Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 15 · 2026-11-09

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

Some people say that advertising is extremely successful at persuading us to buy things. Other people think that advertising is so common that we no longer pay attention to it. Discuss both views and give your own opinion.

Student answer (Band 5.5)

In the following text, i will discuss if advertising is extremely successful at persuading us to buy things or if it is so common that we no longer pay attention to it.

Overall, I think that we can't generalise this and it really depends on the ad, timing, industry, price of the product and customer.

On the on side, ads can be really successfull when there is an unsattisfied customer with a need who needs the product, but doesn't have access to it, because of a information gap. For instance, ads for presents for christmas are really successfull, because there is an unsattisfied customer with a need and the only thing that is seperating the customer from the present is the information gap. We can't generalise this as well, because this example depends on industry, customer, product and price.

On the other side, if there are too many ads and they seem common, we no longer pay attention to it. That is especially in websites or places (like New York or parts in China) where there are so many ads, that they feel common and the people aren't paying attention to it.

In my opinion, the most companies need ads for generating revenue and increasing their number of customers. I think, that some companies wouldn't sell that number of products or wouldn't have such large number of customers without ads. Furthermore, I think that ads are an important part in our economy, without ads there would be less jobs, less revenue and overall the information gap between customer and company would rise.

Overall, both sides of the discuss have good arguments, but I think ads are successful at persuaing us to buy things, but only if it is a good ad and the ad closes the information gap between customer and company.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

You address both views and give a clear overall position: advertising can persuade when it closes an information gap, but its effect depends on the ad and context. The Christmas-present example supports the first view, while the discussion of ad-saturated websites and cities addresses the second. Your conclusion also restates your opinion. However, some points are asserted rather than fully explained: the claim that advertising creates jobs and revenue is not developed with an example, and the first view relies heavily on the same information-gap idea. Develop each side more evenly and explain more precisely how an advertisement changes a consumer’s decision. The response meets the stated length requirement; 21 words copied from the task prompt were not counted.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.0

The response has a recognisable structure, with an introduction, separate paragraphs for the two views, your opinion, and a conclusion. Signposting such as “On the other side” helps readers follow the discussion. However, progression within paragraphs is sometimes repetitive: the first-view paragraph repeats that the example depends on the industry, customer, product, and price, and the conclusion largely restates the introduction. Some links are also awkward or unclear, such as “That is especially in websites,” while “Overall” is used both near the beginning and at the end. To improve, make each paragraph advance a distinct point, use clearer references, and connect examples directly to the claim they support.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use relevant vocabulary for the topic, including “information gap,” “generating revenue,” and “increasing their number of customers.” These phrases help communicate your main ideas, and the meaning is generally understandable. However, the range is somewhat repetitive, particularly in repeated uses of “customer,” “ads,” and “successful,” and several spelling errors reduce accuracy: “successfull,” “unsattisfied,” “seperating,” and “persuaing.” Some expressions are also imprecise or unnatural, such as “ads for presents for christmas” and “the most companies.” Aim for more precise alternatives and vary the vocabulary when discussing consumers, advertising, and its effects. Check spelling carefully, especially for words used more than once.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt a mix of simple and complex sentences, including conditional structures such as “if there are too many ads” and a relative clause in “a need who needs the product.” Most of the argument remains understandable, but some grammatical errors affect accuracy. For example, “On the on side” has an incorrect structure, “because of a information gap” uses the wrong article, and “the people aren't paying attention to it” has unclear agreement and reference. The sentence beginning “I think, that” also has unnecessary punctuation, and “without ads there would be less jobs” needs a plural-count construction. Practise articles, clause structure, agreement, and punctuation while retaining your attempts at complex sentences.

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