Creative Briefs - Term Paper Example

Rhetorical Analysis of Creative Briefs In the creative brief for Chock Full o’Nuts, the writer is seeking to communicate an ad idea for the product, which is coffee for home brewing, over its competitors in the coffee shop brands. It has been reported that there are more Americans brewing coffee at home (chockfullonuts.com 1), especially because it is believed to maintain high levels of freshness and better taste due to its origin from a single origin. This is in comparison to coffee shops that sell blended coffee. The last few years have seen an increasing rivalry between home brewed and specialty shop coffee, which the writer contends the ad should pick up on. The writer also wants the audience to raise Chock Full o’Nuts profile as an alternative for specialty coffee in the United States; especially with the upward trend f home brewed coffee in the country. He/she is an account planner for the advertising company team, and may only be presenting the views of the client, as they are not coffee experts. The readers will then follow the advice given, in the brief, to create an advert for the client. The creative brief for Imogen heaps seeks to advice the advertising team on how to promote Imogen heaps Heapsongs album. The brief focuses on the trends in music sales, contending that digital music is selling more than physical CDs. This fits within the wider conversation about how digital music is taking the place of musical CDs because of its price and ease of availability. In fact, within both the UK and US, physical sales of albums have gone down with an opposite reaction from digital music sales that have increased. However, this is also in the context of increased music sales, which means that the overall music sales are on the rise. Therefore, there seems to be systematic collapse of the CD format, rather than the overall music industry. The creative brief wants the readers to think along the lines that since Imogen Heap has created her album through collaboration on the internet (imogenheaps.com 1), the best way to market and sell it will be on the same platform. Therefore, the readers will have to craft an advertising plan that is centred on the internet and digital album sales. The writer has written this brief in collaboration with Imogen Heaps’ management team and most likely has knowledge of the industry, especially because he seems to champion the benefits of digital music as a platform for artists. The writer for Chock Full o’Nuts has been prompted to write the creative brief in order to offer directions on the client’s advertisement. It is important that the advertisement takes advantage of the increased demand for home brewed coffee over specialty coffees for the writer. This genre has been selected for rhetorical analysis because of my interest in advertising, especially with regards to design requirements. The Chock Full o’Nuts brief, for example, requires that the advert show the coffee’s regional allegiance to New York and the benefits of home brewing (chockfullonuts.com 1). Through description of required landmarks and comparison of the two coffees, the writer seeks to create a mental image of what the advert should focus on. The writer also seems to assume that the readers know all about coffee. This is different to the Imogen Heaps’ brief, in which the writer gives the readers information on trends in the music industry. The writer has acted after communication with the client and research findings, which have moved him towards seeking to advertise the album on a digital platform. The writer utilizes description of the music industry through research findings, comparison of two music formats, and rationalization of the differences between the two platforms. By addressing this brief to the advertising team, the writer, is seeking to establish a professional relationship with them. The Chock Full o’Nuts creative brief takes the stance that American coffee enthusiasts are turning to home brewed coffee due to its lower price (chockfullonuts.com 1). However, the writer does not openly reveal this stance as he gives both the pros and cons of selling home brewed coffee. The writer uses logical language to get his point across, making inferences about the preference for home brewed coffee and the target population that would be interested in buying the product. The advertising team is most likely going to carry out additional research about the coffee in order to include it in planning. The writer seems to make a lot of assumptions and does not elaborate on his ideas, which shows that he expects the advertising team knows about what he is discussing. He also uses stereotypes to illustrate the target market by indicating the reason why adults with families would prefer home brewed coffee. This stands in contrast to the Imogen Heaps brief that uses statistics to isolate its target market. The brief takes the open stance that digital music has overtaken physical CDs and that this should be the main advertising tool. The writer uses a professional and technical tone to get the point across, supporting his views with evidence and citations. He does not make sweeping assumptions about the readers’ knowledge of the music industry, instead offering evidence for them to make inferences. The writer in the creative brief has set out to convey to the advertising team ideas from the client (Burtenshaw et al 23), which in this case is that the product should be advertised as a quality and alternative home brewed coffee. However, the beginning of the brief casts doubt as to the ability of home brewed coffee to become an alternative, especially as he claims that specialty