The Long Argument

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Peripheral Route Definition

Long Arguments

Fear Appeal

Role Playing

Anti-Ads

Subliminal Influence

Bombardment

Short Arguments

Positive Emotion Appeal

Credits and Disclaimer

A long argument is a specific type of persuasion aimed at the critical individual, or has a specific audience in mind. Advertisers using a long argument bombard consumers with details about their product or service. However, since this persuasion technique takes the central route to persuasion, advertisers must be careful about the details they include. If their consumers are perceptive, they will be able to distinguish between a long argument containing valid, strong arguments and a repetitive or weak list of unimportant, unspecific, or unvalidified points. This technique is particularly effective when a consumer seeks out advertisements for specific products, such as a lotion for sensitive skin or vegetarian burgers.

A long argument can also easily influence consumers who are not mindfully paying attention to the whole argument. A glance at a long argument could lead to the snap judgment that since there is so much information, it must be a good product or service (Brehm et al, 2002)^. A good example of this is given in the last parody advertisement example on the anti-ad page. Read it carefully and you'll see what I mean.