Linguistic tools of persuasion in travel advertisements

Abstract

Background. The language of advertising in general has been widely researched since advertising became integrated in all spheres of our life. The researchers also mark the prominent role of extralinguistic elements in advertising. At the same time, the language as an important element of persuasion in tourist advertisements requires a more detailed coverage. Contribution to the research field. The present paper makes an overview of the linguistic tools of persuasion in travel advertisements.Purpose. The purpose of the present study is to analyse how linguistic tools are used to enhance the effectiveness and persuasive power of travel advertisements.Methods. The given research uses the method of description and analysis in order to identify the essential linguistic tools of persuasion in travel advertisements and to evaluate their role in enhancing the effectiveness of travel advertisements.Results. The study of travel brochures from leading tour operators based in the UK, Poland, Australia, New Zealand, the USA has shown that the language of advertising in tourism and in other spheres share a lot of common features, such as the extensive use of commendatory adjectives, frequent occurrence of metaphoric and metonymic expressions, play of words, modified forms of proverbs and sayings, comparisons. At the same time, the language of travel advertisements proper has its own specificities. The linguistic tools used in the texts of travel advertisements highlight the benefits of the advertised tour and help to create a clear image of the given destination. For this purpose, they are often complemented by additional information concerning the advertised tourist site.Discussion. The collected data demonstrate that expressive linguistic tools contribute to the overall effectiveness of travel advertisements.