Effective Advertisements and Their Impact on Society

Successful companies use advertisements to make more sales. What can make an advertisement effective? Do you think advertisements are a bad thing or a good thing for society?

Annotated response

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Successful companies rely heavily on advertising to increase their sales. A good advertisement should be simple, memorable, and clearly show why a product is useful. Visual elements, catchy slogans, and short, interesting videos can help an ad stand out and remain in people’s minds. For example, social media ads often attract younger customers because they are visually engaging and easy to share. Similarly, a well-designed poster or TV ad can convince viewers to try a product by highlighting its unique features or benefits.

Some people think advertising is negative because it encourages overspending and creates pressure to buy items that are not needed. However, I believe advertising is generally beneficial. It informs people about new products, helps them make better choices, and supports business growth. In addition, advertising contributes to the economy by generating employment and increasing company revenue. Companies can also use advertising to promote positive messages, such as health awareness campaigns or environmentally friendly products.

In summary, an effective advertisement is clear, creative, and informative. While it may sometimes encourage unnecessary spending, advertising can be a force for good when used responsibly, benefiting both companies and society.

Overall assessment

Why this response received Band 7.0

The response clearly answers both parts of the task, with a direct position on advertising's benefits and sensible ideas about what makes ads effective. Its main limitation is underdevelopment: at 189 words the ideas are relevant but thinly supported, and the vocabulary stays safe rather than precise or varied.

IELTS criteria

How each score was decided

Task Response

6.5

The response addresses both questions directly with a clear position, but ideas are only partially developed and supported due to the response being 61 words short of the minimum length.

Coherence and Cohesion

7.0

Ideas progress logically across well-structured paragraphs with a range of cohesive devices used naturally, with only occasional mechanical linking.

Lexical Resource

6.5

Vocabulary is adequate for the task with some appropriate collocations, but it remains somewhat everyday and lacks precision and less common items.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy

7.0

A variety of sentence structures, including complex forms, is used with good control and only rare, minor errors.