Speaking
Part 1
1 Are there many
advertisements in your country?
Definitely,
there are. They appear all over the place from the streets
to social media with a high density. For example, there is a multitude of colourful flyers stuck on the street walls in Sydney.
2 Why do you think there
are so many advertisements now?
I
guess it’s due to the benefits of the companies. First, advertisements are the
easiest way to reach customers to attract their attention to a particular brand
or product. From that attractive information, customers will be able to choose an appropriate one. Second, it
also plays a crucial role in the marketing
strategy that the company apply to attract customers.
3 What are the various
places where we see advertisements?
Advertising
is here, there, and everywhere. It gets to people
through different types of communication such as flyers and banners on the
streets or printed ones on newspaper, magazines or electronic ones on social
media. It could be written, verbal or a short movie.
4 How do you feel about
advertisements?
Sometimes,
I find it a little bit disappointing because the quality products are usually overrated. However, there are other beneficial
advertisements in supermarkets which has informative contents for customers
such as on which days there will be promotions or which new
products will be launched.
Speaking Part 2
Describe an
unforgettable advertisement that you saw or heard
You should say
where
you saw or heard it
what
kind of advertisement it was
what
the contents of the advertisement were and explain why this advertisement is so
unforgettable
Sample Answer
While
waiting for my boyfriend to pick me up for work , I was watching advertisements
on the TV in the lobby. That night I saw an advertisement that has forever
stuck in my mind. It was a commercial for Nike shoes with Michael Jordan. In it
he said, “I’ve missed more than nine thousand shots in my career. I’ve lost
almost three hundred games. Twenty-six times I’ve been trusted to take the game
winning shot but missed. I’ve failed over and over and over again in my life,
and that is why I succeed.” I couldn’t get that commercial out of my mind, not
because I thought buying Nike shoes would make me as successful as Michael
Jordan, but because of his unflinching determination and perseverance. Life is
full of challenges and difficulties that test our level of commitment. I
believe having determination divides the winners from the losers. Successful
people are not ones who have never failed, but those who kept trying. As simple
as this may sound, it is the one ingredient that separates the winners from the
losers. The one skill that winners acquire is an understanding that growth is
only possible if you have the courage to change what you have been doing, if it
is not achieving the result you desire. Sometimes success is learning how to
fall and recognizing that from that fall you will learn to grow. And growth is
what a fulfilling life is all about.
Vocabulary
for Cue card
Unflinching: notto show face of fear
Eg: Her unflinching courage had to be appreciated
Determination: positive emotional feeling
Eg: One should have the determination to win
Perseverance: continued effort to do or achieve
something despite difficulties, failure, or opposition
Eg: His perseverance made him successful
Commitment: dedicated
Eg: His commitment towards the club is heart-touching
Acquire: gain
Eg: I acquired some knowledge on Solar System
Speaking
Part 3
1 How do
advertisements attract attention?
It
all depends on what group of people the advertisement is aimed for. Young
people look if it’s cool, hip, or fashionable; whereas older people tend to be
more practical-minded, so those in charge of advertising need to have a clear
idea of who they will be targeting with their advertisement, and plan
accordingly. If the advertisement is geared to the younger generation, then
showing how the product can help kids be more attractive, confident, or
successful is good. Catchy music also helps attract attention and helps
listeners remember it. If you’re trying to reach the older generation with your
advertisement, explaining how the product will give them better health, or help
them relax, or be happier may appeal to them.
2 Do young and old people
have the same attitudes towards advertisements?
Definitely
not. Every individual has his own unique attitude towards advertisements and
the advantages and disadvantages that advertising brings. Both old and young
people are inclined to believe and think that advertisements tend to be
misleading, dishonest, phony, shallow, and at times annoying, especially when
they’re not well made or dorky. On the other hand, if done well, they can be
very creative, humorous, artistic, and enjoyable to watch .Those, however, are
the exception, rather than the norm.
3 Do you think
advertisements are a good or bad influence on children?
Looking
at today’s children, I would have to say advertisements have predominately had
a negative influence on their lives and character. Ads create a discontentment
with what children have and a desire to own more and to be like everyone else.
Advertisements usually tend to be unrealistic and give a false impression of
how the children should be or what will happen when they buy the product.
4 Do you think advertisements
actually influence people to buy things? And How?
When
seen a lot. advertisements make products more familiar and ingrained in
people’s mind, so when they want to buy something, they will take a brand that
they recognize. In China, people want to be like the West and so they buy what
they see on TV that the Western people have. They think that if they have this
Western product, they will be as cool as this person, which is totally bizarre
to my mind.
5 Does the Chinese
government control advertisements in any way?
Of
course. All TV media is controlled in some way by the government, so
advertisements must be as well. The government prevents advertisements from
having inappropriate content or content that is not in line with government
policy. That is common in every country. I’m sure that if the advertisement is
within normal bounds, then the government wouldn’t have much to say about it.
6 Do you think there should be controls on
advertising?
Yes,
I do. Some things should not be advertised, such as cigarettes, which are
harmful to people’s health. Most people are aware of their existence, so they
don’t need to be promoted more. Children especially should not be shown
advertisements that make harmful things look cool or interesting. Advertisements
that have age-inappropriate content should also be banned.
7 Do you think that
advertisements for products that harm the health, such as cigarettes, should be
allowed?
Now
you are getting into freedom of choice and whether it would be better to just
prohibit something from being advertised to get people to stop using the
product, but unfortunately this just doesn’t work, as prohibition in the States
found out. The best thing would be for the products just to not be
manufactured, but this doesn’t work either because then they would be produced
illegally, becoming more dangerous.
8 Can you think of any
example of false advertising?
The
biggest example that comes to my mind is McDonald’s advertisements. Every time
I go to McDonald’s, I see pictures of happy, thin people with big smiles and
perfect teeth holding hamburgers and cartons of French fries that are at least
three times bigger than the real products. This advertisement clearly ignores
three glaring facts. For one, if you eat at McDonalds a lot, you will not look
like the people in the advertisement. Two, the hamburger and French fries are
nowhere near the size pictured. Three, if you stand smiling holding a burger,
nobody will think you are cool.
9 What kinds of products
are most often, most easily promoted by false advertising?
Well,
most products are really promoted by false advertising. I hate to sound so
cynical but I have a friend in the advertising business, and a lot of so-called
experts advertising their product know absolutely nothing about it. In the
field of beauty care products, this happens a lot. The poor women sitting at
home with nothing to do except watch TV me are so susceptible to this kind of
advertising.
Vocabulary
for Speaking Part 3
Fashionable: stylish
Eg: She is very fashionable
Annoying: disturbing
Eg: Her dog is very annoying
Inappropriate: not proper
Eg: Cheating is inappropriate
Cynical: believing that people are motivated purely by self-interest
Eg: She is a Cynical woman.
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