Paper 1 Coffee Ad

Paper 1: Coffee Advertisement
The text is a magazine advertisement for decaffeinated organic coffee, and its purpose is to persuade the reader to buy this product at a local store due to its positive attributes and ideal processing methods. The text, published by the company "global cafe direct," is primarily targeting people who wish to experience "the real taste of coffee without the side effects of caffeine" entering their bodies. Caffeine of course is a stimulant with many side effects of its own, which is why it is most probable that young teenagers and older seniors may be the most likely to buy such a product, however can appeal to coffee drinkers of all ages. In addition, this advertisement is also intended for people who value "fair-trade" and "organic" products, as these two words are stressed throughout the entire picture. Many elements tie in together to make this a very intriguing and convincing endorsement for the reader of the magazine. By using a simple, coherent structure, and variety of stylistic devices along with clever word choice, the illustrator's advertisement for decaffeinated coffee is extremely persuasive.
The structure of the advertisement is a primary tool used to persuade the reader into looking into and buying the "decaffeinated organic coffee" product at local stores. One notable aspect of this advertisement, which is not true for many other company endorsements in most magazines, is that it takes up one whole page. This grabs the reader's attention immediately as his or her eyes are only focused on the company, with no other distractions in different areas. It is also evident that the page is divided into two different parts, the top blue box, and the extraneous information below the box. The blue box attracts the most attention due to its bold figure and exquisite use of colour. This works to the company's advantage as the majority of the product information is located inside the blue box. Another advantage is the image in the blue box, an image of the actual product box. It is often that many customers who read an advertisement have no real clue of what the product looks like, however with this addition a mental picture is now stored inside the readers head and it will most definitely produce a flashback if he or she does see the same product box at the store while shopping. Furthermore, the checkmarks used beside the headings such as "Fairtrade" and "Organic" and is a good tool as it allows the advertisers and company to be portrayed as more trustworthy on a first impression. Checkmarks often symbolize a definite truth, or something that can be guaranteed, and this affects the reader as it builds up his or her trust with the company and the information that the company includes in its advertisement. The structure is one vital tool allowing the target audience who wish to fulfill their daily dose of coffee without the caffeine side effects to be persuaded into buying this decaffeinated coffee.
The illustrator utilizes several stylistic devices through the choices of colour, imagery, and words, to create a resounding persuasive effect on the reader. The choice of navy blue for the inside box is a good decision as navy is a very positive, calm colour, that evokes an "organic" and homegrown feeling, two areas stressed by the product itself, insisting that the product is very reliable and pure. The blue fits well with the image of the product, whose box consists of a different shade of blue, along with a globe and some green leaves and coffee beans. This appealing contrast between the two areas is very important as it allows the reader to ease into different parts of the advertisement slowly, catching everything set forth by the illustrator. The choice of white text is also a great contrast with the blue background, as it makes the words stand out. One notable aspect is that certain words are bolded and in a larger font than others, such as "the Certification" and "the Decaffeination." These words catch the readers eye first and allow them to make the transition to the information below each heading. The colour scheme, along with the words used, evoke a very humble yet informative tone from the illustrator. Honesty is being expressed, along with trustworthiness, however much of the information at the same time is factual and useful for the reader. For instance facts such as "99.97% Caffeine free" reveal that the company does compile statistics and is very precise in what it is saying, while reflecting honest intentions and practices. Furthermore, imagery is used widely throughout the advertisement to create a satisfied mood and curious atmosphere. Besides the picture of the actual product in the blue box, which gives the reader a clear vision of the product, there are two additional images below the blue box of the company's main logo, and other products offered by the company. This allows the company to not only expand their target audience beyond people interested in decaffeinated coffee, but also to coffee lovers in general as these pictures express products that do include caffeine. All the images allows the reader's mood to be satisfied in a sense that they do not have to do much work outside reading the advertisement, compared to many company's who advertise without showing pictures of the actual products. At this point the reader becomes curious to try out this new product, and other products offered by the company, which works highly in the company's favour.
The word choice used throughout is another key aspect that allows for the persuasive effect of the decaffeinated coffee advertisement. The illustrator, although a one page advertisement, uses a minimal amount of words to inform the reader thoroughly about the product, company and extraneous information. Looking at the blue box, only 22 different words are represented by the bolded white text. In addition, there is a visible correspondence between the words in the white text, and words on the product image. Words such as "organic," "fairtrade" and "decaffeinated" hit the reader first as they appear under the title, on the side, and on the actual product box. These are the "magic words" that allows the company to persuade people of completely different interests into one product. In addition, the illustrator uses the words below the blue box very wisely as well. The concise slogan "the real taste of coffee without the side effects of caffeine" gives the reader the purpose of the advertisement in very simple and understandable terms. By mentioning "Cole & Woolworths" the reader knows exactly where to go to buy the advertisement, and the website allows the reader to look deeper into the product once they become curious. All these elements and choice of words are imminent and crucial to the persuasiveness of the advertisement, and they give the reader all the information they really need to know of the product and company.
By intricately utilizing a comprehendible structure, appealing stylistic devices, and a wise word choice, the illustrator persuades the large target audience of "global cafe direct" into trying out the new decaffeinated coffee through this advertisement. The advertisement includes all the vital details of a successful endorsement, and it is a unique, unknown product which always works in the company's advantage. As an regular coffee drinker myself, I can say that the concept of decaffeinated coffee may be something that can cure a lot of peoples distaste for regular coffee, something that can be accomplished one step at a time, beginning with this well designed advertisement.