistener it isn’t. The advertis
straightforward and getsstraightto the point,it’s simple.You can also say thatthe advertis
seductiveas atthe start of the advert,thewoman sounds ison the phonetrying to be flirty towards
the otherman.
What was the overall message?
The overall messageof theadvertis to teach the listener how to take better shots,which would
makeChristmas morememorableforthe family.It is intended formen asthey areusually the ones
who takethe group photo atChristmasparties,though thismay notalwaysbethe caseas it is a
stereotype,it is still intended formen. The adverttells the listener how to reducethe risk of having
red eye in the photo and thata background willbe to distracting so it’s much better to havea plain
wall. It’sjustthe small tips thatare going to help the mostand improve listener’s knowledgeon how
to takea better photo,though itdoesn’tteach themhow to use theactual camera,it justtells them
howto takebetter shots.So this showsusthatthe advertis justforbeginnerswho do it casually and
notprofessionally,to finish theadvertit promotesthenew canon camera thatis theprize productin
the absoluteradio competition.
What types of voice/s were used in the advert? (Male/female, young/old, foreign accent,
British accent, celebrity?)
Throughouttheadvert,thereare3 specific voices thatare being used during the advert.Firstly is the
femalevoice which wehear first which soundsnottoo young butnotold at the sametime, though
the voice isn’tperfectly clear like thefirst male voice. It soundscrackly like the sortof thing you
would hearthrough a phone.Thisis donepurposely though to makeitsound like the woman is
talking to the listener, like all flirty to try and gettheir attention and oncethelistener is paying
attention.Then comesthe man who soundsaround thesameageasthe woman,nottoo young but
notold as well but thevoice on thisman sound very clear and perfect to understand unlike the
woman,thiswasobviously a voiceactor thathasbeen hired to record forcannon and absoluteradio.
Lastly is justa small clip of a much older male which is broadcasted asa jingle,which makesit pre-
recorded to the advertitself,so the jinglewasrecorded beforetheproduction of theadvert.
What tone of language was used? (Conversational, informative, jokey etc)
There were many tones of language used within the advertisement, the most notable would
be the main voice actor who is telling the listener how to take the better camera shots. This
would be seen as informative as the presenter is speaking about photography and how to
take professional shots for the holidays, though these are only seen as amateur tips it helps
photographers out. The next tone of language is the flirty kind that is coming from the
woman before and after the informative tips which is seen to attract the male audience into
listening and to attract the male audience in to make it feel like the woman is flirting to the
listeners.
Was there a tag line or slogan in the advert?
As the woman is announcing the specifications of the camera and what it offers, at the end
of that woman opens with what seems to be a tag line for the advert “You can” which is a
way to inspire up and coming photographers to tell them that they can do it. The tag line is
catchy as well as photographers will think of it when they are starting so any time they are
Radio advert analysis sheets
2. struggling, they can just think of the tag line and it will inspire them to do well within the
photography industry.
How many times was the product or company name mentioned?
The thing that is special about this advert is that it isn’t just promoting the company, they are
also promoting a product. So they are primarily promoting the company while they are
secondarily promoting the new camera the “Canon IXUS 200 IS” but this is not the main
feature of the advert.
Was there any contact details mentioned? (Phone number, web address etc)
There was only one contact detail that was mentioned within the advert and that was the
website on how to enter the competition. The website that was mentioned was
absoluteradio.co.uk/cannon which is a only a special event so after the competition has
finished, the details would be inaccessible.
What music or sound effects were used?
There was a constant jingle going throughout the advert which is used to symbolise
Christmas time as Jingle Bells are seen throughout the Christmas period and this advert is
specifically aiming at this period as within the script as it talks about family coming down for
the holidays. There is also a backing track that goes well under the bells, is a guitar playing
chords to suit the tone of the actors voice.
What is the main purpose of the advert? (Informational, sales or special offers, promoting
a particular product)
The main purpose of the advert is to promote the awareness of taking professional level
photos during the Christmas time period. It is to appeal to men as they are most likely to
receive a camera as a gift as technology is stereotypically aimed at men. Though as a side
plot of the advert, the end advertises the new Camera that Canon are launching and yet
again it is appealing to men as the advert is going in depth into what the camera offers.
Why do you think the advert was good or why do you think it wasn’t verygood?
My opinion on the advert it is that it was successful on what it was intending to do, it got the
point across on how to take a successful and professional looking photo for amateurs
without going into too much detail and confusing listeners. I like that the purpose of the
advert was to educate the audience but then at the end advertised the new camera, aiming
at the listeners that they should be using that camera to take the shots for the holidays. So
overall I think it was a good advert and it was able to get the point across.
