Ever had that crushing, soul-destroying realisation that
you have lost something terribly important?
NatWest understands…
In this advert NatWest presents a problem (your portal to
your savings has been rendered unusable), after which they – to our relief –
provide the solution for us (“Get emergency cash…”). When someone first reads this advert, they
might experience a heart-stopping moment when it occurs to them that this
tragedy may befall them, too (or it reminds them of a similar past experience,
thereby recalling that panic response).
This is an example of valence framing (see Pratkanis, 2007), as it
presents the new service in the context of a loss. Because to us humans “losses loom larger than
gains” (Kahneman & Tversky, 1984, p. 346), someone seeing this advert will
be motivated to stop this from happening to them, hence will be more
likely to make use of the service; NatWest have essentially started a fear
appeal (see Pratkanis, 2007). So is it
successful? Research has indicated that
such an appeal is likely to be effective if: a) it arouses a strong reaction
(the thought of losing one’s life savings will probably do that); b) it provides
a way of overcoming this fear (the problem is immediately followed by a
solution here, indicated by the helpful red arrow – which, incidentally, is a
feature of the NatWest logo, thus they are actively associating themselves with
being helpful); and c) the solution seems possible to act on (they provide
four different ways to get in contact and sign up to the service) (Leventhal,
1970; Maddux & Rogers, 1983).
This advert plays on our desire to avoid a negative outcome
from a loss, thus makes effective use of an inverted consequences creative
template (Goldenberg, Mazursky & Solomon, 1999). The situation presented is something of a
cliché; so well-known is the ‘dog ate my […]’ story that its use here may even
be slightly amusing, until one realises its potentially dire consequences.
NatWest ask us the question, “Isn’t it time you switched
to a more helpful bank?” (the answer of course being “Yes”, but it is not specific
to NatWest necessarily...). Generally,
rhetorical questions increase the attention we pay to messages, thus making
them more persuasive, if this message is strong (as mentioned above, the
emotion evoked would make this message strong)
(see Pratkanis, 2007). The question
also uses repetition, in that the phrase, “Helpful Banking”, is also the slogan. Repetition of this kind has been shown to
increase the believability of a message (Cacioppo & Petty, 1989) –
something a bank may well need to keep in mind.
Finally, the question, along with other phrases such as “…unfortunately
your card…”, establish the bank as one’s ally against the canine foe that
represents typical bad luck. This near- friendship
mimicry through the direct address of a question to the reader is as near to an
interaction with said reader as a still advert can get. All in all, someone seeing this advert can
but agree with its message, and will be relieved that there is a bank out there
that cares.
Finally, this advert appeals to our innate need for
control in life. In a way, NatWest make
use of storytelling techniques (Pratkanis, 2007) by listing Barney’s snacks in
a chain of events until we reach the point of him having chewed the card
up. The dog is depicted as fairly calm
(bored, even), the frenzy of the day’s feast having already subsided. This image is arguably more effective than
one of Barney in full swing would have been, as the tragedy has already
happened at this point; it emphasises our lack of control over such matters, and the viewer is motivated to latch onto a way of regaining control.
In summary, this advert makes effective use of both
emotional and cognitive persuasion techniques.
A bank is probably best advised not to stray into the realms of ‘style
over substance’ in order to maintain its reputation, hence this advert sticks
to a practical, plausible situation in order to promote a service. This advert is not particularly colourful or
ground-breaking but fulfils its purpose, and its message is clear: Life’s a b*tch, but we’re here when it chews you
up.
References
Cacioppo, J. T., & Petty, R. E. (1989). Effects of
message repetition on argument processing, recall, and persuasion. Basic and Applied Social Psychology, 10,
3-12.
Goldenberg, J., Marzusky, D., & Solomon, S. (1999). The fundamental templates of quality
ads. Marketing Science, 18,
333-351.
Kahneman, D., & Tversky, A. (1984). Choices, values,
and frames. American Psychologist 39, 341-350.
Leventhal, H. (1970). Findings and theory in the study of
fear communications. Advances in
Experimental Psychology, 5, 119-186.
Maddux, J. E., & Rogers, R. W. (1983). Protection motivation
and self-efficacy: A revised theory of fear appeals and attitude change. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology,
19, 469-479.
Pratkanis, A. (2007). The
science of social influence: Advances and future progress. Psychology Press,
New York, NY.
-- Izzy Fawdry
An in depth analysis, well done.
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