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Online Marketing is marketing on the Internet. It is a type of e-marketing, which in turn is a type of e-commerce.

Want to define a Web Advertising or Marketing Term? Just click the first letter of the word below and then scroll down to the word you want to define.

I N D E X

A B C D E F G H I J K M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

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AAA: American Academy of Advertising. An association of educators, students, and former educators in advertising.
AAAA: American Association of Advertising Agencies. An association whose members are ad agencies.
ANA: Association of National Advertisers. An association whose members are advertisers, i.e., companies that advertise their products or services.
Accordian insert: An ad inserted in a magazine, folded with an accordian-style fold.
Accumulation: An audience-counting method, where each person exposed to a specific vehicle is counted once within a certain time period.
Acetate: Transparent plastic sheet frequently used for overlays in ad layouts.
Ad copy: The printed text or spoken words in an advertisement.
Adjacencies: Time periods immediately before and after a television program, normally used as a commercial break between programs.
Adnorm: A measure of readership averages for print publications over a two-year period, used as a baseline for comparing specific ads to an average.
Advance premium: A premium provided to a consumer, on the condition of some later purchase.
Advertiser: The manufacturer, service company, retailer, or supplier who advertises their product or service.
Advertising: There are a variety of definitions, with subtle but important distinctions. While the general public frequently views advertising as encompassing all forms of promotional communication, most advertising practitioners limit it to paid communications conveyed by a mass medium. The latter definition distinguishes advertising from other forms of marketing communication, such as Sales Promotion, Public Relations, and Direct Marketing.
Advertising allowance: Money provided by a manufacturer to a distributor for the purpose of advertising a specific product or brand. See, also, Cooperative advertising.
Advertising budget: Money set aside by the advertiser to pay for advertising. There are a variety of methods for determining the most desirable size of an advertising budget.
Advertising elasticity: The relationship between a change in advertising budget and the resulting change in product sales.
Advertising page exposure: A measure of the opportunity for readers to see a particular print advertisement, whether or not that actually look at the ad.
Advertising plan: An explicit outline of what goals an advertising campaign should achieve, how to accomplish those goals, and how to determine whether or not the campaign was successful in obtaining those goals.
Advertising research: Research conducted to improve the efficacy of advertising. It may focus on a specific ad or campaign, or may be directed at a more general understanding of how advertising works or how consumers use the information in advertising. It can entail a variety of research approaches, including psychological, sociological, economic, and other perspectives.
Advertising specialty: A product imprinted with, or otherwise carrying, a logo or promotional message. Also called a promotional product.
Advertorial: An advertisement that has the appearance of a news article or editorial, in a print publication. See Infomercial, below.
Advocacy advertising: Advertising used to promote a position on a political, controversial or other social issue.
Affirmative disclosure: A disclosure of information in an advertisement, required by the Federal Trade Commission or other authority, that may not be desired by the advertiser. This information frequently admits to some limitation in the product or the offer made in the advertisement.
Agate line: A measure of newspaper advertising space, one column wide and 1/14th inch deep.
Agency commission: The agency's fee for designing and placing advertisements. Historically, this was calculated as 15 percent of the amount spent to purchase space or time in the various media used for the advertising. In recent years the commission has, in many cases, become negotiable, and may even be based on some measure of the campaign's success.
AIDA: Stands for Attention, Interest, Desire, and Action. This is a historical model of how advertising works, by first getting the consumer's attention, then their interest, etc.
Aided recall: A research method frequently used to determine what consumers remember about an advertisement they have seen or heard.
Airbrush: An artist's technique for creating a smooth gradation of color. It is often used to cover imperfections in a photograph, e.g., in a model's skin.
Ala carte services: Rather than provide all advertising services for one price, an agency may provide only the services that a client wishes to purchase.
Answer print: The final edited version (print) of a television commercial, for approval by the client. It may still need color correction, etc.
Appeal: The advertisement's selling message.
Arbitron: Television and radio rating rating service that publishes regular reports for selected markets.
Area of dominant influence (ADI): A geographic designation, used by Arbitron, that specifies which counties fall into a specific television market. See, also, Designated Market Area.
Art proof: The artwork for an ad, to be submitted for client approval.
Artwork: The visual components of an ad, not including the typeset text.
Audience: The number of people or households exposed to a vehicle, without regard to whether they actually saw or heard the material conveyed by that vehicle.
Audience duplication: The number of people who saw or heard more than one of the programs or publications in which an ad was placed.
Audilog: A diary kept by selected audience members to record which television programs they watched, as a means of rating television shows. Used by A.C. Nielsen.
Audimeter: An electronic recording device used by A.C. Nielsen to track when a television set is in use, and to what station it is set.
Audit Bureau of Circulations (ABC): A company that audits the circulation of print publications, to insure that reported circulation figures are accurate.
Availability: Advertising time on radio or television that is available for purchase, at a specific time.
Average Audience (AA): The number of homes or persons tuned to a television program during an average minute, or the number of persons who viewed an average issue of a print publication.

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B

B-to-B: See Business-to-business advertising.
Back to back: Running more than one commercial, with one following immediately after another.
Banner: A graphic image, usually 469 by 60 pixels displaying an ad with a clickable link.
Barter: Exchanging merchandise, or something other than money, for advertising time or space.
BBB: Better Business Bureau; a non-profit organization offering consumers information on the business practices of certain companies.
Ben Day process: A shading or dot pattern on a drawing.
Billboard: (1) An outdoor sign or poster; (2) Sponsor identification at the beginning or end of a television show.
Billings: Total amount charged to clients, including the agency commission, media costs, production costs, etc.
Bleed: Allowing a picture or ad to extend beyond the normal margin of a printed page, to the edge of the page.
Blow-in card: An advertisement, subscription request, or other printed card "blown" into a print publication rather than bound into it.
Blueline: A blue line drawn on a mechanical to indicate where a page will be cut.
Body copy: The text of a print ad, not including the headline, logo, or subscript material.
Boutique: An agency that provides a limited service, such as one that does creative work but does not provide media planning, research, etc. Usually, this refers to a relatively small company.
Brand development index (BDI): A comparison of the percent of a brand's sales in a market to the percent of the national population in that same market.
Brand manager: Person who has marketing responsibilities for a specific brand.
Brand name: Name used to distinguish one product from it's competitors. It can apply to a single product, an entire product line, or even a company.
Bridge: Transition from one scene to another, in a commercial or program.
Broadsheet: Standard size newspaper.
Broadside: A promotion that is printed on a single large sheet of paper, usually on only one side of the paper, as opposed to a tabloid or other off-size newspaper.
Bulldog edition: An edition of a print publication that is available earlier than other editions. Usually, this is the early edition of a large circulation newspaper.
Buried position: Placing an ad between other ads in a print publication, so that readers are less likely to see it.
Business-to-business advertising: Advertising directed to other businesses, rather than to consumers.

