TV Ads- Present Simple and Present Continuous Presentation and Practice

TV Ads- Present Simple and Present Continuous Presentation and Practice

Part One: Ranking

Decide if each of the advertisements below sounds good, bad or so-so and mark them
with a tick, a cross or a question mark.

A

d

Most important image in the

commercial

Advertiser’s message

A

A toy bulldog decoration is nodding as
the car which it is in is driving along the
street and the driver is asking questions
about car insurance

Churchill Insurance says yes to what its
customers really want

B

A car full of young men is falling off the
side of a road after they play a trick on
their friend by accelerating each time he
tries to open the back door

The company saves their customers
money by only insuring female drivers
(not crazy young men)

C

An orange man is slapping people who
are drinking fizzy drinks around the face

Tango soda has a really strong taste

D

A man and a woman are running really
fast and crashing through walls of
buildings

Levis jeans last a long time and are
hard-wearing

E

A boy in old fashioned clothes is cycling
up a steep hill to deliver some food

Hovis brown bread is made to a
traditional recipe but is worth the extra
effort

Rank the advertisements above from one to five from the one which sounds most effective
to you to the one which seems the least effective.

Part Two: Grammar presentation

Which tenses are used in the left-hand and right-hand columns below? Why are those
tenses used?

What is the difference in meaning and use between the two tenses in general?

Written by Alex Case for UsingEnglish.com © 2015

Part Three: Controlled practice
Try to think what the key images or messages of at least five of the products below could
be, using the same tenses as above each time.

Most important image in the

commercial

Advertiser’s message

The product makes your breath really fresh

Cigarettes make you look cool

A man is climbing up the wall of a house to
leave a box of chocolates on a women’s
bed while she is out

You either love Marmite yeast spread on
your toast or you hate it (no one just thinks
that it is okay)

A man is drinking the beer which he should
be bringing to his dying father
A mouse is hiding from a cat in the car

Cars are hiding and playing the children’s
game hide and seek all around the city

Our milk tastes so good that you won’t
want to share it with anyone

A man and a bear are fighting for
something next to a river
The police are arresting the three little pigs
for killing the big bad wolf

Fur coats are made by killing things, so
don’t buy them

Put the answers below the fold below into the right gaps above.
--------------------------------------------


A man who looks like Frank Sinatra is smoking on a street corner



A woman is dragging a bloody animal along a fashion catwalk



Cats are breaking into a house while a man hides in the kitchen holding something to
his chest



Ford Mondeos keep you safe



Milk Tray shows how much you love someone



Peugeots make driving fun



Some sales reps are running after people to try their product while eager customers
are chasing other sales reps who are holding the same product A tube of toothpaste
and a toothbrush are standing in a big ice cube



Stella Artois tastes so good that you just can’t resist it



The Guardian newspaper tells the story behind the news that others don’t tell you



We put in lots of effort to make sure that John West tinned salmon has the freshest
and most delicious fish in it

Written by Alex Case for UsingEnglish.com © 2015

TV Ads- Present Simple and Present Continuous Presentation and Practice
Part Three: Controlled practice
Suggested answers

Most important image in the

commercial

Advertiser’s message

A tube of toothpaste and a toothbrush are
standing in a big ice cube

The product makes your breath really fresh

A man who looks like Frank Sinatra is
smoking on a street corner

Cigarettes make you look cool

A man is climbing up the wall of a house to
leave a box of chocolates on a women’s
bed while she is out

Milk Tray shows how much you love
someone

Some sales reps are running after people
to try their product while eager customers
are chasing other sales reps who are
holding the same product

You either love Marmite yeast spread on
your toast or you hate it (no one just thinks
that it is okay)

A man is drinking the beer which he should
be bringing to his dying father

Stella Artois tastes so good that you just
can’t resist it

A mouse is hiding from a cat in the car

Ford Mondeos keep you safe

Cars are hiding and playing the children’s
game hide and seek all around the city

Peugeots make driving fun

Cats are breaking into a house while a
man hides in the kitchen holding
something to his chest

Our milk tastes so good that you won’t
want to share it with anyone

A man and a bear are fighting for
something next to a river

We put in lots of effort to make sure that
John West tinned salmon has the freshest
and most delicious fish in it

The police are arresting the three little pigs
for killing the big bad wolf

The Guardian newspaper tells the story
behind the news that others don’t tell you

A woman is dragging a bloody animal
along a fashion catwalk

Fur coats are made by killing things, so
don’t buy them

Rank the ads above from 1 to 11 in the same way as you did with the first 5.

Written by Alex Case for UsingEnglish.com © 2015

TV Ads- Present Simple and Present Continuous Presentation and Practice
Part Four: Freer practice

Try to think of a good key image or a message that you want to give of a product, then the
message or key image that could match that thing.

Suggested products
app (= application, e.g. smartphone application)
armchair or sofa
automatic pencil (= mechanical pencil)
biro
bin (= trash can)
business shirt (= dress shirt)
correcting fluid (=Tippex/ Whiteout)
glue
HDTV
humidifier
intercom
jumper (= sweater)
light bulb
pot noodles
rubber band
safe
(winter) scarf
socket (= electrical outlet)
stapler
trainers (= sports shoes)
washing powder
washing-up liquid

Written by Alex Case for UsingEnglish.com © 2015