Unit 20, D1: Legal and ethical issues with the campaign

Advertising and Advertising campaigns, no matter what medium they are, are regulated by the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) in the United Kingdom. They ensure adverts are truthful, regulate stereotyping within adverts and ensure they are appropriate for the audience they are targeted and when and where they are played. 

TV Advert

We must ensure all content (footage, graphics, imagery, sounds effects and music) within the advert is original, from copyright free sources or licensed for the use otherwise this could infringe the copyright, designs and patent act and incur fines. 

Location and person release forms will be required for anyone/location featured in the advert to make sure the proper permission has been granted. 

We will also have to make sure the content within the advert is appropriate for day time audiences (it must not include any gor or injuries and there must be no strong or inappropriate language or references) - this ensures it can be played across the BBC throughout the day to ensure maximum reach. 

We also must consider the stereotypes that are portrayed in the advert to ensure that no group of people are offended. The programme we are promoting explores the stereotypes that people in British society have of refugees from the middle east (specifically Syria), the advert needs to portray this message without becoming ammunition for racism or slander.

Radio

The radio advert removes the visual element of promotion so this makes the production of it slightly more simple. The same applies regarding copyright - we must ensure all content is used with the correct permission and release forms are still signed. 

It will be played on radio stations and podcasts targeted at younger people throughout the day so we will still need to ensure the content is appropriate for these audiences. 

Accents will most likely be used within the advert to help distinguish the characters, it is important that these sound accurate as otherwise, this could be very offensive, especially if someone is trying to impersonate the accents. 

Print

Print advertising will usually be displayed on large billboards, for this reason, it is impossible to control who sees the advert, so unlike the other ads, billboard advert absolutely has to be suitable for all ages. If it is too scary it could cause upset to young children. 

The advert would also have to be accurate and include all the necessary information as they can not easily be changed unlike the other adverts - once they are up for a certain amount of time they are relatively permanent. 

The same rules regarding copyright and offence also apply here. 

Social Media Marketing

Social media marketing allows for specific marketing of different types of people and of different ages. This means the ads can be targeted specifically at people who can watch the program. This means the adverts simply need to be in line with the age range and target audience of the programme to be suitable. However, it is possible that people have incorrect ages set on their social media profiles so this will need to be considered. Also, because of the capability of targeted marketing, it would be possible to supply different people with different adverts. However, I believe this would not be ethically correct because you then grouping people in society into different categories which could be seen as inappropriate. 

Social media adverts can include video and audio or simple be imagery so the representation of different groups will have to be considered. This includes the race of the characters but also different classes - the programme itself explores stereotypes but this doesn't mean people viewing it should not be respected.

Copyright issues will apply with this form of advertising as well as the other groups. 

Ultimatly accuracy is the most important thing to consider across all forms of adverts. The adverts need to be accurate so the viewers aren't misled into thinking what they are going to watch is something else. 

Unit 20, M2: Justify the choice of planned components by targeted media sector

TV Adverts

Although the target audience of "My Syrian Boyfriend" is younger people who, as reported by Ofcom in recent months, are spending less time watching broadcast television (46% of total viewing time), the creation of a television trailer I believe for the success of this programme is still important. Not only because of 46% of viewing time is still spent with broadcast TV (are substantial junk), but also these types of adverts can now also be published on platforms such as BBC iPlayer, YouTube, Twitter and Instagram where young people are spending the majority of their time.

This means the reach of this form of advertising is still substantial, with young people viewing almost 5 hours of content like this in a day this is a large amount of time to get the advert in front of them, making them more likely to see it and be intrigued by the programme and therefore look to watch it.

I also believe TV adverts provide the most detail and insight about a program plus are more engaging. An advert with moving imagery, intense music and a voiceover is more likely to grab the attention of the viewer and become memorable than a leaflet through the door which may easily be ignored and thrown away.


Radio Adverts

I believe radio is also an important medium to market the new programme. BBC Radio 1 is the biggest radio station in the UK for young people reaching 12.7 million people in the same target age (15-24) of "My Syrian Boyfriend". Although my programme is most appropriate for prospective, current and post-university students this huge reach is going to help target these but also wider audiences that may still be interested. Also, BBC Radio 1 Xtra reaches a further 1,000,000 listeners aged 15+ increasing the reach further.

The BBC is also a big contender in podcasting via the BBC Sounds app. Podcasting is one of the fastest growing mediums amongst "My Syrian Boyfriend's" target audience with 18.7% of 15-24-year-olds now listening weekly. The radio advert produced should be therefor be played between songs on the two above stations and potentially at the start or end of podcasts.

The production of a radio advert for the programme could, therefore, reach huge proportions of the target audience of this programme in the UK through BBC Radio 1, BBC Radio 1 Xtra and BBC podcasts (because these are all BBC products the costs incurred in marketing would also remain low which is crucial for this new, non-established BBC programme).

Radio adverts are good because they are easy to make and relatively inexpensive as they just require actors voice and sound effects which can easily be taken from the shoot of the programme or gathered from copyright free audio websites such as audio jungle. This means because of the large audiences and low cost a good return can be made on the advert.