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C

CBBB: Council of Better Business Bureaus. A national organization of local business bureaus.
Camera-ready art: Artwork that is in sufficiently finished form to be photographed for printing.
Caption: (1) An advertisement's headline; (2) The text accompanying an illustration or photograph.
Car card: A poster placed in buses, subways, etc. Also called a Bus card.
Card rate: Media rates published by a broadcast station or print publication on a "rate card." This is typically the highest rate charged by a vehicle.
Category development index (CDI): A comparison of the percent of sales of a product category in a market, to the percent of population in that market.
Cease-and-desist order: An order by the Federal Trade Commission requiring an advertiser to stop running a deceptive or unfair advertisement, campaign, or claim.
Chain break: A pause for station identification, and commercials, during a network telecast.
Channels of distribution: The routes used by a company to distribute its products, e.g., through wholesalers, retailers, mail order, etc.
Chrome: A color photographic transparency.
Circulation: Of a print publication, the average number of copies distributed. For outdoor advertising this refers to the total number of people who have an opportunity to observe a billboard or poster. This term sometimes is used for broadcast, as well, but the term "audience" is used more frequently.
Classified advertising: Print advertising that is limited to certain classes of goods and services, and usually limited in size and content.
Claymation: An animation method that uses clay figurines.
Clearance: The process by which a vehicle reviews an advertisement for legal, ethical, and taste standards, before accepting the ad for publication.
Click: The action of a user pressing the mouse button.
Click-Through: The action of a user clicking on an ad banner or HTML link which results in a new web page being loaded.
Client: The ad agency's term for the advertisers it represents.
Closing date: The day final copy and other materials must be at the vehicle in order to appear in a specific issue or time slot.
Clutter: When an advertisement is surrounded by other ads, thereby forcing it to compete for the viewer's or listener's attention.
Coated stock: Paper with a slick and smooth finish.
Coincidental survey: A survey of viewers or listeners of broadcast programming, conducted during the program.
Cold type: Refers to most modern typesetting methods, such as phototypesetting, because they do not involve pouring hot molten metal into molds for different type fonts.
Collateral materials: Sales brochures, catalogs, spec sheets, etc., generally delivered to consumers (or dealers) by a sales person rather than by mass media. These materials are considered "collateral" to the sales message delivered by the sales person.
Collectibles: A type of premium that consumers may desire to have as a part of a greater collection of similar goods.
Color proof: An early full-color print of a finished advertisement, used to evaluate the ad's final appearance.
Color separation: A full-color ad normally is generated through printing of four separate colors: yellow, cyan, magenta, and black. The color separation consists of four separate screens; one for each of those four colors.
Column inch: A common unit of measure by newspapers, whereby ad space is purchased by the width, in columns, and the depth, in inches. For example, an ad that is three standard columns wide and 5 inches tall (or deep) would be 15 column inches.
Combination rate: A special media pricing arrangement that involves purchasing space or time on more than one vehicle, in a package deal. This is frequently offered where different vehicles share a common owner.
Commercial advertising: Advertising that involves commercial interests rather than advocating a social or political cause.
Communication process: A description or explanation of the chain-of-events involved in communicating information from one party to another.
Comparative advertising: An advertising appeal that consists of explicitly comparing one product brand to a competitive brand.
Competition-oriented pricing: A pricing strategy that is based upon what the competition does.
Competitive parity: A method of determining an advertising budget, designed to maintain the current "share of voice."
Comprehensive layout: A rough layout of an ad designed for presentation only, but so detailed as to appear very much like the finished ad will look.
Consent order: Also called a consent decree, this is a Federal Trade Commission order, by which an advertiser agrees to make changes in an advertisement or campaign, without the need for a legal hearing.
Consumer advertising: Advertising directed at a person who will actually use the product for their own benefit, rather than to a business or dealer.
Consumer behavior: Study of how people behave when obtaining, using, and disposing of products (and services).
Consumer jury test: A method of testing advertisements that involves asking consumers to compare, rank, and otherwise evaluate the ads.
Consumer stimulants: Promotional efforts designed to stimulate short-term purchasing behavior. Coupons, premiums, and samples are examples of consumer stimulants.
Consumerism: (1) Advocating the rights of consumers, as against the efforts of advertisers, (2) The emphasis of advertising and marketing efforts toward creating consumers. These two definitions are almost opposite in meaning, but the former is commonly used today, while the latter was common prior to the 1970s.
Container premium: Special product packaging, where the package itself acts as a premium of value to the consumer.
Continuity: Scheduling advertisements to appear at regular intervals over a period of time.
Continuous advertising: Scheduling advertisements to appear regularly, even during times when consumers are not likely to purchase the product or service, so that consumers are constantly reminded of the brand.
Continuous tone art: Where a photograph or other art depicts smooth gradations from one level of gray to another.
Controlled (qualified) circulation: Publications, generally business-oriented, that are delivered only to readers who have some special qualifications. Generally, publications are free to the qualified recipients.
Cooperative (Co-op) program: A system by which ad costs are divided between two or more parties. Usually, such programs are offered by manufacturers to their wholesalers or retailers, as a means of encouraging those parties to advertise the product.
Cooperative advertising: Same as Cooperative program, above.
Copy: All spoken words or written text in an advertisement.
Copy platform: See Creative Strategy, below.
Copy testing: Research to determine an ad's effectiveness, based on consumer responses to the ad.
Corporate advertising campaign: A campaign that promotes a corporation, rather than a product or service sold by that corporation.
Corrective advertising: Advertisements or messages within advertisements, that the Federal Trade Commission orders a company to run, for the purpose of correcting consumers' mistaken impressions created by prior advertising.
Cost efficiency: For a media schedule, refers to the relative balance of effectively meeting reach and frequency goals at the lowest price.
Cost per inquiry: The cost of getting one person to inquire about your product or service. This is a standard used in direct response advertising.
Cost per rating point (CPP): The cost, per 1 percent of a specified audience, of buying advertising space in a given media vehicle.
Cost per thousand (CPM): The cost, per 1000 people reached, of buying advertising space in a given media vehicle.
Counter advertising: Advertising that takes a position contrary to an advertising message that preceded it. Such advertising may be used to take an opposing position on a controversial topic, or to counter an impression that might be made by another party's advertising.
Coverage: A measure of a media vehicle's reach, within a specific geographic area.
CPA: The Cost Per Action; the fee charged every time a user completes a desired action, such as filling out a form, downloading software, or viewing a series of pages.
CPC: The cost per click-through; the fee charged every time a user clicks on a banner ad or HTML link.
CPM: The cost, per 1000 impressions, of buying advertising space in a given media vehicle. For example, $50 CPM means each impression cost 5 cents.
CPS: The Cost Per Sale; the fee charged every time a user completes a purchase.
Creative strategy: An outline of what message should be conveyed, to whom, and with what tone. This provides the guiding principles for copywriters and art directors who are assigned to develop the advertisement. Within the context of that assignment, any ad that is then created should conform to that strategy. The written statement of creative strategy is sometimes called a "copy platform."
Creatives: The art directors and copywriters in an ad agency.
Crop: To eliminate or cut off specific portions of a photograph or illustration.
Crop marks: Marks to indicate which portions a photograph or illustration are to be used, and which are to be eliminated.
CT: Click-Through; the act of a user clicking on a banner or HTML link resulting in a new page load.
CTR: Click-Through Ratio; the ratio of click-throughs to impressions for a given ad run.
Cumes: An abbreviation for net cumulative audience. Refers to the number of unduplicated people or homes in a broadcast program's audience within a specified time period. This term is used by A.C. Nielsen. It also is used by many advertising practitioners to refer to the unduplicated audience of a print vehicle, or an entire media schedule.
Cumulative audience: See Cumes, above.
Cut: An antiquated term that refers to a photograph or illustration.
Cutting: A film editing technique that creates a quick transition from one scene to another.

