Band 7.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 7.5 · Cambridge IELTS 15 · 2026-08-07

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 7.5)

The topic of the effectiveness of advertising is quite controversial indeed. One side believes in its ability to arouse want in a prospective buyer's mind before compelling the buyer to make a purchase while the other side thinks that the sheer volume of advertising present in the world today has rendered it ineffective. I believe advertising still has an effect on us because when it is executed well, it appeals to the primal and irresistible urges of man.

Advertising is everywhere. Once one steps out of their house, the individual would probably be greeted with different signboards, or flyers or even when the person picks up the daily newspaper. Even when the person turns on their smartphones or laptops, it is just more and more advertising. With that in mind, the individual would have to dismiss a good portion of all that information because the brain cannot take all that in and commit to memory. This is imperative if the person is going to have a productive day. I feel that is why people are so dismissive of advertising in the modern day and age.

However, let's say that person needs something and sees the advertisement of that product that he/she needs on his phone, the person purchases it and the advertisement is deemed successful. Herein lies the true essence and beauty of advertising, information. Advertising is inherently not meant for everyone because there is no product that can satisfy everyone's desires at the same time. There is a target market that the company is trying to appeal to and they are putting their product out there to increase the likelihood for the targeted section of society to see it. Many of the biggest businesses in the world today are aggressive advertisers and one cannot say these big brands are not successful.

In conclusion, the seeming lack of attention from the majority does not diminish the success of the advertising campaign as advertising is not meant for everyone and those that the advertisement is meant for definitely end up feeling the effects of the campaign as their primal urges have been brought to the fore.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 7.5

You have addressed all parts of the prompt, discussing both views and providing a clear personal opinion. Your position is consistent throughout the essay. The ideas are well-developed, particularly the argument regarding target marketing as a counterpoint to the idea that advertising is ignored. You successfully link the concept of 'primal urges' from your introduction to your conclusion, which provides a cohesive argument. To reach a higher band, ensure that your supporting examples are slightly more varied; while the 'target market' point is strong, further exploration of how digital algorithms specifically influence this 'attention' could have added more depth.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 7.5

The essay is logically organized with a clear progression of ideas. Each paragraph has a central focus, and you use transition signals like 'However' and 'In conclusion' effectively to guide the reader. The use of referencing is generally clear, though some transitions between sentences could be more sophisticated to improve the flow. For instance, the transition between the second and third paragraphs is functional but could be smoother. Overall, the paragraphing is appropriate, and the logical flow is maintained throughout the response, meeting the requirements for a high band score.

Lexical Resource — Band 7.0

You demonstrate a good range of vocabulary, using terms like 'prospective buyer', 'imperative', 'inherently', and 'brought to the fore' effectively. Your word choice is generally precise and contributes to a formal, academic tone. There are no significant spelling errors, and your collocations are natural. To move into the 8.0+ range, try to incorporate more idiomatic or less common lexical items that show a higher degree of sophistication, such as 'ubiquitous' instead of 'everywhere' or 'saturated' to describe the advertising environment.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 7.5

You use a mix of simple and complex sentence structures with good control. Your grammar is generally accurate, and your punctuation is handled well. There are very few errors, and those that exist do not impede communication. You successfully use complex structures, such as conditional clauses ('if the person is going to have...') and relative clauses. To improve further, ensure you maintain consistent subject-verb agreement and avoid minor stylistic redundancies. The sentence structure is varied enough to maintain interest and clarity throughout the response.

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