Print Adverts

I believe using print adverts is important, specifically billboard advertising on public transport networks as this is how an increasing number of young people are travelling, often spending increasing amounts of time per day doing so (some young people spend 80-90+ minutes commuting per day). This means this is a huge portion of time in which the target audience of "My Syrian Boyfriend" can be reached to market the new programme in front of. Adverts can be placed on trains, buses plus at train stations and on the side of buses.

If a striking display is created using bold text and bright imagery this can easily catch the eye of potential viewers. Having the ability to attract huge audiences.


Social Media Advertising

Social media is crucial to target the type of audience the programme is likely to appeal to most. It is estimated 99% of people in the UK aged 16-24 use social media. Twitter, Facebook and Instagram all allow tools to very specifically target users with adverts. So adverts can be created to very specifically target people that we think will like the programme. For example: we could target our social media adverts at people between ages 16 and 24 who also follow university accounts and have previously liked posts about other drama programmes similar to ours. This means the people who see the ads are more likely to watch the programme as they will most relate to the programme/have seen it previously. This will give the best return on the money spent.

Unit 20, P2: Proposal - Advertising Campaign

Unit 20, P2: Mood Board - For Advertising Campaign

Unit 20, P2: Mind Map - Initial Ideas for advertising

Unit 20, P2: Evaluate The Brief - Advertising Campaign for BBC Three Drama

The Brief

"Your TV drama series has been greenlit by BBC Three and they have asked you to produce an advertising campaign for it.

The purpose of the campaign is to raise awareness of the series and attract viewers when it is broadcast. You must identify and justify the series’ target audience.

Your campaign must have a strong message, include cross-media advertising and there must be no copyright or ethical issues that could undermine BBC Three."

Evaluation of Brief 

1) What are the aims and objectives of the brief?

The aim and objectives of the campaign are to raise awareness of the series and attract as many viewers as possible to watch the programme when it is released on the BBC iPlayer. This will be done by targeting the specific audience that will most like the programme through a strong message. The advertising campaign will take place across multiple forms of media such as TV, Radio and Online including social media. To protect BBC Three's reputation it will be vital that no legal or ethical issues arise as a result of the campaign.

2) What drama series will you be advertising and what are the key things that are likely to appeal to the target audience?

The Drama series that will be advertised is "My Syrian Boyfriend". The story is based on real-world events and follows a relationship that builds between a British female student and a Syrian man. Elements of this that will appeal to the young target audience is most likely transgressive details of the relationship that these characters have (especially as it is an unusual non-typical relationship - because of current real-world events).  Clues of violence and hardship may also appeal in the advertising campaign to the audience - this could be created using news clips from the recent broadcasts (this would have to be done with permission to use the clips or fake versions would have to be remade to avoid legal copyright issues).

3) Who exactly is the target audience? Think carefully about demographics (don’t just say ‘young people’!)

The target audience for the drama is 15-21-year-old male and females. This is because this age group can relate to the characters of a similar age in the production - specifically the protagonist as they are potentially going through the University of looking ahead to university just like she is) - they will have similar decisions to make that she does. 

In terms of social demographics, this is likely to be A, B or C1 as these are the demographics which are most likely to attend higher education as the jobs they are likely to go forward with a career in to make them of this social demographic. For example, A social grade viewers are likely to become Chief Executives or work in managerial roles which would normally require a degree. B social grade viewers are likely to aspire to similar roles whilst C1 social grade viewers may aspire to jobs that aspire degrees but may not be essential. 

4) How can you work out exactly who the target audience is likely to be?

To work out the exact target audience, secondary research from BBC Three could be used to see what the most common target audience for its programmes may be. Primary research may also be useful. Focus groups could be held to get feedback from different audiences about the programme or online surveys could be carried out to see how different groups of people react to the programme - therefor helping to determine exactly who would watch the programme therefor who the target audience would be.

5) Potential issues and concerns?

Potential issues that could arise in the campaign is the potential audience of where they adverts are displayed. If we are trying to show the transgressive content - this may make some adverts inappropriate for some people. This will have to be considered when releasing print adverts as it cannot be controlled who sees these (walk past in the street etc). Also, this would minimise the reach of the adverts as they could only be broadcast on TV and Radio after the watershed. For this reason, it may be best to make the adverts appropriate for all, although this in itself could then attract the wrong kind of audience. This will have to be considered.

Another issue will be ensuring all the correct permissions are granted to avoid legal issues before release. For example actor and locations, forms will be required for the advertising campaign as well as the drama series itself. Permission for all audio will need to be granted and licensed if required (the programme will be using traditional Syrian music) as well as third-party video (news clips) and graphics.

There is also the issue of representation within the adverts. Because the characters will only be seen very briefly, typical stereotypes may be assumed by the audience as they do not get the whole backstory. A way will have to be found so the story still appeals to an audience, but tries to avoid using the same negative stereotypes of these people.

6) What are some of the possible methods and platforms on which you could advertise the series?

• Social Media (BBC Three Instagram, BBC Three Twitter,  BBC Three YouTube).
• TV (across BBC TV channels and also some commercial channels).
• Radio (BBC Radio 1, BBC Radio 1Xtra, BBC Radio 5 Live, BBC Local Radio).
• Online (BBC News Website, BBC Three Articles Website, BBC Radio 1 Website)
• Print (Public transport systems - Buses, Trains etc), newspapers (Metro), magazines (ASOS, Cosmopolitan).