Elements of Language: Fifth Course, Chapter 9

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Writer's Model

Evaluation of an Ad

An evaluation of an ad is an effective way to sort out the powerful, persuasive messages that pervade our daily lives. An evaluation of an ad examines the ad's persuasive techniques in order to judge the ad's effectiveness and its possible effects on consumers.

Many evaluations of ads use the structure illustrated in the framework below. Print this framework and use it as a guide when you write your own evaluation of an ad.

Introduction
• Open with an attention getter.
• Describe the ad and state the target audience.
• End with a thesis statement that shows your opinion of the ad.

Grab their attention Open with an interesting statement, pose a surprising question, or use a thought-provoking quotation or statistic.
Paint a picture Help your readers visualize the ad by describing the images, colors, text, and spacing. Include a summary of the ad's written or spoken copy. Also, identify the ad's target audience as well as its marketing purpose and strategy.
Make your point Structure your thesis in two parts. One part should judge the ad's persuasiveness, and the other part should evaluate the ad's effect on its audience.

Body
• Include the first main point based on the evaluation criteria, with evidence from the ad.
• Include second main point with evidence, and so on.

Present your evidence Provide proof, examples, and other evidence to support your evaluation of the ad. Use any notes you took during prewriting as a source for this evidence.
Explain persuasive techniques Make sure your readers understand the persuasive techniques you will go on to discuss.

Conclusion
• Sum up and reinforce the thesis.
• Restate your judgment about the ad's potential effect.

Restate the thesis Summarize your main points and restate your main idea in a new or fresh way.
Make a judgment Bring your evaluation to a close by discussing the ad's effect—or potential effect—on individuals or society.