Writing Techniques in Advertising and Public Relations (20369)
Degree/study: Bachelor's Degree in Advertising and Public Relations
Year: second
Term: Third
Number of ECTS credits: 4 credits
Hours of studi dedication: 100 hours
Teaching language or languages: Catalan / Spanish/ English
Teaching Staff: José Fernández Cavia (theoretical sessions), Xavier Saperas (practical sessions) and Natividad Tomàs (practical sessions)
1. Presentation of the subject
Writing Techniques in Advertising and Public Relations is a course about writing, aimed at the advertising and public relations professional work. A general linguistic competence is supposed to have been already acquired in previous education.
Writing Techniques in Advertising and Public Relations studies in depth the advertising and public relations texts analysis, both in Catalan and Spanish, as well as its output practice.
2. Competences to be attained
- Analysis skills
- Critical assessment of the own work and other's work.
- Ability to work autonomously.
- Normative correctness in the Spanish and Catalan
- Team-work skills
Specific skills
1. Understanding the role writing tasks play in the messages creation processes in advertising and public relations.
2. Applying basic writing techniques to produce advertising and public relations texts.
3. Knowing the rhetoric and argumentation theory contributions to the persuasive texts output.
4. Advertising and public relations texts analysis and assessment.
5. Knowing the main models of advertising and public relations texts.
6. Targeting the functions of an advertising editor within a traditional advertising agency.
7. Targeting the functions of a public relations technician in relation to texts writing and output.
8. Proper use of argumentative and expressive resources in the advertising and public relations texts output.
9. Knowing the meaning relations established between written texts and images in the advertising and public relations messages.
10. Understanding the skills a good editor must have as an advertising or public relations professional and the risks to avoid.
11. Knowing and knowing how to use linguistic advising resources available online.
12. Being able to use several advertising and public relations textual typologies.
3. Contents
Concepts and theories
1. Writing. Writing role in the advertising and public relations professional activity.
2. Text planning.
3. Writing.
4. Text checking.
5. Basic tools for writing.
6. Rhetoric and persuasive writing.
7. Texts models in advertising.
8. Texts models in public relations.
Procedures and skills
1. Advertising text analysis.
2. Public relations text analysis.
3. Advertising text writing.
4. Public relations text writing.
Values and attitudes
1. Good presentation.
2. Style care.
3. Curiosity and continuous search of learning resources.
Reading and writing interest.
4. Assessment
Taking into account this course's approach is eminently practical; the final mark will be the result of the average of the following three marks:
a. A first note from the theory part of the course, consisting on the class notes and the text analysis exercises. Assessment will take place through a knowledge test at the end of the term.
b. A second note resulting of the weighted mean from the practical exercises marks obtained throughout the course.
c. A third note obtained from the compulsory course project's mark.
The tasks are compulsory and will have to strictly comply with the minimum requirements established by the teachers regarding presentation rules. Fail to comply with these requirements will imply the task is failed and it will not be possible to hand it in again. For every non repeated grammatical mistake half a point will be subtracted from the mark.
The course project must follow the rules of any academic paper: grammar correctness, presentation, citations and notes system, references and sources used, etc.
Fail to comply with these minimum requirements imply the project is failed and it will not be possible to hand it in again.
The course's retake, if needed, will consist of a written exam about the theory part. In addition, all the failed or not handed in on time practical exercises must be handed in, along with the compulsory project.
5. Bibliography and teaching resources
5.1. Basic bibliography
CURTO, Víctor; REY, Juan i SABATÉ, Joan (2008): Redacción publicitaria, UOC, Barcelona.
FERNÁNDEZ CAVIA, José i HUERTAS, Asunción (2009): Redacción en relaciones públicas, Pearson-Prentice Hall, Madrid.
5.2. Complementary bibliography
ALTARRIBA, Miquel (2005): Què dir, a qui i per què. Trípodos, Barcelona.
APPLEGATE, Edd (2005): Strategic copywriting: how to create effective advertising. Rowman & Littlefield.
BERGUA, Neus i FARGAS, Xavier (2000): Català comercial i administratiu. Castellnou, Barcelona.
BIVINS, Thomas H. (1999): Public relations writing. The essentials of style and format. NTC, Illinois, USA.
CAMPS, Anna (1994): L'ensenyament de la composició escrita. Barcanova, Barcelona.
CASSANY, Daniel (1993): La cuina de l'escriptura. Empúries, Barcelona.
CASTELLBLANQUE, Mariano R. (2005): Manual del redactor publicitario. Esic, Madrid.
MORTARA, Bice (2000): Manual de retórica. Cátedra, Madrid.
NEWSOM, Doug i CARRELL, Bob (1995): Public relations writing. Form & style. Wadsworth Publishing Company, USA.
PORTOCARRERO, Felipe i GIRONELLA, Natalia (2001): La escritura rentable. La eficacia de la palabra en la empresa. Ediciones SM, Madrid.
REY, Juan (1996): Palabras para vender, palabras para soñar. Paidós, Barcelona.
ROM, Josep i SABATÉ, Joan (2007): Llenguatge publicitari: Estratègia i creativitat publicitàries. UOC, Barcelona.
ROMERO, Mª Victoria (coord.) (2005): Lenguaje publicitario. La seducción permanente. Ariel, Barcelona.
SABATÉ, Joan (1999): La publicitat en català, Pòrtic, Barcelona.
SANZ, Glòria i FRASER, Alba (1998): Manual de comunicacions escrites a l'empresa. 71 models de consulta. Interactiva-Graó, Barcelona.
SAWYER, Robert (2006): Kiss & Sell: redacción publicitaria. Índex Book, Barcelona.
SERAFINI, Mª Teresa (1994): Cómo se escribe. Paidós, Barcelona.
SHAW, Mark (2009): Copywriting: Successful writing for design, advertising and marketing. Laurence King Publishing.
SPANG, Kurt (2005): Persuasión. Fundamentos de retórica. Eúnsa, Pamplona.
TORRENT, Anna M. (1999): La llengua de la publicitat. Publicacions de l'Abadia de Montserrat, Barcelona.
TORRENT, Anna M. (coord.) (2004): Els anuncis de la premsa. Eumo Editorial, Vic.
VALDÉS RODRÍGUEZ, Mª Cristina (2004): La traducción publicitaria: comunicación y cultura. Universitat Pompeu Fabra, col. Aldea Global, n. 15. Barcelona.
VELLÓN, Javier (2007): Estrategias lingüísticas de los textos publicitarios. UPC, Barcelona.
WESTON, Anthony (1987): Las claves de la argumentación. Ariel, Barcelona, 1994.
WILCOX, Dennis L. (2001): Public relations writing and media techniques. Longman, New York.
5.3. Teaching resources
Spanish Royal Academy Dictionary:
Catalan Studies Institute Dictionary:
http://www.iec.cat/gc/ViewPage.actionsiteNodeId=175&languageId=1&contentId=-1
Catalan Encyclopaedia Dictionary:
TERMCAT website:
Cambridge English Dictionary:
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/default.asp
UPF Style Book:
http://www.upf.edu/leupf/
6. Metodology
This is an attendance-required course designed with two complementary aspects: theoretical sessions where the teacher explains the basic notions to take into account when writing in advertising or public relations and writing practical sessions taking place in the IT classrooms, where students will face tasks similar to the ones they could encounter in a professional job.
Tasks will be done individually or in group, as established by the teacher for each case. They will have to be carried out during the session time (two hours maximum) and they will have to be printed out and handed in at the end of each session, never at any other time unless duly justified absence or sickness cases.Additionally, students will have to carry out a course project out of the class hours.
7. Planning of activities