Advertising and Guerilla Advertising Effectiveness and Comparison - Literature review Example

?Introduction Advertising is the mode of persuasion, and its goal is to compel people to consume. Advertising’s arsenal is multi-faceted. It might becomprised entirely of semiotics, which means symbols and connotations for the symbols are the message. In semiotic advertising, there is an image or a text, and the importance is the association that people have with this image or text. In the process, there are complicated underlying theoretical constructs which play a part in the persuasive process. The message is partially dependent upon graphic design, and psychoanalytic theory is also important. Psychoanalytic theory can help explain persuasion, because it explains how the human psyche decodes and deconstructs ads. Moreover, meaning is ascribed, according to the person’s experiences and identity. Critiques of commercial art verses fine art is also relevant in this analysis, because much of advertising can really be considered to be art. However, as this paper will argue, commercial art is more relevant to society than fine art, because commercial art is more easily interpreted and decoded by society at large. Further, John Hegarty’s ideas will be fleshed out, and applied to the concepts of guerrilla marketing. The basics of advertising persuasion Advertising persuasion happens in many different ways. The use of semiotics is one persuasive devise. Semiotics consists of two parts – one is the symbol, or the signifier; the other is the connotation for the sign (Dyer, 1982). So, for the Nike “swoosh” symbol, the actual “swoosh” is the signifier. The connotation is the connection that one makes when seeing the symbol, that connotation being all that Nike represents to the individual person – athleticism, celebrity spokespeople, perhaps sweatshops. Semiotics is basically a "system of signs, and can be verbal, visual, or a combination of the two. The study of semiotics would indicate that the meaning of advertisements is not found within the ad, but its meaning depends on how it operates, how signs and its ideological effect are organized internally (within the text) and externally (in relation to its production, circulation and consumption and in relation to technological, economic, legal and social relations)." (Dyer, 1982, p. 115). The audience are active participants in the decoding of the signs, bring experience and social background to the act of semiotic decoding. Returning to the Nike “swoosh,” how an individual interprets the sign might depend upon the background of the individual. One individual, who has Nike shoes, and love them, will decode the sign differently from somebody who has Nike shoes, and hates them. Another individual, who remembers the sweatshop scandal from years ago, might see the swoosh as a symbol of oppression. Etc. Semiotics are crucial to advertising, because this is the way that one company may differentiate itself from another company. Semiotics has not always been the vehicle for persuasion, however, as, during the 19th Century, advertising relied more upon words than semiotics. Earnest Elmos Calkins, founder of Calkins & Holden advertising agency, in New York City, changed the emphasis from words to semiotics. Calkins used modern art techniques in advertising, such as cubism and futurism, while using graphics designers and magazine illustrators to design his ads. He was the first to understand that advertisements demand dynamic new designs, and was the first to let the designs themselves do the persuading, without the use of copy (Heller, 2001). Thus, graphic designers produce the semiotics which are used persuasively in advertising. These semiotics allow the advertisement to communicate to the audience, without using a single word. Advertising is very important to society, because of its persuasiveness, which helps goods be distributed smoothly. It is also important because it can convey messages about social issues, while persuading society about the importance of these issues (Heller, 2001). The symbol itself is just one aspect of semiotics, as explained above. The other aspect is the meaning which is ascribed to the symbol, and this is just as important as the symbol itself. As stated above, the meaning that an individual might bring to a symbol depends on a variety of different things which make up a person’s background. Some of the meaning making occurs at the subliminal level, which is what Sigmund Freud would consider to be the unconscious level (Clarke, 2007). Freud saw one’s psychological makeup to be made up of three concepts – the id, the superego and the ego. The id is made up of fear and desire, which is unbridled. The superego effectively bridles the id, and represses these fears and desires. The ego mediates between the two, balancing the human desire to completely live hedonistically with the human desire to repress these instincts, striking a balance which is essential to surviving in the modern world. Modern theorists have used Freud’s basic concepts to try to further understand the basics of persuasion, stating that the human psyche can be understood by analyzing, among other things, visual decoding (Clarke, 2001, p 75). In addition to the underlying psychological