Definition of Advertising

Content Outline

1. Journals

2. Advertising

3. Funny words

4. Black words

5. Negative words

What is Advertising?

Advertising is a non-personal form of promotion that is delivered through selected media outlets that, under most circumstances, require the marketer to pay for message placement. Advertising has long been viewed as a method of mass promotion in that a single message can reach a large number of people. But, this mass promotion approach presents problems since many exposed to an advertising message may not be within the marketer’s target market, and thus, may be an inefficient use of promotional funds. However, this is changing as new advertising technologies and the emergence of new media outlets offer more options for targeted advertising.

Advertising also has a history of being considered a one-way form of marketing communication where the message receiver (i.e., target market) is not in position to immediately respond to the message (e.g., seek more information). This too is changing. For example, in the next few years technologies will be readily available to enable a television viewer to click a button to request more details on a product seen on their favorite TV program. In fact, it is expected that over the next 10-20 years advertising will move away from a one-way communication model and become one that is highly interactive.

Another characteristic that may change as advertising evolves is the view that advertising does not stimulate immediate demand for the product advertised. That is, customers cannot quickly purchase a product they see advertised. But as more media outlets allow customers to interact with the messages being delivered the ability of advertising to quickly stimulate demand will improve.

Definition of Advertising

The dictionary definition of advertising is 'the action of calling something to the attention of the public especially by paid announcements.' If you think about the way most people think about advertising, this definition fits well - both the things it says and the things it doesn't say.

Note that the definition above uses the term 'action of' and doesn't specify that advertising is limited to print media, television, Internet, or any other specific medium. While it does place an emphasis on 'paid announcements, ' it isn't a requirement. Finally, it only says that attention is called to something, not specifically good attention. Anyone that has turned on the TV during election season knows advertising can be negative.

Many business-specific definitions of advertising add that advertising is non-personal. This distinction is sometimes important because of the role face-to-face sales play in many businesses. A sales force is often considered a marketing strategy, not an advertising strategy.

Robert Beard's The 100 Funniest Words in English contains the 100 funniest words in English 50 of which are listed below. There are easily 1000 funny words in English (maybe more depending on how you measure funniness) but we think this book contains the best selection based on his experience as a reader and writer over the past four decades.

Each word's definition, usage problems, and history are written up in the book, and each are accompanied by hilarious examples taken from the lives of such characters as Lucinda Head, Maud Lynn Dresser, Phil Anders, William Arami, and Marian Kine. Try some free pages below, then get the full treatment in the book, now on sale at this website.

Why this book is better than others:

· Large, easty to read print

· One chapter per page (memory isn't what it used to be?)

· One chapter per page, great for your bathroom library

The list below tells you what the funniest words in English are; to learn them and how to weave them into your conversations, you'll need the book. Buy a copy today and get ready to roar with laughter over how we speak. To add The 100 Most Beautiful Words to your purchase, choose " Add to Cart" below, then click the book title here when you return.

Public Speaking:
Words are Funny

Some words are simply funnier than others. Your word choice can be the key to creating a successful witty line or a dud. All professional comedy writers agree on the following fact. The sound of certain words can virtually guarantee a laugh. In particular, the 'K' sound in words is the granddaddy of all funny sounds. In Neil Simon's play, The Sunshine Boys, Willy, a main character, gives his nephew a lecture about comedy:

" Fifty-seven years in this business, you learn a few things. You know what words are funny and which words are not funny. Alka Seltzer is funny. You say " Alka Seltzer" you get a laugh... Words with " k" in them are funny. Casey Stengel, that's a funny name. Robert Taylor is not funny. Cupcake is funny. Tomato is not funny. Cookie is funny. Cucumber is funny. Car keys. Cleveland... Cleveland is funny. Maryland is not funny. Then, there's chicken. Chicken is funny. Pickle is funny."

Someone actually researched why the 'k' sound is funny. It has something to do with the sounds we, as babies, associated with comfort. Like cootchie-coo, cuddle, cozy, etc. Note that these words don't have a 'K' in them, but they have the 'K' sound.

Examples:

Those turkeys over at XYA (remember no Z's allowed) company can't hold a candle to our team of installers.

I'll bet you a cupcake to a cucumber the blue team will outsell the gold team.