SHOCK ADVERTISING IN COMMERCE: RUSSIAN AND FOREIGN EXPERIENCE

Abstract

The article deals with the essence of the widespread concept of «shock advertising». In another way it is called «scandalous advertising» or «shockvertising». It violates the established rules of the advertising business, established traditions and culture of the society and violates the stereotypes. The essence of shock advertising is a provocation of society; manufacturers tend to cause a scandal in public. This type of advertising is one of the company’s strategy to create brand awareness, the end result of which is the ability of the consumer to identify it, to acquire the product and recommend it to others. As one of the means to gain advertising exposure, shock advertising allows consumers to draw attention to the company in a short time, to win their loyalty and to consolidate its position on the market. But the shock techniques are the most controversial influence technologies of advertising. There are doubts about the effectiveness of this type of advertising in terms of moral and ethical standards, and its acceptancy by different cultures.The author proposes a classification of shock techniques on the example of Russian and foreign commercial advertising campaigns, and the analysis of the distinctive features of the Russian shock advertising. The article Focuses on such kinds of shock advertising as violence, fear, death, religion, and offers characteristics that distinguish shock advertising from other advertising methods.