Channel 4 has clear conventions for advertisements of documentaries on their network. These include displaying the documentary title, date/time, and tagline. Channel 4 maintains a consistent brand identity across campaigns with elements like a custom font in a surrounding box and logo placement. Advertisements typically feature a central simple image clearly showing the documentary subject and context. Channel 4 provides a style guide instructing creators on how to design advertisements meeting their standards, which the document recommends using to plan their own documentary advertisement.

1. Newspaper
Advertisements
Codes & conventions featured in print adverts for
existing documentaries.

2. Regardless of channel or subject matter, there are fundamental features which
appear on all adverts intended for print (or today, web, mobile and other new
media devices)
Documentary title
Date/Time
Tagline

3. Our documentary will be aired on
Channel 4, and will have to meet the
conventions of advertisements for
programmes that appear on their
network.
Channel 4 and it’s other associated channels have
a strong individual brand identity keeping many
elements the same from one campaign to the next.
- Custom font: easily recognisable with its unique
look and surrounding box.
- Logo: always placed in the same position, the
centre of the right side of the advert
- Simple imagery: the images they use feature a
central image clearly displaying the subject and
context of the documentary.
- Can be both portrait and landscape depending
on the placement of the ads.

4. Conveniently Channel 4 provide a C4 Style Guide, giving
content creators an instructive manual on how to create a
Channel 4 advertisement -
http://www.channel4.com/about_c4/styleguide/
We will use the
guidelines set out by
Channel 4 to our
advantage in order
to plan our own
work.