Let’s Talk Fear Appeals

When looking at the effectiveness of an ad we can often link its success with a set of appeals. There are seven main ad appeals they are: fear,humor, sex, music, rationality,emotions,and scarcity. 

The ad you see above utilizes the fear appeal. Fear appeals are relatively common in advertising as they often leave lasting impressions on consumers.  According to Clow and Baack, “Fear increases viewer interest in an advertisement and can enhance the ad’s persuasiveness”. In fact, the public audience reported higher rates of remembrance for ads that used fear appeals than their happier counterparts.  Advertisers can do this by showing the severity of individual results or pointing out a vulnerability.

Does this ad utilize severity or vulnerability?

This ad utilizes vulnerability. Most people who smoke understand the risks, and as a parent or role model your goal is to set an example for your kids, and put them on the right path. This ad utilizes dissonance to create vulnerability by putting the pair of being a role model and smoker side by side. By simply replacing cigarettes with crayons, which are inherently childish, this ad allows the consumer to see how easily one item could be replaced with another. Then adding the copy, “Do you want them to take after everything you do? Quit today.” seals the ad together in its call on the vulnerability of not only the smoker, but also the young child who is watching.

How does this affect response efficacy?

When looking at response efficacy one has to consider intrinsic and extrinsic rewards. This ad appeals to intrinsic rewards because it’s almost saying if you quit smoking you’ll be a better role model for your children. A consumer who is considering quitting thanks to this ad then goes into the second stage of consideration and compares response costs. The advertiser who created this ad are probably banking on the idea the target audiences response costs would be positive because they would consider the fact that quitting would lead their children on to a healthier lifestyle.

All of these combine to create response efficacy or the decision a consumer comes to after considering the ad, in our example, it would be to quit smoking.

Are there down falls to using fear appeals?

Yes there are down falls! What can make or break an ad when using fear appeals is the strength of an appeal. Advertisers have to find the right middle ground when using fear. To much fear and consumers turn away due to anxiety; But not enough fear and the ad may go unnoticed. Clow and Baack explain that “a fear appeal should be powerful enough to capture a viewer’s attention and to influence [their] thinking but not so scary that [they] avoid watched the advertisement”.