Advertisements – The CBSE Way

Advertising is a type of communication whereby people promote or persuade customers to utilize their services. There are two types of advertisements:

1. Classified advertisements
2. Display advertisements

Classified ads will be our subject in this article. Classified ads are called CLASSIFIED ADS because they are CLASSIFIED into different type of categories depending on their functions.

Classified advertisements

Classified advertisements are advertisements used by the general masses to promote or use services. They are generally text-based ads where newspaper agencies generally charge on the number of words used. So, you can very well imagine that there is no place for precise English sentences here and the only concern is to get things noticed with as minimum words as possible.

Format and marking scheme

Format of Classified Ads

1 mark – Heading (Should be in CAPITAL letters only)
2 marks – Content
2 marks – Expression with certain grammatical factors

Do crosscheck with your subject teacher to check for the updated marking scheme.

NOTE: Classified Advertisements should be enclosed in a box.

Word Limit

Classified ads should be very well covered in a range of around 50 words. Marks will be deducted if the student jumps the word limit. So exercise caution in this regard.

There are several type of classified ads, which are as follows:

1. Situation vacant
2. To-let
3. Sale and Purchase of Property/Vehicles/Goods
4. Education institutions promotion
5. Missing persons
6. Tour and Travels

Now let’s highlight what to include in each type of classified ad.

1. Situation Vacant types

1. Always begin with WANTED or REQUIRED
2. Name of the organization must be always present
3. Number of vacancies and the post for which advertised should be clearly stated.
4. The age and gender of the candidate required.
5. Qualification and requisite experience needed for the post.
6. Pay scale, perks and also the mode of applying (E-mail, postal, etc)
7. Contact address and phone number for correspondence

EXAMPLE

SITUATION VACANT

WANTED a small, confident P.A./Stenographer for a leading export house. Qualification – graduate, age – 25-30 years. Typing speed 40 wpm, short hand speed 100 wpm. Preference to those who can handle computer. Salary negotiable. Apply with complete bio-data by 20th December to Secretary, Orient Export House, T. Nagar, Delhi. PH: 011-21111111

2. To-Let ads

1. Begin with WANTED or AVAILABLE
2. Type of accommodation should be mentioned.
3. Rent expected
4. Give proximity to markets and also indicate whether it’s sun facing, etc.
5. Contact address and phone number

EXAMPLE

ACCOMMODATION WANTED

Metals & Minerals Corp. of India needs suitable accommodation on rent to be used as a guesthouse. Should be located in a posh area with excellent facilities. Uninterrupted water & electricity. Nearby market must. Owners please contact R. Lal, Executive Manager, PH: 01123333333.

3. Sale/Purchase of Property/Assets

1. Begin with FOR SALE/PURCHASE/WANTED
2. Brief physical description
3. a. Property – Number of floors, size, number of rooms, location and surroundings.
   b. Vehicles – Colour, model, accessories, year, modifications (if any), price, mileage and condition.
   c. Household goods – Condition, price offered or expected

EXAMPLES

Mukherjee Nagar, DDA flat, ground floor, two bedrooms, car parking available, park facing, best location, reasonable price, contact A. B. Singh #9250556655

FOR SALE

Available Maruti 800, LX, year 1999, self-driven, sparingly used, scratch less, a stereo, air-conditioned, beautiful upholstery, no expenses, contact C. D. Kumar #9350556655

4. Educational institutions

1. Name of the institution
2. Past record
3. Courses offered and their durations
4. Eligibility criteria an details of admission test (if any)
5. Facilities and fee structure
6. Scholarship information
7. Last date for registration, etc
8. Contact address and phone number.

EXAMPLE

EDUCATIONAL INSTITUITION

IIFL announces the commencement of its courses in Japanese, French and German. Duration – 3months. Eligibility – senior secondary. Excellent faculty. Computerized training. Incentives for early birds. Send in your applications by 1st June, 2012 or contact secretary #9350556655

5. Missing person

1. Brief physical description of the missing like height, complexion and built.
2. Name, age and any health related issues about the missing person
3. Clothes, accessories or any other identifying features.
4. Tell about the place last seen
5. Details of reward if any
6. Contact address and Phone number

EXAMPLE

MISSING

GIRL MISSING,Priyanka Khanna, 12 years, 4’3” tall, fair, slim built, wearing black t-shirt and blue jeans since 2.2.2012 from M. G. Road, Gurgaon. Speaks Hindi and English. Informers will be suitable rewarded. Inform M. G. Road Police station #98765432

6. Tours and travels

1. Begin with PACKAGE AVAILABLE
2. Name of the travel agency
3. Destination and duration
4. Price and special discounts, if any
5. Contact address and phone number

EXAMPLE

TRAVEL AND TOURS

Attractive package available for Mauritius. Three nights, four days. Breakfast and dinner, stay at 3-star hotel, sight-seeing included. Rs. 9999 per person. Special discount for early bookings. Contact Star Travels, 9350556655

NOTE: The examples in this article are italicized to make them easily distinguishable from the rest of the content. In actual examinations, you don’t need italics for this.