Analysis of the Rhetorical Figures in Food and Beverage Advertising Slogans

Nowadays advertisements are everywhere around us. Given how strong the competition is, it is increasingly difficult for specialists to create such advertisements that not only attract attention, but also remain in people’s minds. One relatively easy and cost-effective way to achieve this goal is the use of figures of speech in advertising slogans. This article aims to inquire to what extent and in what way the tools of rhetoric are employed in Bulgarian food and beverage advertisements. For this purpose, a sample of 113 slogans, which can be found on Bulgarian television, radio channels and social networks, as well as advertising panels and billboards, have been examined. Various aspects of the use of rhetorical figures have been analyzed – the frequency of their application, the average length of slogans, as well as the share of slogans in Bulgarian and foreign languages. The results of the research unequivocally show that rhetoric is a preferred method for composing interesting and original advertising slogans – 87.61% of the analyzed slogans make use of its tools. Future research should test the effectiveness of rhetoric in Bulgarian advertising – it is necessary for marketing specialists and the companies they represent to know in what way and to what extent rhetorical figures influence the perceptions of potential consumers.