coffee is the fastest growing sector in the restaurant industry. Even if he later claims that home brewed coffees are on an upward trend, it already seems that Chock Full o’Nuts is a small time player in the industry. He, however, qualifies Chock Full o’Nuts’ opportunity by referring to the sustainability movement and the current economic climate (chockfullonuts.com 1), which may make the product a viable alternative to the expensive specialty coffee products. In describing the situation, the writer could also have offered more evidence as to the trends in the coffee industry. As it is, without additional evidence, the writer may be unable to make out Chock Full o’Nuts’ position within the coffee market. All that is offered in describing the situation is that there is some opportunity, especially in the North Eastern part of the United States. The term “quality at good prices” (chockfullonuts.com 1) as used in the Chock Full o’Nuts brief gives readers a good sense of what the advertisement should convey. That Chock Full o’Nuts is neither depicted; as elitist or generic home brewed coffee is the central concept of the advertisement brief, which is important to the audience that the advert will address. The writer, in fact, uses examples of people who would be interested in buying the product to show the market that should be targeted. In this case, his intention is to address the advert to middle class working Americans. Focusing this ad campaign on Middle Class America, especially those from the North East, means that New York will be an additional factor and, in this case, he uses New York to arouse a feeling of old time quality and nostalgia. Building a connection between quality and price is important for this creative brief. By adding environmental sustainability to price and quality (chockfullonuts.com 1), the writer is pointing the advertising tram towards the things that middle class Americans hold dearest. This is a demographic that is interested in saving, conserving the environment, and being adventurous for the right price. In this aspect, the writer offers a clear regarding the product’s point of differentiation. From this brief, the writer’s relationship to the advertising team is one of total professionalism. He keeps the client first and seems to offer only the team information from Chock Full o’Nuts with little in way of creative solutions. Their relationship is also formal sounding with little use colloquial language. While this leads to a focused brief, it also illustrates a lack of familiarity with the client. The writer offers feedback from Chock Full o’Nuts’ brand manager, albeit constructively, but offers nothing on how this information may be tweaked while planning for its advertisement campaign. He knows his audience and addresses the brief to the readers in a manner that suggests they are familiar with what he is writing. In addition, he only offers information that is strictly related to Chock Full o’Nuts advertising campaign with little else regarding the broader coffee industry. His professional writing is also evident in that he knows the entire team will read his brief. This allows him relate to his entire audience, including the graphic designers whom he addresses specifically with regards to a requirement to include New York’s skyline in the advertisement. Although this professional relationship writing makes the advertisement’s parameters clearer, it does little as a creativity trigger. The term that most identifies what Imogen Heaps’ creative brief’s writer wants her advertisement to sell is the “art of music creation”. This statement is placed towards the end of Imogen Heaps’ brief, tying up what the advertisement was all about. For instance, Imogen Heaps recorded her album through a collaborative effort with fans (imogenheaps.com 1), which she wishes to make her album’s main selling point. The creative brief writer is able to indicate this clearly at various times. She wants this advert to make consumers aware of how it was uniquely created and compiled. In addition, the brief also indicates that their advert should communicate appreciation for those who were involved in Imogen’s album, which should increase the chance they will buy it out of pride. It also offers information about a portion of Imogen’s fans, who were also recording artists, which means that the idea of collaboration should be at the ad’s centre. Since this collaboration requires use of computers, her fan’s ability to use technology is important if the album is to be sold through digital channels. Through linking her fans’ emotions to their decision to buy the album, the brief writer, directs the advertising team towards creating a unique ad that celebrates experimental and alternative music. In advocating for the advertising team to advertise Imogen heaps’ album as a masterpiece created by Imogen and her fans, the writer is also appealing the team’s creativity. In this case, she urges them to take a confident and unforced approach to the advertisement that seeks to create nostalgia around the release. Through drawing on the creative way in which Imogen crafted her album, the writer is urging the advertising team to focus, on this unique album, to create an advertisement that also collaborates with her vision. To aid their creativity, the writer, is careful to explain each part of her brief, including statements on what can be included and what the advertisement should focus on. In addition, the important elements of the advert are isolated and expounded on, which ensures that the readers have fleshed out ideas to work on. This writer is most likely aware of Imogen’s music, judging from the wealth of