Impression of the Advertisement - Case Study Example

Branding as a Means of Meeting Needs It is no secret that advertisements are trying to get us to buy something. They do this through the careful display of image and text which makes an appeal to one or more of the 15 appeals that were outlined by Jason Fowles. Except buyers are becoming more aware of these tricks and are making advertisers work harder. Instead of just working on getting people to buy the individual product, the advertiser is now attempting to link the product with a brand and the brand with an identity. This is what Naomi Klein is referring to when she talks about branding. The best way to explain how this works is through applying the ideas to an example. The example I will use is an advertisement put out by the skin product brand Nivea for a new product intended to produce softer and slightly tanned skin. The immediate impression of the advertisement says that it is making the first appeal in Jib Fowles’ list which is the need for sex. Like he says, this is more of a flirtation with the idea of sex rather than a direct reference to it. This advertisement flirts with the idea that these two people might get together, but it doesn’t really say anything about sex itself. This is instead just a little fun diversion. The two people might even be married to other people already but their actions in the advertisement would not violate the vows they took. The text helps to add to this flirty attitude by inviting the reader to participate with a suggestion of fragrance at the woman’s shoulder and in promising that men will be drawn to the triple benefits of soft skin, tanned skin and alluring fragrance. Although it seems the ad is appealing to our need for sex, it really focuses more on our need for affiliation as it emphasizes the connections made between the woman and others who will ‘be drawn to it’ and her by extension. Her fun-loving athletic appearance is accented by her use of this particular lotion while her overall healthy skin is associated with the brand name, Nivea. She is available to be kissed, even invites it, but this is as far as the relationship goes while the guy’s intense look in her direction reinforces the idea that the use of this product will bring her positive attention. Her happy look and well-toned appearance gives the impression of health and well-being, suggesting that using this product has contributed in some way to this state of health. Thus, the brand begins to be identified with health and well-being, suggesting Nivea has something to do with this glowing health. Through text, color, form and expression, the Nivea ad attempts to promise fulfillment of our need for affiliation with others while giving the brand an association with fun, health and being in touch with the female consumer population. As the woman receives the attention of the man, there is a suggestion that our need for sex may be fulfilled, but the text and context of the ad reinforce the idea that the real connection being made is that between two people, gender not necessarily important. The neutral color tone of the ad carefully avoids any suggestion of intimacy or excitement beyond the purely social and the forms of the ad are sensual but not necessarily sensuous. The brand becomes associated with ideas of friendship and health portrayed in the ad while the badge of approval suggests it is part of a consortium of women, quickly responsive to women’s concerns and thus further emphasizing the ideas of friendship and community. How to Analyze an Advertisement 1. What is the general ambience of the advertisement? What mood does it create? How does it do this? Fun and flirty creating a playful mood by the way the girl is posed and her informal attire and the way the guy is looking at her. 2. What is the design of the advertisement? Does it use axial balance or some other form? How are the basic components or elements arranged? It’s mostly vertical, balanced by the two vertical columns of the girl and the guy. The product becomes a strengthening feature for the guy’s column and the text bridges the center distance between them. 3. What is the relationship between pictorial elements and written material and what does this tell us? The pictorial elements give the written material the sexy appeal and the written material draws attention to specific areas of the advertisement, highlighting what the ad wants us to know. 4. What is the use of space in the advertisement? Is there a lot of white space" or is it full of graphic and written elements? There is not a great deal of ‘white space’ in the ad as the entire page is full of graphic elements. The center area’s graphic elements are relatively neutral, but still manage to convey an impression. 5. What signs and symbols do we find? What role do they play in the ads impact? There is an abstract impression of a female form in the background of the image, suggesting a closer intimacy between the two characters. There is also an oval stamp giving the impression of a seal of approval and a small rectangular banner that depicts the brand name. These give the ad more sex appeal, restrict some attention and provide it with a sense of authority. 