processes which are brought to the art of persuasion, identity is another very important aspect to consider. After all, it is the individual who is deconstructing the ad, which means that the meanings are personal and fluid. One’s culture and identity will inform how one interprets and reacts to a given advertisement. One’s identity and culture are the lens through which one will deconstruct and interpret an advertisement (Clarke, 2001). How one approaches the visual in advertising has much to do with the identity that one has. Clarke (2007) states that the gay identity is one such identity, and this identity is focused upon resistance to oppression. Racial identity is another identity which will impact the interpretation of advertisements, as is post-colonialism, which states that the “universalizing systems of belief or theory are what colors one’s identity, and that visual culture manifests these complexities” (Clarke, 2001, p. 79). Gender identity is another identity construct that Clarke mentions. Gender identity is, in essence, how one feels as a man or as a woman, and what one’s gender means to one’s identity. (Kacen, 2000, p. 346). Gender identity is dependent upon culture, society and is intensely personal. Moreover, gender identity is both a personal and a social construct, and is dependent upon the culture in which we live. Social cues give us some idea of one’s gender identity (Kacen, 2000). Thus, in the traditional viewing of gender roles, the men are the producers and the women are the consumers. This led to advertising being primarily marketed to females, so advertisements around the turn of the 20th Century featured ads which would be appealing to females. Women in these ads were seen in gender-defined roles, such as doing domestic chores, while men were relegated to the background. Consumers maintained their gender identities by these products, and marketers provided products which were delineated for each gender. This changed in the post-modern society, as gender became more of a fluid concept, and gender roles were much less set. Genders also approached consumption differently in the post-modern age, with both using brands to bolster their gender identity and both using brands to construct their global identity. Kacen (2000) attributes this change in how genders approach products and brands by the rise of the Calvin Kleins and the Reeboks of the world, as brands began selling not just a product, but an image (Kacen, 2000). Graphics Design verses “Fine Art” According to Heller (2001), design is crucial in advertising. Yet many graphic designers do not see the value in advertising, and will not acknowledge that graphic design contributes much to advertising. This is because, in their view, advertising is rather crass - only focused upon sales and the outcome, and not the art form. Graphic designers and artists tend to see advertising as a way to devalue their art form, effectively reducing their work to kitsch (Heller, 2001). Renowned art critic John Berger, like the graphic designers who see advertising as somehow “beneath” them, also is critical about the usage of art to further commercial means. He states that, in effect, art has been commodified, and used for the increase of economic power, thus eliminating the lived experience which goes into making the art. Art becomes a much more narrow experience, much less universal, and, even though art is supposed to be primal, using it for commercialism and furthering economic power takes away the primal instinct of the art, and negates the discovery process that the artist must take to make the art (Berger, 2001). This is because commercialism essentially kills artwork’s meaning, according to Berger (2001), supplanting the original meaning of the art with the meaning that the advertiser wants to convey. Papastergiadis (1993) sees that Berger’s critique of commercial art, as opposed to find art, comes from a very firmly held belief that Berger has regarding commodities and commercialism. Papastergiadis (1993) argues that Berger sees art as a way to convey and give meaning to the experience of society. Moreover, because Berger is a Marxist, Papastergiadis (1993) argues that Berger, especially, would see the marriage of art with commerce to be abhorrent. For Berger, as a Marxist, art should be something more than a crass vehicle for exploitation by a company. It should be not only the manifestation of human experience, but, also, a political vehicle – it should be thought of as a way to convey big ideas and concerns, not to sell products (Papastergiadis, 1993). For example, the Cubist artists wanted to change the world, and their art was used for their political ends. Dada artists are another example, who sought to make political statements, using their montages as a means for doing so (Berger, 2001). When commercialism co-opts the message, according to Berger, the message is diluted and made into something that might be much different than what the artist originally intended. For instance, if an advertisement uses, say, a Picasso image to sell perfume, then the message of the perfume essentially supplants the message that Picasso originally meant to convey with the image. This is part of what Berger feels is so crass about commercial art – the message