Gimmick
A gimmick is a funny or otherwise attractive addition, sometimes a promotional gift (in this case also: give-away ) of little material value. Gimmicks include items from magazines , trade fair and promotional gifts or stickers in the packaging of devices and software (on the Internet e.g. contracts with free usage times). In addition, gimmicks can also be offered as (often limited) make-up of the packaging itself, e.g. B. with CD or record covers. Gimmicks are often included with a product, such as corn flakes , as an incentive to buy. They should mostly appeal to the play instinct. In the German-speaking world, the comic booklet Yps made the term known in the late 1970s : It offered children's gimmicks such as As small compasses from plastic or a " Urzeitkrebs " -Aufzuchtsset. The toys in a surprise egg can also be classified as gimmicks. As a rule, the gimmicks lack any real benefit for the owner.
term
The word comes from English, where it is documented in writing from 1926 and originally referred to a device for manipulating games of chance. Depending on the context, the term is ambiguous and, in addition to the above, can also denote a fancy idea, a trick, a gimmick or a gimmick . In this sense, functions in computer programs that are nice to look at are often called gimmicks (clock, weather display, small game, ...) - at least since the appearance of Mac OS X , software of this class has been increasingly referred to as a widget in German usage .
Others
In Mickey Mouse , the gimmick is a fundamental component and an important buying incentive for children. The Mickey Mouse magazine are even today Tools - mainly of plastic - such as toy guns, Detective sets, adventure sets, Halloween - scary -Article etc. at. The first extra of the comic magazine, which has been appearing since 1951, appeared in issue 29/1958, as a yellow cardboard sun visor .
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Individual evidence
- ↑ Duden, Dudenverlag 2000, ISBN 3411040122 , page 425
- ↑ glossary: werbung & marketing on www.desig-n.de , last checked on November 19, 2011
- ↑ a b Glossary G on www.www-kurs.de , last checked on November 19, 2011
- ↑ John Ayto, Dictionary of Word Origins , Arcade Publishing, New York, 1990, ISBN 1-55970-133-1 .