UNIT OUTLINE

Course unit: IF94, IF95, IF96

Unit title: Advertising Creative: Introduction
Unit Code: KCP360
Discipline Code: CKC
Credit Points: 12
Semester(s) of Offer: Semesters 1 and 2
Year(s) of Offer: 2004
Prerequisite(s): Nil
Corequisite(s): Nil
Coordinator: Ms. Sandra Contreras
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1. Rationale

This unit provides an introduction to the creative side of advertising, involving the development of
creative strategies, creative concepts, and the crafting of persuasive ideas. The unit is the foundation
for further work in creative advertising, and provides students with a thorough grounding in creative
advertising history, industry practices, strategies and concept development.

2. Aims

This unit aims to provide you with:

1. An understanding of creative advertising campaigns and strategy;

2. The capacity to develop conceptual ideas for advertising campaigns;
3. An understanding of the communications process, and the significance of various media for
persuasive and successful advertising campaigns;
4. Presentational skills (written, verbal and visual) relevant to the practice of creative advertising;
5. Knowledge of the foundations of creative advertising and persuasion.

3. Objectives

On completion of this unit, you will have developed:

1. Skills in researching and analyzing communication problems & opportunities, and developing creative
strategies;
2. The capability to develop conceptual ideas for advertising campaigns;
3. Awareness of the capabilities of various media as technologies of persuasion in creative advertising
campaigns;
4. Advanced presentation skills (written, verbal and visual);
5. An understanding of how to apply creativity in the advertising industry.

4. Content

Unit Outline prepared by: (enter name of unit coordinator) Last updated:
Unit Outline reviewed by: (enter name/s of review team) Approved:
Topics to be covered in this unit will include:
• An introduction to the advertising industry, and the role played by creative personnel;
• Different advertising media (print, TV, radio, interactive, direct, outdoor) as technologies of
persuasion;
• Concept briefs, and their relationship to creative strategy;
• Introduction to research methodologies, as relevant to strategy, positioning, brand building,
targeting, segmentation, and the communication problem or opportunity;
• The creative process and creative thinking;
• Creative teamwork;
• Creative tools, techniques and methods;
• Presentation and selling of creative concepts;
• Introduction to critiquing creative work.

5. Teaching and Learning Approaches

The unit will combine lectures and other activities that provide an introduction to key concepts in
creative advertising, and practical activities involving the development of advertising concepts, writing,
design and presentation. These activities will help to develop the conceptual ability of students, and
their written, visual and verbal communication skills. Lectures and workshops will be linked to
research and strategy development activities that will link critical analysis with the practical addressing
of communications problems.

6. Assessment

1. Advertisement evaluation exercise

Students will critically evaluate recent advertising campaigns on the basis to which they effectively
deploy creative strategies across a range of media to address communication problems/opportunities
for the relevant client, drawing upon the unit materials.

Length: 2000 words

Weighting: 20%
Due date: Mid-semester
Type of assessment: Formative and summative
Refers to unit objectives: 1, 3, 5

2. Development of creative strategy

Students will research and develop a creative strategy for a client, and generate concepts for seven
appropriate media. They will present these concepts for evaluation and critique by fellow classmates
and their lecturer, and will revise their work in light of this feedback.

Length: n/a
Weighting: 60%
Due date: End of semester
Type of assessment: Formative and summative
Refers to unit objectives: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5

3. Workbook/reflective journal

Students will keep a workbook/reflective journal during the unit, which they will use to keep drafts of
the various concept development processes. These will be submitted for evaluation a week before the
final submission.

Length: 2000-3000 words

Weighting: 20%
Due date: End of semester
Type of assessment: summative
Refers to unit objectives: 2, 3, 5

Unit Outline prepared by: (enter name of unit coordinator) Last updated:
Unit Outline reviewed by: (enter name/s of review team) Approved:
7. Resource Materials

Recommended Reading:

Atchison, Jim (1999) Cutting Edge Advertising: How to Create the World’s Best Brands for the 21 st Century.
Singapore: Prentice Hall.

Arens, William (2002) Contemporary Advertising (8th Edn.). Boston: McGraw-Hill Irwin.

De Bono, Edward (1977) Lateral Thinking: a text book of creativity. Harmondsworth: Penguin.

De Bono, Edward (1985) Six thinking hats. Ontario: Key Porter Books.

Felton, George (1994) Advertising Concept and Copy. Englewood Cliffs: Prentice-Hall.

Gordon, William J.J. 1968. Synectics: the development of creative capacity. London: Collier Macmillan.

Leo Burnett Company (1995) 100 Leo’s: wit &wisdom from Leo Burnett. Lincolnwood: NTC Business Books.

Ogilvy, David (1983) Ogilvy on Advertising. London: Pan.

Osborn, Alex (1963) Applied Imagination (3d rev. Edn.). New York: Scribner.

Sullivan, Luke (1998) Hey, Whipple, squeeze this!: a guide to creating great ads. New York: John Wiley

Schudson, Michael (1993) Advertising: The Uneasy Persuasion (3rd Edn.). London: Routledge.

Weiner, Robert (2000) Creativity and Beyond: Cultures, Values and Change. Albany, NY: State University of
New York Press.

Wallas, Graham (1949) The art of thought. London: Watts.

Ward Thomas B., Finke Ronald A., and Smith Steven. (1995) Creativity and the mind: discovering the
genius within. New York: Plenum Press.

8. Risk Management

There are no out of the ordinary risks associated with this unit
No responsibility will be taken for absence incurred in other QUT course units as a result of this
program.

9. Academic Integrity

Students are expected to display complete integrity in all their academic work. In particular, activities
such as plagiarism and cheating or any activity designed to defeat the purposes of assessment are
breaches of academic integrity. QUT's policy on academic dishonesty is at Student Rule 29
(http://www.qut.edu.au/admin/mopp/Appendix/append01cst.html). Details of University definitions of
cheating and plagiarism and range of penalties will be provided in the documentation students receive
in week 1.

Unit Outline prepared by: (enter name of unit coordinator) Last updated:
Unit Outline reviewed by: (enter name/s of review team) Approved: