A Three-Minute Guide to Ethos, Pathos, and Logos in
Advertising
All advertising is, most fundamentally, an attempt to persuade
an audience. We want those people to buy our products, to
enlist our services, to support an organization or cause.
The media we use to deliver these messages should match the
habits of our target audience, and the message needs to remain
consistent, however it’s presented within the media mix.
Just as the media buyer needs to incorporate multiple media
channels to reach an audience, the ads need to blend a
combination of rhetorical appeals to be effective.
It’s not good enough anymore to tell the audience that a treat
from Peggy’s Pie Palace is a guilt-free experience—we need
some evidence telling us why it’s a low-calorie snack option.
The art of persuading an audience means using the three basic
appeals that Aristotle first described: ethos, pathos, and logos.
This means using the appeal of personal character, emotion, or
logic, respectively.
Ethos
Ethos is the appeal of a speaker’s/actor's character or authority,
such as the use of local celebrities or the business
owner/employees in a company’s advertising.
This appeal gives character and personality to the message,
making it easier for the audience to relate to, trust, or place
authority in the figure represented.
Ethos may be represented differently in different media. Visual
media has the benefit of using images, such as that of sports
hero, where text-only ads and auditory media such as radio rely
on style, tone, and name recognition to convey ethos.
A Three-Minute Guide to Ethos, Pathos, and Logos in
Advertising
All advertising is, most fundamentally, an attempt to persuade
an audience. We want those people to buy our products, to
enlist our services, to support an organization or cause.
The media we use to deliver these messages should match the
habits of our target audience, and the message needs to remain
consistent, however it’s presented within the media mix.
Just as the media buyer needs to incorporate multiple media
channels to reach an audience, the ads need to blend a
combination of rhetorical appeals to be effective.
It’s not good enough anymore to tell the audience that a treat
from Peggy’s Pie Palace is a guilt-free experience—we need
some evidence telling us why it’s a low-calorie snack option.
The art of persuading an audience means using the three basic
appeals that Aristotle first described: ethos, pathos, and logos.
This means using the appeal of personal character, emotion, or
logic, respectively.
Ethos
Ethos is the appeal of a speaker’s/actor's character or authority,
such as the use of local celebrities or the business
owner/employees in a company’s advertising.
This appeal gives character and personality to the message,
making it easier for the audience to relate to, trust, or place
authority in the figure represented.
Ethos may be represented differently in different media. Visual
media has the benefit of using images, such as that of sports
hero, where text-only ads and auditory media such as radio rely
on style, tone, and name recognition to convey ethos.
Pathos
Perhaps the most powerful tool in advertising, pathos is an
appeal to the audience’s emotions. It can be used to create
feelings of confidence and intrigue in a brand (“established in
1915”), to reinforce value (“find more time for you with Acme
Widget”), or to promote a sense of urgency (“don’t spend
another night with bedbugs”).
Pathos
Perhaps the most powerful tool in advertising, pathos is an
appeal to the audience’s emotions. It can be used to create
feelings of confidence and intrigue in a brand (“established in
1915”), to reinforce value (“find more time for you with Acme
Widget”), or to promote a sense of urgency (“don’t spend
another night with bedbugs”).
The emotions to which the message appeals may be many
and varied: safety, well-being, pride, anger, insecurity,
desire.
The emotions to which the message appeals may be many
and varied: safety, well-being, pride, anger, insecurity,
desire.
Logos
Logos is a logical appeal typically marked by facts, figures, and
data. This information is quantifiable and helps us rationalize
our decisions through hard data on money saved, time saved,
higher status, and so on.
Logos
Logos is a logical appeal typically marked by facts, figures, and
data. This information is quantifiable and helps us rationalize
our decisions through hard data on money saved, time saved,
higher status, and so on.
One tactic that combines all three rhetorical appeals is telling
the audience how many people, just like them, have purchased
a product or service. This social proof approach
 helps lower perceived risk and lessens our insecurity about
the purchase (pathos),
One tactic that combines all three rhetorical appeals is telling
the audience how many people, just like them, have purchased
a product or service. This social proof approach
 helps lower perceived risk and lessens our insecurity about
the purchase (pathos),

paints a concrete picture of market share through data
(logos), and

paints a concrete picture of market share through data
(logos), and

introduces like-minded characters and personalities
through testimonials (ethos).

introduces like-minded characters and personalities
through testimonials (ethos).