Abstract:

Advertisements, which have standard functions such as giving information, drawing attention, influencing, promoting, reminding, supporting marketing communication efforts, adding value to a product or brand, contribute to perception management of products / brands by establishing an image. The discourse, which is constructed in accordance with the emotional sales promise (ESP) in these ads, seems to be worth investigating on the basis of persuasion theories. Construction ads that attract attention with their arguments and image discourse in terms of creative strategy seems to be interpretable within the framework of theories / concepts involved in persuasion literature such as “Ethos-Pathos-Logos (Aristo)”, “Hierarchy of Needs (Maslow)”, “Hidden Needs (Packard)”, “The Principle of Scarcity (Cialdini).” In this direction, the research is based on the prime time period of national television channels, which is one of the mass communication tools. The construction ads shown in the first period of the prime time interval (20.00-00.00) of the five most watched channels constitute the sample of the research. With the random sampling, the first construction ads shown in that time period are analysed based on Puto and Wells’ message strategies, approaches of Aristotle, Packard and Cialdini towards persuasion and Maslow’s approach towards the needs. It is observed that in advertisements containing irrational appeals elements -especially those with high involvement- as discourse, transformational language is used for lifestyle. In the context of classification, construction ads that are product and service ads have communication elements appropriate to the transformational message strategy, such as “user image” and “brand image” expressed by Puto and Wells.

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