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D

Dailies: Also called rushes, this refers to unedited film. These are called Dailies because the film typically is viewed from a single day's shooting, even if the final commercial or program will take many days or weeks of shooting.
DAGMAR: This refers to a process of establishing goals for an ad campaign such that it is possible to determine whether or not the goals have been met. It stands for Defining Advertising Goals for Measured Advertising Results.
Day-after recall test: A research method that tests consumers' memories the day after they have seen an ad, to assess the ad's effectiveness.
Daypart: Broadcast media divide the day into several standard time periods, each of which is called a "daypart." Cost of purchasing advertising time on a vehicle varies by the daypart selected.
Decay constant: An estimate of the decline in product sales if advertising were discontinued.
Deceptive advertising: FTC definition: A representation, omission, act or practice that is likely to mislead consumers acting reasonably under the circumstances. To be regulated, however, a deceptive claim must also be material. See Materiality, below.
Demographic segmentation: Dividing consumers into groups based on selected demographics, so that different groups can be treated differently. For example, two advertisements might be developed, one for adults and one for teenagers, because the two groups are expected to be attracted to different types of advertising appeal. See Demographics, below.
Demographics: Basic objective descriptive classifications of consumers, such as their age, sex, income, education, size of household, ownership of home, etc. This does not include classification by subjective attitudes or opinions of consumers. See Psychographics, below.
Depth interview: A method of research, whereby a trained interviewer meets with consumers individually and asks a series of questions designed to detect attitudes and thoughts that might be missed when using other methods.
Designated market area (DMA): A geographic designation, used by A.C. Nielsen, that specifies which counties fall into a specific television market. See also, Area of dominant influence.
Die Cut: A mechanical process for cutting, scoring, and creasing a finished print or card stock.
Direct house: An advertising specialties company that manufactures and then sells its goods directly with its own sales force, rather than through retailers.
Direct mail: Marketing communications delivered directly to a prospective purchaser via the U.S. Postal Service or a private delivery company.
Direct marketing: Sending a promotional message directly to consumers, rather than via a mass medium. Includes methods such as Direct Mail and Telemarketing.
Direct premium: A premium provided to the consumer at the same time as the purchase.
Direct response: Promotions that permit or request consumers to directly respond to the advertiser, by mail, telephone, e-mail, or some other means of communication. Some practitioners use this as a synonym for Direct Marketing.
Directory advertising: Advertising that appears in a directory (telephone directory, tourism brochure, etc.). This frequently connotes advertising that consumers intentionally seek.
Display advertisement: (1) In print media, any advertisement other than a classified ad. (2) An ad that stands alone, such as window sign.
Dissolve: Fading from one scene to another in a film or television production.
Distributor: A company or person that distributes a manufacturer's goods to retailers. The terms "wholesaler" and "jobber" are sometimes used to describe distributors.
Door-opener: A product or advertising specialty given by a sales person to consumers to induce them to listen to a sales pitch.
Double truck: A two-page spread in a print publication, where the ad runs across the middle gutter.
Drive time: Used in radio, this refers to morning and afternoon times when consumers are driving to and from work. See Daypart, above.
Dummy: A copy (e.g., xerographic duplicate) of an ad, or even blank sheets of paper, provided to a printer or artist as an example of the size, color, or other aspect of the ad to be produced.
Duplicated audience: That portion of an audience that is reached by more than one media vehicle.

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E

Earned rate: A discounted media rate, based on volume or frequency of media placement.
Electric spectacular: Outdoor signs or billboards composed largely of lighting or other electrical components.
Em: A unit of type measurement, based on the "M" character.
End-user: The person who actually uses a product, whether or not they are the one who purchased the product.
Envelope stuffer: A direct mail advertisement included with another mailed message (such as a bill).
Equal time: A Federal Communications Commission requirement that when a broadcaster allows a political candidate broadcast a message, opposing candidates must be offered equal broadcast time.
Eighty-twenty rule: A rule-of-thumb that, for the typical product category, eighty percent of the products sold will be consumed by twenty percent of the customers.
Exposure: Consumers who have seen (or heard) a media vehicle, whether or not they paid attention to it.
Eye tracking: A research method that determines what part of an advertisement consumers look at, by tracking the pattern of their eye movements.

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F

FCC: Federal Communications Commission. The federal agency responsible for regulating broadcast and electronic communications.
FTC: Federal Trade Commission. The federal agency primarily responsible for regulating national advertising.
Facings: Refers to the number of billboards used for an advertisement.
Factory pack: A premium attached to a product, in or on the packaging.
Fairness Doctrine: Until the mid-1980s, a Federal Communications Commission policy that required broadcasters to provide time for opposing viewpoints any time they broadcast an opinion supporting one side of a controversial issue.
Family brand: A brand name that is used for more than one product, i.e., a family of products.
Fixed-sum-per-unit method: A method of determining an advertising budget, which is based directly on the number of units sold.
Flat rate: A media rate that allows for no discounts.
Flighting: A media schedule that involves more advertising at certain times and less advertising during other time periods.
Focus group interview: A research method that brings together a small group of consumers to discuss the product or advertising, under the guidance of a trained interviewer.
Font: A typeface style, such as Helvetica, Times Roman, etc., in a single size. A single font includes all 26 letters, along with punctuation, numbers, and other characters.
Four As: See AAAA, above.
Four Ps: Stands for Product, Price, Place (i.e., distribution), and Promotion. This is also known as the Marketing Mix, see below.
Four-color process: A printing process that combines differing amounts of each of four colors (red, yellow, blue & black) to provide a full-color print.
Franchised position: An ad position in a periodic publication (e.g., back cover) to which an advertiser is given a permanent or long-term right of use.
Free-standing insert (FSI): An advertisement or group of ads inserted - but not bound - in a print publication, on pages that contain only the ads and are separate from any editorial or entertainment matter.
Frequency: (1) Number of times an average person or home is exposed to a media vehicle (or group of vehicles), within a given time period. (2) The position of a television or radio station's broadcast signal within the electromagnetic spectrum.
Fringe time: A time period directly preceding and directly following prime time, on television.
Fulfillment house: A coupon clearing house. A company that receives coupons and manages their accounting, verification and redemption.
Full position: An ad that is surrounded by reading matter in a newspaper, making it more likely consumers will read the ad. This is a highly desirable location for an ad.
Full-service agency: An agency that handles all aspects of the advertising process, including planning, design, production, and placement. Today, full-service generally suggests that the agency also handles other aspects of marketing communication, such as public relations, sales promotion, and direct marketing.

