Semiotic Analysis of Persuasive Strategies in Advertising Targeted For Children

Abstract: This study was designed to analyze the persuasion strategies used in the advertising targeted for children from a semiotic perspective. To persuade a consumer to buy a product, an advertiser must produce persuasive messages. Semiotic approach to the analysis of advertising text lets us to classify advertising signs and sign systems in relation to the way they are transmitted and communicated. This study investigates selective advertisements with the following questions: What types of expression techniques and what types of persuasive appeals are employed. And what are the persuasive premises underlying those persuasive appeals? To do that, Fifty out of 100 printed advertising were selected with the purposive and judgment sampling method. The study results reveal 11 most frequently employed expressive techniques and 9 major types of persuasive appeals and their premises governing the signs and signification systems in the advertising targeted for children. These Ads are as references to authentic material in the ELT literature, material designed for native speakers of English used in the classroom in a way similar to the one it was designed for, so we use advertisements to work on children‟s English and communication skills.

Keywords: Semiotics, Advertising, Persuasive strategies.