Some people say that advertising encourages us to buy things that we really do not need. Others say that advertisements tell us about new products that may improve our lives. Which viewpoint do you agree with?
Sample Response
The purpose of advertising is to inform consumerstell the consumer about new products or servicesany new product or service or promotions for existing products and servicesany new promotion on the existing product and service. We need it so we can make good decisions when we go shopping. Advertising tells us when new orand improved products become available and lets us know which ones have the best pricesprice. FromThrough advertisements, we learn about new products. For example, many grocery stores now sell prepackaged lunches. These products are very convenientThese are very convenient for busy parents. They can give these lunches to their children to take to school. Busy parents don’t have time to look at every product on store shelvesevery item on the store shelf, so without advertisements, they might not know about this convenient productsuch a convenient new product. Even products we are familiar with may be improved, and advertising informs us of these changesadvertising lets us know about this. Most people use cell phones, but new mobile phone plansnew types of cell phone service are continually introducedbecome available all the time. There are different plans that give you more hours to talk on the phone, you can send text messages and photos, and next week probably some even newer type of service will be available. By watching advertisements on TV it is easy to find out about improvementsnew improvements to all kinds of products. Advertisements keep us informed about prices. Prices change all the time, but everyone can look at newspaper advertisementsthe ads in the newspaper and see what the latest prices are. Advertisements also inform us about sales. In fact, some people buy the newspaper simply to checkonly in order to check the prices and plan their weekly shopping. Advertisements improve our lives by keeping us informed about the latest productproducts developments and the best prices. Advertisements serve a useful purpose.
Why this response received Band 6.5
The response maintains a clear endorsement of advertising's informative value and develops it with accessible examples about food, phone services, prices, and sales. Its major weakness is presentation as one unbroken paragraph, which obscures the otherwise sensible progression, while some repetition limits stylistic flexibility; the priority is to group the argument into distinct paragraphs with focused topic sentences and a concise conclusion.
IELTS Writing Criteria Scores
Task Response
A clear viewpoint is sustained and supported through several relevant explanations and examples of advertising's practical benefits.
State the chosen viewpoint explicitly near the beginning and briefly contrast it with the alternative to sharpen the response to the choice.
Coherence and Cohesion
The sequence of ideas is easy to follow, but the complete absence of paragraph breaks significantly weakens organisation and visual progression.
Divide the response into an introduction, focused body paragraphs on products and prices, and a separate conclusion.
Lexical Resource
Vocabulary is clear and appropriate, with enough range for the topic, though repeated references to advertisements and products reduce flexibility.
Use more precise alternatives such as promotions, consumer information, updated services, and price comparisons while correcting inaccurate word combinations.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy
Most sentences are accurate and varied, and complex structures are handled effectively despite a few agreement, article, and run-on errors.
Revise comma-linked independent clauses and check singular-plural forms to improve control in the longer sentences.
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IELTS Writing Task 2
Some people say that advertising encourages us to buy things that we really do not need. Others say that advertisements tell us about new products that may improve our lives. Which viewpoint do you agree with?
Your response
Write the task yourself, then compare your choices with the annotated response.