information offered throughout this brief. By personally investigating Imogen’s music, she is able to come up with a brief that offers more to work with. The Imogen Heaps creative brief writer is effective in informing the advertisement team about Imogen’s requirements for the album because she does not assume that her audience knows everything about Imogen and the industry. She begins by giving a breakdown of why Imogen’s album should be sold on the digital platform, contending that increasing broadband penetration and the increasing popularity of subscription streaming services offers the best chance to access Imogen’s fan base. Connecting Heapsongs creation process to the power of interconnectivity, the writer also makes it clear that the album advertising campaign must involve the same fans who helped create it. She also offers statistics on Imogen’s fan base that should help in creating the ad, especially with regards to their lifestyle and interests. By indicating to the team that Imogen’s fans are technology savvy, she gives them crucial information about their target market and the importance of keeping the campaign strictly digital-based. With regards to her fan-base’s interests, the fact that this writer is able to include information on other musical interests makes it possible for the advertisement team to tap into their advertising campaigns as well in creating Imogen’s ad. Comparing the two creative briefs, Imogen Heaps’ creative brief is more effective in getting its message across than the Chock Full o’Nuts brief. To begin with, the latter brief only presents the client’s ideas and leaves the readers to decide what the writer is alluding to for inclusion. For example, the writer only informs them that the client wants the New York Skyline and the ‘heavenly coffee” slogan to be included, offering little else in terms of creative input. In addition, his description of required tonality is spare and sounds like an advert one would watch. This is in sharp contrast to Imogen Heaps’ creative brief, in which the writer effectively spells out her client’s vision, while also making her own inferences and suggestions. These suggestions are critical because, by the brief’s end, one can almost see what the final ad will look like. Moreover, whereas the former brief uses a purely professional tone in communicating the client’s objectives, the Imogen heaps brief attempts to use the target population’s languages and nuances. For instance, Imogen’s fans are mostly generation X individuals who would prefer to feel “chilled and unforced…experimental and nonsensical”. Any description of Chock Full o’Nuts fan base is scanty, and it seems the writer expects his readers to either already know about the issue or to research on it. It can also be hypothesized that this latter brief is a draft; such is its lack of concrete information. Although the writer describes the market that his team should target, the descriptions of Robert and Sue are too broad to create effectively a personal ad that attracts customers. I feel more connected to the Imogen Heaps creative brief. One reason for this is because I have recently begun to use regularly a subscription streaming service, Last.fm, which allows for collaboration between artists and fans. From the brief, it is almost as if the writer is speaking about me when she describes the fan base and target market. Therefore, I think the readers must have grasped the concepts and designs required to market to this fan base. In addition, I also realized from reading the brief that I had stopped buying physical CDs at around the same time this brief contends they became unfashionable. This is also true for most people in my age bracket. Because of the accuracy this writer is able to offer his readers; I believe that research is crucial in making the correct decisions, in spite of whether one is trying to be creative or scientific. An individual comes away with a deep appreciation of what advertising executives do after reading this article. As mentioned, the writer describes my friends, and me, which elicits an emotive response that I am not alone in using the internet for my music needs. This is especially caused by the writer’s use of statistics and intellectual inference in segmenting the demographics that this ad campaign should target. The same cannot be said about the Chock Full o’Nuts creative brief, which only presents information that one could get from the client himself. Unlike the Imogen brief, this one offers little in way of what the client actually meant with the information provided. I prefer specialty coffee and, if the Chock Full o’Nuts advert is created using only the information given, I doubt it would be convincing enough to make me want to try home brewing. The brief simply states the facts and does not arouse any emotive response. In fact, the brief seems to indicate that selling Chock Full o’Nuts will be very difficult for various reasons. Even after informing the team about difficulties faced by the brand, the brief does not offer much in terms of what can be done to improve the apathy of this product in areas outside the northeast part of the United States. This creative brief is too safe and could have as well been written by the client. Overall, the Imogen Heaps creative brief offers more in terms of emotional response by the reader because of its detail and language. Works Cited Burtenshaw, Ken. Barfoot, Caroline. & Mahon, Nik. The Fundamentals of Creative Advertising. Lausanne: AVA Publ. SA, 2011. Print. chockfullonuts.com. Chock full o'Nuts - Home. 2014. Web. 26 February 2014 . imogenheaps.com. Heapsongs| Imogen Heap. 2012. Web. 26 February 2014 . Read More