is what the advertiser intends for the image, not what the artist originally intended. Berger also critiques the commercialization of fine art, by stating that commercial art, by using fine art, enhances its prestige in the minds of the consumer. The work of art is linked with the product, and this gives the commercial a kind of cultural authority that it does not really deserve, argues Berger (1972). Thus, John Berger and some graphic designers see that there is, and should be, a delineation between fine art and commercial art. They feel that commercialization of art somehow cheapens an artist’s work, making it an item for crass marketing. However, Heller (2001) argues that there should not be a dichotomy between fine art and commercial art, as they are both art. For instance, Alexey Brodovitch, who was an advertising designer in the 1920s and 1930s has had his work displayed in the New York Museum of Modern Art, and his posters for Martini are widely seen as his crowning achievements (Heller, 2001, p. 299). Branding Branding is important to modern consumption practices, because it helps individuals make choices. These choices were not available in earlier society, as goods were not mass produced, according to Gabriel & Yang (1995). However, after mass production became the norm, branding became crucial, as each brand tried to differentiate itself from the other brands which were glutting the market (Gabriel & Yang, 1995, p. 12). Naomi Klein (2000) states that the rise of mass production led to the necessitating of competitive branding, and this, in turn, led to the designer labels, such as Kate Spade and Tommy Hilfiger (Klein, 2000, p. 6). Branding is important in the age of mass marketing, simply because brands tend to be so similar to one another. Very few people would be able to tell Coke from Pepsi, the quality of a Reebok shoe is similar to the quality of a Nike, and there is not much difference between a Coach purse and a Louis Vitton purse. Because of this, a company needs to show that it is different from the competition. This is why branding is so important – Apple shows, in their commercials showing a young, hip guy acting as an Apple computer and an old, dweeby guy, acting as a PC, that they are the brand for the young and the hip. Goldman & Papson (1996) states that this is an effective of way of establishing a brand by differentiation. Goldman & Papson (1996) further states that attacking and counterattacking is an effective strategy, which where one brand names another brand in their commercials, and attacks that brand (Goldman & Papson, 1996). Moreover, brands need to cultivate their image and link their image to the product, and this is known as a “commodity sign,” according to Goldman & Papson (1996). This is why, say, Coach is able to sell a purse for $300, even though the purse is not more well-made than, say, a Target purse, which sells for $30. The Coach purse carries a prestige with it, and this prestige comes from careful marketing, and cultivation of the brand, linking the brand with the images that it wants to convey. The name, therefore, is worth billions, as Hermes can ask for thousands of dollars for its purses and other accessories, even though the products, in and of themselves, are not any more expensively made than other purses and accessories which cost a fraction of this (Goldman & Papson, 1996). Advertising’s Effect on Society Advertising sells products, but it also has effects on society, and these effects are not always positive. For instance, advertising works by showing society what they should have in life, and the kind of lifestyle that they should be leading. However, this ideal is not attainable for most of society. These ads are all about showing the “beautiful people” who are having more fun than you, purchasing a better car than you, having more sex than you, and generally living a better life than you. Therefore, advertisements can lead to a feeling of inferiority, according to Pollay (1986). The ads show the individual how they should be living, and, when the individual compares these images with the reality, the individual realizes that they are not living as they should (Pollay, 1986). Women are especially affected by this – the women in these ads never had extra pounds, they never have any grey hairs, they are always beautiful, and this puts pressure on women to aspire to these ideals as well, argues Pollay (1986). Moreover, advertising tends to focus on the youth, and youth culture, which makes the elderly feel inferior as well, like they are invisible and the advertisers don’t really care about them. These images, therefore, are hard for everybody who cannot achieve the life that the advertisers say that they should have, according to Pollay (1986). These ads make individuals feel that they are missing out, that their lives are not worth what they should be worth, and that everybody is having much more fun, with much more money, than they (Pollay, 1986, pp. 26-27). Moreover, Pollay argues that advertising changes our culture for the worse. It shows values which are against the values which would be at the backbone of a thriving culture – if culture should value work, advertisements emphasize consumption instead of work; if the culture should emphasize