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G

Galley proof: A typeset copy of an ad or editorial material, before it is made into pages for final production.
Galvanometer test: A research method that measures physiological changes in consumers when asked a question or shown some stimulus material (such as an ad).
Gatefold: Double or triple-size pages, generally in magazines, that fold out into a large advertisement.
GIF: Graphic Interchange Format - an image file format commonly used for ad banners.
GIF89a: Graphic Interchange Format with animation capability- an animated image file format commonly used for ad banners.
Guaranteed circulation: A media rate that comes with a guarantee that the publication will achieve a certain circulation.
Generic brand: Products not associated with a private or national brand name.
Gravure: A printing process that uses an etched printing cylinder.
Green advertising: Advertising that promotes a product or service's ability to help or, more likely, not hurt the environment.
Grid card: A broadcast media rate card that lists rates on a grid, according to the time periods that might be selected for the ad.
Gross audience: The audiences of all vehicles or media in a campaign, combined. Some or much of the gross audience may actually represent duplicated audience.
Gross impressions: Total number of unduplicated people or households represented by a given media schedule.
Gross rating points (GRPs): Reach times average frequency. This is a measure of the advertising weight delivered by a vehicle or vehicles within a given time period.
Gutter: The inside margins of two pages that face each other in a print publication.

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H

Halftone: A method of reproducing a black and white photograph or illustration, by representing various shades of gray as a series of black and white dots.
Hierarchy-of-effects theory: A series of steps by which consumers receive and use information in reaching decisions about what actions they will take (e.g., whether or not to buy a product).
Holding power: The ability to keep an audience throughout a broadcast, rather than having them change channels. It is represented as a percent of the total audience.
Holdover audience: The percent of a program's audience that watched or listened to the immediately preceding program on the same station. Also called Inherited audience (see below).
Hologram: A three-dimensional photograph or illustration, created with an optical process that uses lasers.
Horizontal discount: A discount on a media purchase resulting from a promise to advertise over an extended period of time.
Horizontal publications: Business publications designed to appeal to people of similar interests or responsibilities in a variety of companies or industries.
Host/Hostess gift: A gift to a consumer who sponsors a sales demonstration party or meeting.
Hot composition: A method of typesetting that uses molten metal to form the letters for a typeface. See Cold type, above.
House agency: An advertising agency owned and operated by an advertiser, which handles the advertiser's account.
House organ: A publication owned and operated by an advertiser, and used to promote the advertiser's products or services.
Households using television (HUT): The number of households in a given market watching television at a certain time. This term is used by A.C. Nielsen.

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I

IAB: Internet Advertising Bureau
ID: Station identification during a commercial break in a television or radio program.
Image advertising: Promoting the image, or general perception, of a product or service, rather than promoting its functional attributes. Commonly used for differentiating brands of parity products (e.g., "This is a man's drink").
Impression: In Web advertising, a request by a user's browser to load a graphic ad image.
Imprinted product: A promotional product, this is a product with a company logo or advertising message printed on it.
In-pack premium: A premium included in the packaging of another product (e.g., buy a can of shaving cream and get a free razor in the same package). The term Package enclosure is also used.
Incentive catalog company: A company that creates an incentive program for sales people, and provides them with a catalog from which they can select their prize or premium.
Independent contractor: A person who is hired by a company, but works for himself/herself. The company is a client, rather than an employer.
Independent station: A broadcast station that is not affiliated with a national network of stations.
Industrial advertising: A form of business-to-business advertising (see above), this is advertising aimed at manufacturers. This advertising typically promotes parts, equipment, and raw materials used in the manufacturing process.
Infomercial: A commercial that is very similar in appearance to a news program, talk show, or other non-advertising program content. The broadcast equivalent of an Advertorial (see above).
Inherited audience: Same as Holdover audience, above.
Inquiries: Consumer response to a company's advertising or other promotional activities, such as coupons. Used for measuring the effectiveness of some promotions.
Insert: An advertisement, collection of advertisements, or other promotional matter published by an advertiser or group of advertisers, to be inserted in a magazine or newspaper. It may be bound into the publication, or be inserted without binding. See Free-standing insert, above.
Insertion: Refers to an ad in a print publication.
Insertion order: An agency or advertiser's authorization for a publisher to run a specific ad in a specific print publication on a certain date at a specified price.
Institutional advertising: Advertising to promote an institution or organization, rather than a product or service, in order to create public support and goodwill.
Intaglio: A form of printing that results in a raised or engraved print surface.
Integrated Marketing Communication (IMC): A management concept that is designed to make all aspects of marketing communication (e.g., advertising, sales promotion, public relations, and direct marketing) work together as a unified force, rather than permitting each to work in isolation.
Intensive distribution: Distributing a product through a wide variety of outlets.
International advertising: Advertising a product or service in a country other than where it originates.
Interstitial: An ad which appears in between two pages of a web site; when the user clicks on a link, the ad displays for a short time before allowing the user to proceed.
Island display: An in-store product display situated away from competing products, typically in the middle or at the end of an aisle.
Island position: A print ad that is completely surrounded by editorial material, or a broadcast ad surrounded by program content, with no adjoining advertisements to compete for audience attention.

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J

Jingle: A short song, usually mentioning a brand or product benefit, used in a commercial.
JPEG: Joint Photographic Experts Group - an image file format commonly used for ad banners.
Jumble display: A mixture of products or brands on a single display, such as a clearance table.

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K

Keeper: A premium used to induce a consumer to take some action, such as completing a survey or trying a product.
Kerning: Spacing between the letters of a word.

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L

Lanham Act: Federal trademark law.
Layout: A drawing that indicates the relative positions of the elements (e.g., headline, photo, logo, body copy, etc.) of an ad.
Leading: The space between lines of type.
Leave-behind: A premium left with prospective customers by a sales person, to remind them of the product or service being sold.
Letterpress: A printing method that stamps ink onto paper, using raised lettering.
Lifestyle segmentation: Separating consumers into groups, based on their hobbies, interests, and other aspects of their lifestyles.
Linage: Refers to the size of an ad, based on the number of lines of type taken up by the ad.
Line conversion: A high-contrast reproduction of an illustration, where all shading is reduced to either black or white.
List broker: An agent who sells lists of sales prospects.
Lithography: A printing method in which the printing and non-printing areas exist on the same plane, as opposed to a bi-leveled reproduction.
Local advertising: (1) Advertising to a local merchant or business as opposed to regional or national advertising. (2) Advertising placed at rates available to local merchants.
Local rate: An advertising rate charged to a local advertiser , typically a retailer, by local media and publications, as distinguished from a national rate that is charged to a national advertiser, typically a manufacturer.
Logotype (logo): A brand name, publication title, or the like, presented in a special lettering style or typeface and used in the manner of a trademark.
Loss leader: A retail item advertised at an invitingly low price in order to attract customers for the purchase of other, more profitable merchandise.
Lottery: A scheme in which making a required purchase gives a person a chance to win a prize which is awarded at random, usually through an electronic drawing. Lotteries may not be used as promotion devices under U.S. laws.
Loyalty index: Frequency of listenership of a particular broadcast station.

