Advertising – Match The Style To The Brand

You’ll often find that there are many different types of adverts on TV, in cinemas, and online. Each one, while unique, has some similarities with others. Think about it this way, when you think of a perfume advert, you think of abstract imagery, like clouds mixed with gold and diamonds, or luxurious palaces and kaleidoscope effects. Similarly, when you think about adverts for charities and non-profit organisations, you’ll see expositions of a person or animal in desperate need, you’ll hear a narrator, describing their story, or you’ll see advocates for the charity, volunteers and the charity’s organisers pleading for help. Each industry has its own style and formula. So, here are a few examples of the different types of advertising style, and the industry they’re most popular with.

1- Cinematic Adverts

Cinematic adverts are perfect for luxury brands, especially those that employ A-list actors or are affiliated with a movie franchise. Usually, these brands will have the money for these cinematic adverts, and as they’re affiliated with movie franchises and the entertainment industry, they’ll already know those in the film industry who can make their adverts more cinematic. Of course, there are some other industries that could use cinematic techniques, like the real estate industry, without consulting well-known filmmakers, and mostly these industries are showcasing some of their products or services in their portfolio.

For example, luxury brands like Aston Martin cars would employ the use of actors like Daniel Craig, and features of the 007 franchise, because they’re affiliated with the films. However, some luxury real estate companies, those who sell the likes of mansions, luxury apartments, and residents, will employ cinematic techniques, like slow motion shots, drone footage, and other cinematic techniques, to showcase their portfolio.

2- Storytelling Adverts

One of the most powerful advert styles are storytelling adverts. These are the ones that follow the story of one or more characters, just like in movies and TV shows. Essentially, these adverts act like short movies in themselves, and more often than not they are aired during holiday seasons, like Easter and Christmas. These adverts used to be the main format of most commercials in the early days of television, all the way up until the 1980s. Of course, most adverts today have some form of story, but storytelling adverts are those that seem more like short movies, and more often than not they evoke some form of emotional response.

One of the best examples of this type of advert is the Disney Christmas Advert 2021 – The Stepdad. Although animated, it is a storytelling advert, as it follows a stepdad, trying to gain the trust and love from his new wife’s teenage sons. It is expected of the advert to tug at its audience’s heartstrings, because it’s the Christmas season, and Christmas is the time for love and giving, thus the story needed to reflect that. That’s why storytelling adverts are so powerful for those that heavily rely on the holiday season. It is because emotions run high during these moments and watching an advert that reflects this can be very impactful.

3- Abstract Adverts

Similar to cinematic adverts, abstract adverts are used by luxury brands, especially jewellery and perfume brands. Most of the time, these brands employ cinematic techniques, along with special effects, animation, and creative camerawork to create a sense of “otherworldliness”. This can be compounded with the use of kaleidoscope effects and mirrored images. These abstract adverts are meant to help audiences feel as if they’ve stepped into another world, which luxury brands tend to portray. As they target viewers who aim to be amongst the middle and higher classes of society, it gives them that sense of “stepping into another world”.

Brands like Paco Rabanne, with the 2016 advert for Olympea, use larger than life or otherworldly imagery to promote their products. In the advert, the audience watches as a “new goddess” arrives at what seems to be Olympus, and all the gods and their servants take notice. There are images of giant statues moving their bodies and heads to watch as the new goddess arrives. It’s as if she’s walking down a runway, and other than this, there is no story. It is simply the abstract nature of the advert that draws in the audience.

4- Direct-To-Audience Adverts

These adverts are exactly what they are. They’re adverts directed towards the audience. This means that either the character in the advert breaks the 4th wall, and speaks directly to the viewer, or a narrator breaks the 4th wall for them. These adverts are highly effective, because they personalise the viewing experience for the audience. The fact that the narrator or the character speaks directly to the viewer makes the advert feel more personal.

For example, a newly released advert by Chase Bank, in the UK, does this through the use of actors, a narrator, and camera frames and angles. The narrator starts off speaking to the audience, but as he talks about the bank’s features, the characters/actors start speaking to him as if they were overhearing a conversation. They are also looking at the camera, while they’re speaking, so it’s as if they’re speaking directly to the audience. These are impactful adverts because they make the viewing experience personal, and it seems as if the viewer is having a conversation with the characters themselves.

Scratching The Surface

Of course, there are many other types of adverts out on the market, like animated adverts, experimental adverts, documentary adverts and so many more. But these are the more common types you’ll find on TV, in cinemas, and online. Not to mention, the style of an advert can be mixed. You can have a storytelling advert combined with a direct-to-audience advert, or an abstract advert combined with a cinematic advert. It all depends on the needs of a business, what type of advert they use. However, they still follow the same formula. So, the next time you watch an advert on TV, try to pick out what type of advert it is and see how many you can find of the same one.