Research

PRODUCT :

Before I begin researching basic marketing, I need to look at a product to sell to an audience. 

For this, I have chosen illegal shark finning. 

Shark finning, is where sharks are removed of their fins and thrown back into the ocean ALIVE.

Here they will drown, bleed out and be eaten by other predators. To put this into perspective, approximately 100 million sharks die annually in the illegal finning trade.

A bowl of shark fin soup can bring in $100 alone and is a high class staple of Asian etiquette. However, it has been criticised for its cruel and inhumane nature. The practice is illegal in most countries, but is still happening due to the demand in Asia. 

My advert will aim to use shock to show an audience how the fins are obtained.

Pop Up Ad :

Pop up ads are small scale ads that obstruct material. They appear until the user manually shuts them down. They usually have a hyperlink to the website and a close icon.

Billboard/Large Print Ad :

Print based ad, intended for large scale. High file quality, with saleable features. Lots of detail can be packed into these are they are for either:

Large scale from far away

Small scale for close up

Sticky Ad :

A sticky ad is an ad that is stuck or anchored to a screen. These are usually small, and positioned between paragraphs of an article. They are designed for users to scroll past and does not obstruct the original material. 

MORAL PANIC :

Moral Panic is the idea that danger threatens our society. An overwhelming feeling of a coming dread influenced by media and word of mouth. 

Examples of this are world changing phenomenon such as climate change and pollution.  

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The media can influence moral panic to make issues seem overexaggerated and life changing. 

But, they can also downplay possible issues to prevent mass hysteria. This often comes in full circle and the Media reports issues to be resolved. We can often question if these issues are even real, and what the cause of  the issue is - what really is the outcome?

Hypodermic Needle Theory :

The Hypodermic Needle Theory is a term relating to the idea that the media directly feeds thoughts and beliefs into the minds of an audience. This understanding is somewhat moving out of fashion, as there are now more subliminal and indirect ways to feed information to an audience. The wording of 'Hypodermic Needle' compares to the way that information is physically forced into the minds of an audience to convince them that their ideas are correct and justified - without questioning the source or the outcome. Things such as war propaganda are a great example. Without question, an audience sees an opinion and automatically assumes their own, similar to the media given. 

 

Two Step Flow Theory :

Two Step Flow Theory is where the information is distributed to well known and well trusted personalities to pass forward. This has become a common tactic for marketing in the recent years due to social media/streaming apps (twitch, Instagram, YouTube). The media will buy an add and distribute it to internet personalities in the hope that they will present the media to their audience. This has become common practice due to the rise of 'fake news' and superstition. An audience is more likely to listen to a single figure stating a belief, rather than a trusted news source.

Cultivation Theory :

The Cultivation Theory is where the media reinforces what the audience already believes. This is a concept that relies on the perception of the audiences own reality. The media can use fears and political views to sway the opinions of an audience and distort that perception to better suit a society. An example of this is how television messages about violence are likely to be especially resonant to an individual who lives in a city with a high crime rate. 

Agenda Setting Theory :

The Agender Setting Theory relates to the Agender Setting role of the media. This means, the media has full control on what subjects are distributed and which ones are not. This influences the opinions of the audience, and furthermore, the audiences opinions on the subject.

This means that audience views should match up with what the media is distributing, and would manipulate their daily conversation. Framing, is when the media influences the daily train of thought to sync with what they intend them too.

DEFINING AN AUDIENCE :

Psychographics and Demographics -

A Demographic is quantitative data about an audience and helps with categorising groups for marketing. Media producers collect information about an audience and sells this on to ad agencies and distributors looking to refine their marketing. This information can be picked up from browsing the web and collecting online cookies. Digital algorithms are created to better understand an audiences interests based off of their demographic.

A demographic can include :

• GENDER
• AGE
• FAMILY
• CLASS
• NATION
• ETHNICITY
• EDUCATION
• RELIGEON
  
• POLLITICAL ALLEGIANCE
• REGION
• URBAN/RURAL

A Psychographic is qualitative data about an audience and helps with categorising groups by personality. As a demographic is loosely sorted, a psychographic is determined based off of spending trends and personality traits. 

These are usually based off of: Opinions, Beliefs, Values, Interests.

PRINT or DIGITAL distribution?

Digital marketing campaigns can be regularly updated and changed at a moments notice. They are often cheaper to distribute. However, they can only appeal to those who suit the marketing criteria. If their spending trends do not match the aim of the ad, then the add is less likely to be shown to the consumer. 

Print based media costs more money. Graphics images have to be created at a high resolution and must suit the criteria of the distributing company. Although less ads would typically be sent off, More people who do not fit the ad criteria are likely to catch on - as they would most likely see the add daily in their local community.

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As my add is for shock value, I need to insure that I am distributing as wide as possible. This means, I not only require big billboards, but also the small digital adds.

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Digital Format -

• JPEG
• GIF
• PNG
• TIFF
• PDF
• EPS
• EMF

These are Image formats that I am considering for my ad. The Files in Red will not be used as I believe that they are not appropriate for the task.

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TIFF is a high quality, non compressed file type that is best suited for large scale print

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JPEG is a high quality, compressed file type that will work for small scale print and digital distribution

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PNG is a high quality, lossless file type that will work for digital distribution

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CMYK colour is used for print based media (cyan, magenta, yellow, key) and RGB colour is used only for digitally distributed media (Red, Green, Blue).