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M

Macromarketing: A type of marketing in which a company adapts itself to uncontrollable factors within the industry.
Mail-in premium: A premium obtained by mailing in a suitable response to the manufacturer or distributor, with or without money.
Mail-order advertising: Advertising which supplies paperwork for the purpose of soliciting a purchase made through the mail.
Make good: (1) To present a commercial announcement after it ís scheduled time because of an error. (2) To rerun a commercial announcement because of technical difficulties the previous time it was run. (3) To rerun a print advertisement due to similar circumstances.
Marginal analysis: Technique of setting the advertising budget by assuming the point at which an additional dollar spent on advertising equals additional profit.
Market profile: A summary of the characteristics of a market, including information of typical purchasers and competitors, and often general information on the economy and retailing patterns of an area.
Market segmentation: To divide a market by a strategy directed at gaining a major portion of sales to a subgroup in a category, rather than a more limited share of purchases by all category users.
Market share: The percentage of a product category's sales, in terms of dollars or units, obtained by a brand, line, or company.
Marketing firm: A business that affects the distribution and sales of goods and services from producer to consumer; including products or service development, pricing, packaging, advertising, merchandising, and distribution.
Marketing mix: The levels and interplay of the elements of a product's or service's marketing efforts, including product features, pricing, packaging, advertising, merchandising, distribution, and marketing budget; especially as these elements affect sales results.
Marketing research: The systematic gathering, recording, analyzing, and use of data relating to the transfer and sale of goods and services from producer to consumer.
Master tape: An edited audio tape or video tape to be recorded on quantity prints or dubs.
Materiality: The FTC theoretically will not regulate a deceptive advertisement unless the deceptive claim is also material. This means, in simple terms, that the claim must be important to consumers, rather than trivial. The FTC requires that the deception be likely to affect consumers' "choice of, or conduct regarding, a product."
Matte shot: A camera shot made with a matte or mask in part of the frame to allow another shot to be printed in the opaque area.
Mechanical (paste-up): A finished layout that is photographed for offset printing.
Media buying service: Agency that specializes in the services of media buying.
Media concentration theory: Technique of scheduling media that involves buying space in one medium only and developing strength through concentration.
Media dominance theory: Technique of scheduling media that involves buying a large amount of space in one medium, and shifting to another medium after achieving optimum coverage and frequency.
Media plan: A plan designed to select the proper demographics for an advertising campaign through proper media selection.
Media strategy: A plan of action by an advertiser for bringing advertising messages to the attention of consumers through the use of appropriate media.
Medium (plural, Media): A vehicle or group of vehicles used to convey information, news, entertainment, and advertising messages to an audience. These include television, cable television, magazines, radio, billboards, etc.
Merchandising the advertising: The promoting of a firmís advertising abilities to distributors.
Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA): An urban area with a population of at least 50,000 that is designated by the Office of Management and Budget for statistical reporting purposes and used in audience measurement studies. This is generally synonymous with the former term Standard Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Micromarketing: The activities a firm practices in order to react controllably to external forces, e.g., setting objectives and selecting target markets.
Milline rate: Used to determine the cost effectiveness of advertising in a newspaper; reached by multiplying the cost per agate line by one million, then dividing by the circulation. Also referred to as Milline.
Motivation research: Used to investigate the psychological reasons why individuals buy specific types of merchandise, or why they respond to specific advertising appeals, to determine the base of brand choices and product preferences.

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N

NAB: National Association of Broadcasters. An association whose membership is largely composed of radio and television stations.
NAD: National Advertising Division of the Council of Better Business Bureaus. This organization serves as a major self-regulatory mechanism for advertising.
NARB: National Advertising Review Board of the Council of Better Business Bureaus. When an alleged problem arises with an advertisement, and a satisfactory solution is not obtained via the NAD, above, the NARB acts in the capacity of an appeals board. It reviews the decision of the NAD, and passes judgment on it.
Narrowcasting: Using a broadcast medium to appeal to audiences with special interests. For example, the "All Knitting Station" would be a narrowcast, because it appeals to an audience with a specific interest.
National advertising: Advertising which is aimed at a National Market, as opposed to Local Advertising.
National brand: A nationally distributed product brand name. May also be distributed regionally or locally.
Near-pack (Near Pack Premium): An item offered free or at a discount with the purchase of another product. The item can be positioned close to but may not touch the purchased product. A type of product promotion.
Negative: Developed film that contains an image that has reversed shadows and light areas.
Net cost: The costs associated with services rendered by an advertising agency excluding the agency commission.
Net unduplicated audience: The combined cumulative audience exposed to an advertisement.
Network: A national or regional group of affiliated broadcast stations contractually bound to distribute radio or television programs for simultaneous transmission.
Network option time: Programming time the network controls on each of its affiliate stations. Also referred to as network time.
Newsprint: A soft, course wood pulp paper used in printing newspapers.
Nielsen rating: A measurement of the percentage of U.S. television households tuned to a network program for a minute of its telecast.
Noncommercial advertising: Radio and television advertising that is designed to educate and promote ideas or institutions, e.g., public service announcements.

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O

O & O station: Radio and television stations owned and operated by a network.
Off card: Refers to advertising time sold at a rate that does not appear on the rate card.
Offset lithography: A planographic printing process. A photographic image from a printing plate is transferred to a rubber blanket, which, in turn, transfers or prints the image onto the paper.
On-air tests: Tests recall among viewers of a commercial or program during a real broadcast of the tested communication.
On-pack (On-pack Premium): Used to promote sales of a product. Discount coupons or gifts that are attached to or accompany the product to be purchased.
Open end: (1) Time left at the end of a commercial or program which is provided for the use of local advertising or station identification. (2) A radio or television program with no specific time to end.
Opticals: Visual effects used to instill interest as well as portray mood and continuity to a commercial. Dissolves, Cross fades, and Montages are all opticals.
Opt-In: An ad campaign targeted to individuals who have requested to receive offers and information on specific products or services.
Out-of-home advertising: Exposure to advertising and mass media away from one's home. Included are outdoor, point-of-purchase, and radio.
Outdoor advertising: Any outdoor sign that publicly promotes a product or service, such as billboards, movie kiosks, etc.
Overlay: A transparent or opaque covering used to protect designs or layouts in the form of separate transparent prints that combine to form a finished design or graphic.
Overrun: Additional numbers of a print vehicle that are produced in excess of those needed for distribution. Overruns may take place to meet unexpected needs or demands.