6. If there are figures (men, women, children, animals) what are they like? What can be said about their facial expressions, poses, hairstyle, age, sex, hair color, ethnicity, education, occupation, relationships (of one to the other)? The people in the ad are white, middle class, late twenties and in a casual evening setting. The girl is flirty and fun-loving and the guy is an office-worker out for a nice evening. 7. What does the background tell us? Where is the advertisement taking place and what significance does this background have? This indicates educated people concerned about aging well, but young enough to still flaunt what they’ve got in social places where the ‘good’ life can be found. 8. What action is taking place in the advertisement and what significance does it have? (This might be described as the ads "plot.") It seems the girl is moving across the picture plane and looking back when she feels someone’s eyes on her. The guy seems like he’s about to take a step forward to introduce himself. 9. What theme or themes do we find in the advertisement? What is it about? (The plot of an advertisement may involve a man and a woman drinking but the theme might be jealousy, faithlessness, ambition, passion, etc.) The theme of dating, the thrill of meeting someone perfect and just what you were looking for, fun and flirty outdoor activity in a social evening at a ritzy place. 10. What about the language used? Does it essentially provide information or does it try to generate some kind of emotional response? Or both? What techniques are used by the copywriter: humor, alliteration, definitions" of life, comparisons, sexual innuendo, and so on? The large text attempts to draw out an emotional response by suggesting a more aggressive means of attracting the opposite sex while the small text provides information about the product. 11. What typefaces are used and what impressions do they convey? A sans-serif all-cap typeface is used for much of the advertisement, made larger and bold for the attention line while the same font, in a combination of lower case and capital letters provides information. 12. What is the item being advertised and what role does it play in American culture and society? Skin lotion with tints in it to make it look like you’ve got a tan, making it look like you’re outside more often than you are without aging your skin like a real tan would. It reflects American culture that you have to be young and tan to be attractive but you have to protect your skin and keep it soft and young at the same time. 13. What about aesthetic decisions? If the advertisement is a photograph, what kind of a shot is it? What significance do long shots, medium shots, close-up shots have? What about the lighting, use of color, angle of the shot? It’s a medium shot that provides enough detail of the action to preserve the fun while giving just enough attention to the body. The sepia tone of the advertisement in most of its space emphasizes the concept of a ‘healthy glow’. 14. What sociological, political, economic or cultural attitudes are indirectly reflected in the advertisement? An advertisement may be about a pair of blue jeans but it might, indirectly, reflect such matters as sexism, alienation, stereotyped thinking, conformism, generational conflict, loneliness, elitism, and so on. Reflects the idea of same ethnicity couples and reinforces the traditional roles of men and women – she’s casual and playful, he’s in a loosened business shirt from the office. Reinforces the idea of being slim to be sexy – her stomach is exposed. I had a great deal of trouble figuring out how to incorporate ideas of branding with ideas of advertising appeals in analyzing this single image. It was much more difficult than I thought it would be. I think the reason for this was mostly because the ad doesn’t seem to be doing a lot of work for the brand on first look. After a while, I realized that even though the ad was completely focused on introducing the brand’s new product, these images were also functioning to further an idea of the brand itself. It identifies itself as appropriate for young to middle adults who are still a part of the dating scene and of the middle to upper middle class. It also emphasizes the ideas that the brand is focused on health, the appearance of health and is responsive to its consumers in bringing out this type of lotion that also contains a pleasant scent. These ideas are going to help me in completing my final draft. It is no secret that advertisements are trying to get us to buy something. Although today’s consumers feel much more sophisticated in their ability to spot the obvious ploy, the truth is that advertisements and their designers have kept pace with these changes. Their even more sophisticated use of images, colors, text and placement are designed to circumnavigate our logical defenses by appealing to underlying emotional needs. In studying these needs that cannot be defended against, author Jim Fowles has identified 15 emotional appeals that advertisers make to consumers based on these needs. At the same time that they are concentrating on advertising a product or service in such a way that it seems to provide us with fulfillment of one or more of these basic emotional