frugality, the advertisements emphasize more conspicuous consumption; if the culture should have some degree of modesty, the advertisements emphasize sex. Moreover, Pollay (1986) argues that, because of the effect of advertising, thefts and violence may occur more frequently, because of the competition that advertising emphasizes (Pollay, 1986, pp. 27-28). Hegarty on Advertising John Hegarty, who is a famous advertising professional in the UK, has innovative ideas about advertising, which would work for guerrilla marketing or regular marketing. The main thing that Hegarty emphasizes is that creativity is not a process, advertising is a process. What this means is that creativity must come from within, and there should not be any boundaries to creativity. He is especially critical of what he calls the “tissue meetings.” These are meetings in which the client and the advertiser meets between the strategy meeting and the final creative presentation. Hegarty feels that such a meeting is something that constrains the creative process, using the example of The Mona Lisa to illustrate his point. Hegarty states that, if The Mona Lisa were painted, and the client was involved with the painting of The Mona Lisa, the tissue meeting might feature the client demanding that the woman smile more, wear more jewelry, and looking more to the right. However, the painting came from inspiration, and was not constrained by individuals making demands, and this is why it is a masterpiece (Hegarty, 2011). Besides the importance of no constraints on creativity, Hegarty (2011) also emphasized that there should be a sense of irreverence when designing advertisements. Again using the example of Renaissance painters, Hegarty (2011) stated that the painters during this era, and before, had to essentially “sell” the Catholic Church, or risk losing commissions. The problem was that the Church’s message is always the same, so the artists had to find a way to make the message fresh. This resulted in Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel ceiling, which was innovative, daring and fresh, as well as Carvaggio’s The Supper at Emmaus, which was also irreverent, in that it showed Christ in a different way from other contemporary painters. These were the first stirrings of irreverency, and society has evolved to where irreverency has become the norm in the art world. Artists become famous by challenging conventions of art, as well as by challenging society as a whole. Marcel Duchamp draws a moustache on The Mona Lisa, and Dadaists challenge society with their montages depicting shocking images which commented on society. These are examples of irreverence, in which authority, conventionality, and society are all challenged. Hegarty states that this sense of irreverence is absolutely essential to effective advertising, although it is crucial that the irreverent tone of advertisements be done with “sincerity, integrity and with sympathy” – otherwise the one risks being accused of being exploitative (Hegarty, 2011, p. 35). Hence, Hegarty’s concepts are easily translatable to guerrilla marketing. Since guerrilla marketing uses concepts which are irreverent, in that they must be attention-getting and used to create a buzz (Levinson, 2007), the unconstrained creative process would be crucial to an effective guerrilla marketing campaign. When designing a guerrilla marketing campaign, in accordance with Hegarty’s precepts, the first commandment would be to have a free-flow of creative thoughts about what is important to designing the campaign. Perhaps the campaign will utilize graffiti, flash mobs, PR stunts and sticker bombs – these have to be fresh and not like other graffiti, flash mobs and sticker bombs, therefore innovative ideas must go into the process. Moreover, it is also important that the advertisement not only use Hegarty’s ideas, but also be aware of how persuasion works – the psychological processes, the need for identity, etc., needs to be considered before designing the right campaign. Conclusion Advertising relies on a complex interplay between the sign and the audience. The sign is typically designed by a talented graphic designer, and the audience decodes the sign by using a variety of precepts to do so. The identity of the audience, the psychological processes of the audience, and the cultural background of the audience are all important, because these are all factors which will influence how the advertising campaign is received. Perhaps “fine art” might be used in a commercial context, which would be effective, as well, John Berger’s thoughts not-withstanding. John Hegarty brings further advice for creating an effective marketing campaign, stating that irreverence and an unconstrained creative process are crucial to creating innovative, challenging advertisements which will get people talking. Since buzz is all important to guerrilla advertising, Hegarty’s ideas are important to note in the designing of the campaign. Therefore, an effective guerrilla marketing campaign will appeal to the audience’s psychological and identity processes, while being fresh and innovative enough that the campaign will not be forgotten. Bibliography Dyer, G. (1982). Advertising as Communication. 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