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P

Package: (1) A combination of programs or commercials offered by a network that is available for purchase by advertisers either singly or as a discounted package deal. (2) A merchandise enclosure or container.
Package enclosure: Same as In-pack premium, above.
Package insert: Separate advertising material included in merchandise packages that advertises goods or services; also referred to as Package Stuffer.
Painted bulletin: A freestanding steel or wooden structure, approximately 50' wide by 15' high, with molding around the outer edges similar to a poster panel, and including a hand painted copy message. Bulletins are generally found near highways or roofs of buildings in high traffic areas.
Panels: This includes regular and illuminated types of outdoor advertising. A regular panel is only seen during the daytime, while an illuminated panel is seen also from dusk until dawn.
Pantone Matching System (PMS): A system that precisely characterizes a color, so that a color can be matched, even by different printers. By knowing the Pantone color specifications, a printer does not even need to see a sample of the color in order to match it.
Parity products: Product categories where the several brands within that category possess functionally equivalent attributes, making one brand a satisfactory substitute for most other brands in that category.
Participation: Announcements made inside the context of a program as opposed to those shown during station breaks. (2) An announcement or amount of broadcasting time which is shared by several advertisers.
Pass-along readers: A reader which becomes familiar with a publication without the purchase of a publication. These readers are taken into account when calculating the total number of readers of a publication.
Paste-up: A camera-ready layout of illustrative and type material which is configured in the proper position on paperboard and is used for reproductive purposes.
Payout planning: Approach to advertising budgeting in which the dollars spent to advertise are represented as an investment toward sales and profits.
Per inquiry: An agreement between a media representative and an advertiser in which all advertising fees are paid based on a percentage of all money received from an advertiser's sales or inquires.
Percent-of-sales method: Method of determining the advertising budget based on an analysis of past sales, as well as a forecast for future sales.
Perceived risk: A functional or psychosocial risk a consumer feels he/she is taking when purchasing a product.
Personal selling: Sales made through a medium of face-to-face communication, personal correspondence, or personal telephone conversation, etc.
Personalize: To add a name or other personal information about the recipient on direct mail advertising.
Persons using television (PUT): A percentage of all persons in a certain viewing area that are viewing television during a specific amount of time. Used by A.C. Nielson.
Persons viewing television (PVT): Same meaning as above, except this term is used by Arbitron.
Persuasion process: The process used by advertising to influence audience or prospect attitudes, especially purchase intent and product perception by appealing to reason or emotion.
Phantom: An illustration showing the exterior of an object as if it were transparent, while revealing interior detailing.
Photoanimation: A process of creating animation through the use of still photographs.
Photoboards: A set of still photographs made from a television commercial, accompanied with a script, to be kept as records by an agency or client.
Photocomposition: A method of setting type by using negatives of the characters of film or photographic paper rather than metal type slugs, also referred to as Cold type.
Photoengraving: (1) The process of making letterpress printing plates by photochemical means. (2) A picture printed from a plate made by this process.
Photoplatemaking: A process which converts original art material into printing plates that are required to print ads.
Photostat: A type of high contrast photographic negative or positive in the form of paper. Also referred to as Stat.
Pica: (1) A unit of measurement for type specification and printing which measures width; 6 picas to one inch. (2) A size of type, 12 points.
Picture window: An ad layout in which the picture is placed at the top of the page, and the copy is placed below.
Piggyback: (1) A direct mail offer that is included free with another offer. (2) Two commercials which are shown back-to-back by the same sponsor.
Point: (1) A small unit of measurement for type, equal to 1/72 of an inch. (2) A small unit for measuring the thickness of paper, equaling 0.001 inch.
Point-of-Purchase (POP) displays: Advertising display material located at the retail store, usually placed in an area where payment is made, such as a check-out counter.
Positive: A photographic image which appears as the original image, as opposed to a negative which reverses the black and white.
Poster panel: An outdoor billboard in which advertising is displayed on printed paper sheets rather than being painted. The most widely used form of outdoor advertising; standard size approximately 25' x 12' with the image printed on sections of 24 to 30 sheets.
Posttesting: Testing the effects of an ad after it has appeared in the media.
Preemptible rate: A usually discounted rate for commercial time which is sold to an advertiser and is not guaranteed. Time may be sold to another advertiser who is willing to pay more; therefore, the advertiser buying this rate gambles to save money on the spot.
Preferred position: A position in a printed publication that is thought to attract most reader attention and is sold at a higher rate; for example, the back cover of a magazine.
Premium: An item, other than the product itself, which is offered free or at a nominal price as an incentive to purchase the advertised product or service.
Preprint: A reproduction of an advertisement which is viewed before actual publication and is created by an advertiser for special purposes, e.g., to serve as retail displays or to gain support from retailers.
Pretesting: Testing an advertisement or an audience sample prior to placing the ad in the media.
Primary demand advertising: Advertising designed for the generic product category, as opposed to selective demand advertising.
Prime time: The broadcast periods viewed or listened to by the greatest number of persons and for which a station charges the most for air time. In television, the hours are usually 8:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m. E.S.T. (7:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. C.S.T.).
Private brand: Product brand owned by a retailer, wholesaler, dealer, or merchant, as opposed to a manufacturer or producer, and bearing it's own company name or another name it owns exclusively. Also referred to as Private label.
Prize: Barters of merchandise given as prizes on television or radio shows in return for mentions of the brand names of the merchandise donated.
Product differentiation: Developing unique product differences with the intent to influence demand.
Product life cycle: A marketing theory in which products or brands follow a sequence of stages including : introduction, growth, maturity, and sales decline.
Product management: Assigning specific products or brands to be managed by single managers within an advertising agency.
Product positioning: The consumer perception of a product or service as compared to it's competition.
Product-related segmentation: A method of identifying consumers by the amount of product usage, usually categorized demographically or psychographically.
Production: Process of physically preparing the advertising idea into a print or broadcast advertisement.
Professional advertising: Advertising directed toward professionals such as doctors, dentists, and pharmacists, etc., who are in a position to promote products to their patients or customers.
Program delivery (rate): Percentage of a sample group of people tuned in to a particular program at a particular time.
Progressive proofs (Progs): Set of proofs made during the four-color printing process which shows each color plate separately and in combination. Also referred to as Color proofs.
Promotion: All forms of communication other than advertising that call attention to products and services by adding extra values toward the purchase. Includes temporary discounts, allowances, premium offers, coupons, contests, sweepstakes, etc.
Promotional mix: Using several different types of communication to support marketing goals which include Advertising (see above), Personal selling (see above), Publicity (see above), and Sales promotions (see below).
Promotional product: A product imprinted with, or otherwise carrying, a logo or promotional message. Also called an Advertising Specialty.
Proof: An impression on paper of type, an engraving or the like, for the purpose of checking the correctness and quality of the material to be printed.
Psychographics: A term that describes consumers or audience members on the basis of psychological characteristics initially determined by standardized tests.
Public relations (PR): Communication with various sectors of the public to influence their attitudes and opinions in the interest of promoting a person, product, or idea.
Public relations advertising: Advertising by a corporation that focuses on public interest but maintains a relationship to the corporation's products or agencies.
Public service advertising (PSA): Advertising with a central focus on public welfare, and is generally sponsored by a non-profit institution, civic group, religious organization, trade association, or political group.
Publicity: A type of public relations in the form of a news item or story which conveys information about a product, service, or idea in the media.
Puffery: A legal exaggeration of praise lavished on a product that stops just short of deception.
Pulsing: The use of advertising in regular intervals, as opposed to seasonal patterns.
Pupilometrics: A method of advertising research in which a study is conducted on the relationship between a viewer's pupil dilation and the interest factor of visual stimuli.
Psychological segmentation: The separation of consumers into psychological characteristic categories on the basis of standardized tests.

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Q

Qualitative research: A method of advertising research that emphasizes the quality of meaning in consumer perceptions and attitudes; for example, in-depth interviews and focus groups.
Quantitative research: A method of advertising research that emphasizes measurement of incidence of consumer trends within a population.

