Saturday, April 4, 2015

PB1A

Gabrielle Gonzalez
Professor De Piero
April 4, 2015
PB1A

Classified Advertisements
            Classified ads are usually found in newspapers and sometimes local magazines. Classifieds are articles designed for advertising items that are for sale for others to buy. This can range from cars to pets and any type of merchandise for sale by the owner. Typically, one has to pay in order to place and advertisement in a newspaper, so the length of the classifieds is relatively short and straight to the point. The audience of classified advertisements is wide ranging because it could be anyone depending on what the person is looking to buy. However, the general audience consists of adults probably over 18 who have money and are able to afford said car or pet. I’ll take a yard sell classified for example. The home owner would include items for sale and the house address to catch the attention of potential customers. The time, date and subtle directions of the yard sale could also be included as well. Depending on the cost per word, most are only a few sentences long and contain just the facts. Classified ads don’t need to sound all fluffy and verbose because readers already know what to expect when they are looking through them. The tone is rather serious and informational. You don’t see comedic or sad tones because appeal to emotion isn’t needed in order for items to be sold, they tend to sell themselves.
            What makes a classified ad a classified ad is pretty simple. You need to know what you are selling so that you can classify the ad in a newspaper. If it’s a car or house, a price listed needs to be included so the buyer can compare between others that are for sale. Classified advertisements are generally not more than a paragraph long because, again, they are not free to publish. They are updated frequently each week so that new sellers have the opportunity to advertise their items. Opinions are not included into them which distinguishes them from other advertisements. Pictures are not featured either, just plain text without any fancy font or color. You know that you are reading an ad if it contains these elements and can be found in a local periodical. Additionally, classifieds attain a level of credibility to establish trust between the buyer and seller. Personally, I feel more comfortable buying from someone in a classified versus someone on Craigslist for instance. Not saying that Craigslist is bad or that the people on there are untrustworthy, but there is something appealing about taking the time and paying a little extra to have your advertisement printed in your town’s paper. But that’s just me, and not everyone.


2 comments:

  1. Classified advertising is a common form of advertising. Your article clearly introduce this kind of textual genre. In the first paragraph, I can know which information conveyed by these ads. Also, the target audience, purpose and tone of such ads are also indicated. In the second paragraph, some conventions of them are pointed out - classified advertisements are short, updated frequently, only text contained and attain a level of credibility.
    Nowadays, like most forms of printed media, the classified ad has found its way to the Internet. Actually, I have never noticed them when reading newspapers because I just focus on the news articles. In contrast, I sometimes browse these ads online. Internet classified ads cost less or even free, so tend to be longer and specific. I can know more about the goods from these online ads. In addition, online classified ads are also searchable so it is convenient to find things to buy in this way.

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  2. This is a good topic---Classified ad. I would never thought of it by myself. You explains that classified ads are all need to be paid, and they all need specific information about what the ads want to sell, such as price. What is more, classified ads are updated frequently.
    However, firstly I think it would be better if you add a strong and concise conclusion at the end of the article. Secondly, the second paragraph actually contains more than 2 points. It's not like the beginning of the second paragraph said "simple". Maybe it would be more clear if you separate the second paragraph into 2 or more paragraphs.

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