needs, advertisements in recent years have also tended to direct their focus toward creating a specific brand identity. In speaking of the big brand companies that survived the brand crash of the 1980s, Naomi Klein says, “They integrated the idea of branding into the very fabric of their companies. … Everything was an ad for the brand: bizarre lexicons for describing employees (partners, baristas, team players, crew members), company chants, superstar CEOs, fanatical attention to design consistency, a propensity for monument-building, and New Age mission statements” (2000, p. 16). The best way to explain how this works is through applying the ideas to an example. In the July 2008 issue of In Style magazine, which caters to the 30-something trendy middle class female crowd, the skin product brand Nivea has placed an advertisement for a new product intended to produce softer and slightly tanned skin that utilizes this appeals approach to promote both product and brand. The first impression one gets when viewing this ad is that it is making an appeal to our need for sex, which Fowles says is the typical assumption for most ads. The image depicts a 30-something white woman in casual clothing and freestyle loose hair looking back over her shoulder toward the center of the page while a 30-something white businessman out for the evening obviously appreciates her appearance from the other side of the page. The only other image on the page is a picture of the product packaging itself with a ‘sticker’ certification of the product’s ‘Scent Approved’ status. The physical attraction between the two people only provides the impression of sex on first glance, though, reinforced by a sensual abstract impression of a female form made out in blurred lighting in the predominantly sepia-colored background, which emphasizes the product’s tinting abilities. Although it seems the ad is appealing to our need for sex, it really focuses more on our need for affiliation as the text emphasizes the connections made between the woman and others who will ‘be drawn to it’ and her by extension. The text running across the center of the page promises in bold type that others will not only notice the healthy skin glow the product delivers, but that they will, in bold, emphasized, all capital lettering, be drawn to it. The woman’s fun-loving athletic appearance is accented by her use of this particular lotion, which is drawn out in the flirty way in which a circle of white text invites the reader to smell her shoulder area. The text also tells us that she is available to be kissed, even invites it, but anything further will be completely up to her. Her happy look and well-toned appearance gives the impression of health and well-being, suggesting that using this product has contributed in some way to this state of health. With every moment that the reader spends looking over the details of the ad, the woman’s overall healthy skin and presumably enjoyable and fulfilling social life is associated with the brand name, Nivea. While the text, color and focus of the ad seems completely riveted on emphasizing the benefits of the product, there is some evidence that branding plays a significant role in the design as well. For example, the fun-loving young woman is wearing very casual clothes in a setting that evokes a sense of the nightlife suggesting that she is upper middle class enough to either have a very low-key position or at least not have to work full-time. She is completely the type of woman who fits the demographics for the magazine while she attracts exactly the type of man such a woman would desire. Not only is the brand the right brand for this type of woman, but it provides her with the look and reality of healthy skin by giving her the ‘glow’ she wants in association with the health she wishes for from a brand she can trust to protect her sanctity and autonomy. The certification ‘sticker’ placed over the image of the product bottle reinforces the idea that this brand is responsive to its female consumers, developing this new product in response to what they requested in the form of a pleasant scent and more natural appearance. At the same time that the idea of a healthy and fun-filled social life is being associated with the brand Nivea, it is the brand, more than the product itself, that makes an appeal to our need for affiliation. Through text, color, form and expression, the ad promises fulfillment of our need for affiliation through the use of the product, which suggests we can gain connection with others who will be attracted to the healthy glow. As the woman receives the attention of the man, there is a suggestion that the need for sex may be fulfilled, but the text and context of the ad reinforce the idea that the real connection being made is that between two people, gender not necessarily important. At the same time, consumers gain connection with the brand that remains responsive and open to consumers’ ideas and desires. The brand becomes associated with ideas of friendship and health portrayed in the ad while the badge of approval suggests it is part of a consortium of women, quickly responsive to women’s concerns and thus further emphasizing the ideas of friendship and community. Read More