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R

Random sample: A sample taken from any given population in which each person maintains equal chances of being selected.
Rate: (1) The amount charged by a communications medium to an advertiser based on per unit of space or time purchased. The rate may vary from national to local campaigns, or may be a fixed rate. (2) To estimate a particular mediaís audience size based on a research sample.
Rate card: Information cards, provided by both print and broadcast media, which contain information concerning advertising costs, mechanical requirements, issue dates, closing dates, cancellation dates, and circulation data, etc.
Rating point: (1) In television, one percentage of all TV households who are viewing a particular station at a given time. (2) In radio, one percentage of all listeners who are listening to a particular station at a given time. Both instances vary depending on time of day.
Reach: (1) The estimated number of individuals in the audience of a broadcast that is reached at least once during a specific period of time. (2) Also applies to Outdoor advertising audiences.
Readership: (1) The total number of readers of a publication (includes Primary and Pass-along readers). (2) The percentage of people that can recall a particular advertisement, aided or unaided.
Recognition: (1) Formal acknowledgment given by a communications medium to an advertising agency to recognize that agency as being bona fide, competent, and ethical; therefore, entitled to discounts. (2) The ability of research subjects to recall a particular ad or campaign when they see or hear it.
Reference group: A group of people or organization of which an individual respects, identifies with, or aspires to join, e.g., membership or associative groups.
Referral premium: A premium offered to customers for helping sell a product or service to a friend or acquaintance.
Register marks: Indicator symbols located in the margins of negatives to be used as guides for perfect registration.
Remnant Space: Discounted magazine space which is sold to help fill regional editions of the publication.
Renewal rate: The percentage of individuals that renew their print media subscriptions to extend beyond the previous expiration date.
Rep or Representative: A person who solicits advertising space on behalf of a particular medium.
Residuals: A sum paid to a performer on a TV or radio commercial each time it is run, and is usually established by AFTRA (American Federation of Television and Radio Artists) or SAG (Screen Actors Guild) contract.
Resolution: Refers to the clarity of a television image as received by a set.
Restricted line: Sales items that are not legally sold in certain geographic areas, or only under special legal restrictions.
Retail advertising: Advertising which promotes local merchandisers' goods and services. Also referred to as Local Advertising.
Retail trading zone: Defined by the Audit Bureau of Circulation as the area beyond an urban area whose residents regularly trade with retail merchants within the urban area.
Retouching: To alter photographs, artwork, or film to emphasize or introduce desired features and also to eliminate unwanted ones.
Rich Media: Any of a variety of web graphics, sounds, or other technology which suppliment the traditional GIF, JPEG, or HTML media.
Rip-o-matic: A very rough rendition of a proposed commercial, composed of images and sounds borrowed (ripped-off) from other commercials or broadcast materials.
Road block: A method of scheduling broadcast commercials to obtain maximum reach by simultaneously showing the identical advertisement on several different stations.
ROI: Return On Investment. The amount of value received relative to the amount of money invested, in this case, in advertising. ROI is an excellent measure of the success of any campaign.
Romance card: Written material that accompanies an advertising specialty, providing information about the product and its background.
Rotogravure: A magazine supplement that is printed by a gravure process, and run on a rotary press. This process is useful for large runs of pictorial effects.
Rotoscoping: The process of using live and animated characters within an advertisement.
Rough: An unfinished layout of an ad which shows only a general conception to be presented for analysis, criticism, and approval.
Rough cut: A preliminary arrangement of film or tape shots that are roughly edited together without voice-over or music to serve purpose in the early stages of editing.
Run-of-press (ROP): A newspaper publisher's option to place an ad anywhere in the publication that they choose, as opposed to Preferred position. Also referred to as Run-of paper.
Run-of-schedule (ROS): A station's option to place a commercial in any time slot that they choose.
Rushes: Rough, unedited prints of a commercial to be used for editing purposes. Also referred to as dallies.

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S

Sales promotion: Marketing activities that stimulate consumer purchasing and dealer effectiveness through a combination of personal selling, advertising, and all supplementary selling activities.
Sales-response function: Refers to the effect of advertising on sales.
Sans-serif type: A typestyle of lettering with no serifs, or cross strokes at the end of main strokes.
Scanners: An optical character recognition machine which consists of a scan head, a computer processor, and an output device. Used for interpreting documents, invoices, bar-codes, and photos for use in Color separations.
Scene setting: The process of using realistic sounds to stimulate noise in backgrounds during radio production such as car horns, sirens, recorded laughter, etc.
Screen: (1) A printing process in which a squeegee forces paint or ink through a screen which is decorated with stenciled designs onto the paper. (2) The surface onto which an image of a slide or television picture is shown.
Seasonality: The variation in sales for goods and services throughout the year, depending on the season, e.g. hot chocolate is advertised more in the winter, as opposed to summer months.
Seasonal rating adjustments: In broadcast media, rating modifications that reflect changes in the season, e.g. weather and holidays.
Selective demand advertising: Advertising which promotes a particular manufacturer's brand as opposed to a generic product. See Primary demand.
Selective distribution: Allows manufacturers to maintain more control over the way their products are sold and discourages price competition among sellers of the products by distributing their products only to those wholesalers and retailers who follow the manufacturer's guidelines.
Self-liquidating premium: A premium offer paid by the consumer whose total cost including handling fees are paid for in the basic sales transaction.
Self-mailer: A direct-mail piece in which no envelope or wrapper is required for mailing.
Semi-liquidator: A premium offer that is partially paid by the consumer as well as the manufacturer.
Semiotics: Refers to theories regarding symbolism and how people glean meaning from words, sounds, and pictures. Sometimes used in researching names for various products and services.
Serif type: Short, decorative cross lines or tails at the ends of main strokes in some typefaces, such as Roman lettering.
Sets in use (SIU): The percent of television sets that are tuned into a particular broadcast during a specific amount of time.
Share-of-audience: The percent of audiences that are tuned into a particular medium at a given time, e.g. the number of people watching television between the hours of 8:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m.
Share-of-voice (SOV)
Shelf screamers (shelf talkers): A printed advertising message which is hung over the edge of a retail store shelf, e.g. "On Special," or "Sale item."
Signature: (1) A musical theme associated with a television program, radio show, or a particular product or service. Also referred to as a Theme song. (2) Single printing sheet which folds into 4, 8, 12, 16, and so on pages to be gathered and bound to form a part of a book, or pamphlet.
Silk screening: A color printing method in which ink is forced through a stencil placed over a screen that blocks out areas of an image, and onto the printing surface. Also referred to as Serigraphy.
Simmons Market Research Bureau (SMRB): A syndicated service which provides audience exposure and product usage data for print and broadcast media.
Situation analysis: The gathering and evaluation of information to identify the target group and strategic direction of an advertising campaign.
Slicks: A high-quality proof of an advertisement printed on glossy paper which is suited for reproduction.
Slotting allowances: Fees paid by a manufacturer to a retailer for the retailer's shelf space.
Soft sell: The technique of using low pressure appeals in advertisements and commercials.
Solid: An arrangement of type lines set vertically as closely as possible. Also referred to as solid set.
Specialty advertising: This is the older term used for Promotional products (see above). It remains a commonly used term by many companies.
Speculative (spec) sample: A sample promotional product, with the prospective buyer's imprint on it, produced with the hope that the customer will purchase it.
Split run: Two or more different forms of an advertisement which are ran simultaneously in different copies of the same publication, used to test the effectiveness of one advertisement over another to appeal to regional or other specific markets.
Spot announcements: Commercial or public service announcements that are placed on television or radio programs.
Spot color: The technique of coloring for emphasis some areas of basic black-and-white advertisements, usually with a single color.
Spot television (or radio): Time slots in geographic broadcast areas, purchased on a market-to-market basis rather than through a network.
Spread: Refers to a pair of facing pages in a periodical, or an advertisement which is printed across two such pages.
Staggered schedule: A schedule of advertisements in a number of periodicals which have different insertion dates.
Standard Advertising Unit System (SAUS): A set of uniform advertising procedures developed by the American Newspaper Publishers Association.
Standard Industrial Classification (SIC): Defined by the U.S Department of Commerce to be a classification of businesses in a numeric hierarchy.
Standard Rate and Data Service (SRDS): A commercial firm that publishes reference volumes that include up-to-date information on rates, requirements, closing dates, and other information necessary for ad placement in the media.
Starch scores: A result of a method used by Daniel Starch and staff in their studies of advertising readership which include noted, or the percent of readers who viewed the tested ad, associated, or the percent of readers who associated the ad with the advertiser, and read-most, or the percent of readers who read half or more of the copy.
Starch Readership Service: A research organization (Starch INRA Hooper) that provides an advertisement's rank in issue and Starch scores.
Step-and-repeat: A single image printed repeatedly in a pattern on a single sheet of paper.
Stet: A Latin term meaning "let it stand," which instructs a printer or typesetter to ignore an alteration called for in a proof.
Stop motion: A photographic technique in which inanimate objects appear to move.
Storyboard: A blueprint for a TV commercial which is drawn to portray copy, dialogue, and action, with caption notes regarding filming, audio components, and script.
Strategic planning: Determination of the steps required to reach an objective of achieving the optimum fit between the organization and the marketplace.
Stratified selection: An equally measured statistical sample which represents all the categories into which the population has been divided.
Stripping: Positioning film negatives or positives of copy and illustrations for the purpose of creating a printing plate for that ad or page. Also referred to as image assembly.
Subliminal persuasion: An advertising message presented below the threshold of consciousness. A visual or auditory message that is allegedly perceived psychologically, but not consciously. Also called Subception.
Superimposition (super): A process in TV production where an image, words, or phrases are imposed over another image.
Supplementary media: Non-mass media vehicles that are used to promote products, e.g., Point-of-purchase advertising.
Supplier: Companies that sell goods or services to an advertising agency for their use in constructing advertisements, e.g., design studios, color houses, printers, and paper producers.
Swatch proof: A sample of the material for a promotional product, with the customer's artwork printed on it in the specified colors.
Sweeps: Refers to a time during the months of November, March, and May, when both Nielson and Arbitron survey all local market broadcast media for the purpose of rating the stations and their programming.
Syndicated program: A television or radio program that is distributed in more than one market by an organization other than a network.

