Abstract:

This paper discusses a number of issues critical to the development and evaluation of creative press advertisements and campaigns. It begins with the information gap that currently exists regarding the influence of context on the perceptions of the content of an advertisement and how this has led to the development of a mythology - a set of unchallenged assumptions - which guide professional publication choice and placement within a title. The paper then describes how press advertisements are read and why so few are spontaneously remembered. This leads onto the issue of the lack of rule-breaking press advertising and the consequent loss of branded distinctivity. Different types of branding used in press advertisements explain why some campaigns require longer to establish than others. Finally, the implication for research methodologies at all stages of development and evaluation closes the paper.