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T

Tabloid: A size of newspaper that is roughly half the size of a standard newspaper. A page size is normally 14" high by 12" wide.
Tachistoscope testing: A method used in advertising and packaging recall tests. Used to measure a viewer's recognition and perception of various elements within an ad by using the different lighting and exposure techniques of a Tachistoscope - a device that projects an image at a fraction of a second.
Tag line: A slogan or phrase that visually conveys the most important product attribute or benefit that the advertiser wishes to convey. Generally, a theme to a campaign.
Target audience: A specified audience or demographic group for which an advertising message is designed
Target market: A group of individuals whom collectively, are intended recipients of an advertiser's message.
Tear sheets: A page cut from a magazine or newspaper that is sent to the advertiser as proof of the ad insertion. Also used to check color reproduction of advertisements.
Teaser campaign: An advertising campaign aimed at arousing interest and curiosity for a product.
Telemarketing: The use of the telephone as a medium to sell, promote, or solicit goods and services.
Theater testing: A method used in testing the viewer responses of a large, randomly selected audience after being exposed to an ad.
Thumbnail: A rough, simple, often small sketch used to show the basic layout of an ad.
Time compression: A technique used in broadcast production to delete time from television commercials.
Tracking studies: A type of research study that follows the same group of subjects over an extended period of time.
Trade advertising: Advertising designed to increase sales specifically for retailers and wholesalers.
Trade character: People, characters, and animals that are used in advertising and are identified with the products, e.g. Jolly Green Giant and Tony the Tiger.
Trade name: The name under which a company operates.
Trade stimulants: Sales promotions directed toward retailers and distributors that are designed to motivate them both and increase sales.
Trademark: Icon, symbol, or brand name used to identify a specific manufacturer, product, or service.
Traffic builder: A promotional tactic using direct mail. Designed to draw consumers to the mailer's location.
Transit advertising: Advertising that appears on public transportation or on waiting areas and bus stops.
Transparency: A positive, color photographic image on clear film.
Transparent ink: Ink used in four color printing process that allows for colors underneath the ink to show through.
Trap: To combine different layers of colors in order to create various colors in the four color printing process.
Trim size: A size of a magazine or newspaper page after trimming.
TSA: Includes those counties penetrated significantly by signals from stations licensed to the Metro Survey Area. The Metro Survey Area definition plus the non-metro counties yields the Total Survey Area.
Turnover: The rate of audience change for a specific program during a specific amount of time.
Type font: Refers to the complete alphabet for a specific typeface.
Typeface: A designed alphabet with consistent characteristics and attributes.
Typography: The designated setting of type for printing purposes.

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U

Unaided recall: A research method in which a respondent is given no assistance in answering questions regarding a specific advertisement.
Unfair advertising: Advertising that is likely to harm the consumer. The FTC has the power to regulate unfair advertising that falls within a very specific legal definition.
Unique selling proposition: The unique product benefit that the competition can not claim.
Up-front buys: The purchasing of both broadcast and print early in the buying season.
Utility: The value a consumer receives from a product's design.

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V

Values and lifestyles (VALS) research: A research method which psychologically groups consumers based on certain characteristics such as their values, lifestyles, and demographics.
Vehicle: A specific channel or publication for carrying the advertising message to a target audience. For example, one medium would be magazines, while one vehicle would be Time magazine.
Velox: A type of paper used for it's superior reproduction qualities.
Vertical discount: A reduced rate offered to advertisers who purchase airtime on a broadcast medium for a limited amount of time, e.g., one week.
Vertical publications: Publications whose editorial content deals with the interests of a specific industry, e.g., National Petroleum Magazine and Retail Baking Today.
Vignette: (1) An illustration that has soft edges, often produced by using cutouts or masks. (2) A photograph or halftone in which the edges, or parts of, are shaded off to a very light gray.
Voice-pitch analysis (VOPAN): An advertising research technique of analyzing a subject's voice during their responses, to test their feelings and attitudes about an ad.
Voiceover (VO): The technique of using the voice of an unseen speaker during film, slides, or other voice material.

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W

Wash drawings: Tonal drawing, similar to watercolor, intended for halftone reproduction.
Waste circulation: (1) Advertising in an area where the product or service is not available or has no sales potential. (2) Persons in an advertiser's audience who are not potential consumers.
Wave scheduling: An advertising strategy that consists of scheduling space in the media in intermittent periods, e.g., two weeks on, two weeks off.
Wear out: The point reached when an advertising campaign loses it's effectiveness due to repeated overplay of ads.
Weight: (1) An adjustment made in a survey sample to correct for demographic or geographic imbalances. (2) Number of exposures of an advertisement.
White space: Unoccupied parts of a print advertisement, including between blocks of type, illustrations, headlines, etc.
Wipe: A transition of scenes in a visual production where one image appears to wipe the previous one from the screen.
Word painting: A technique used in the radio broadcast industry that uses highly descriptive words to evoke images in reading material as an attempt to place the listener into the scene.

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X

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Y

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Z

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