Medium Details for Estee Lauder - Research Paper Example

Medium Details In promoting a new product, the choice of medium which well get the message across is vital for success. Estee Lauder has developed a new mascara product that includes a vibrating brush, which will lengthen, curl, separate and give volume to lashes. This product is part of Estee Lauder’s top line of beauty products. Therefore, its target market includes women 18-40, who have disposable income and pride themselves on looking good. They tend to be more affluent and desire a product that does what it claims. They also want attractive packaging, which reinforces their status and the ability to purchase high quality products. The medium that will be used for Estee Lauder’s promotion of Turbo Lash All Effects Motion Mascara, is printed magazine advertising. Two full page colour will be placed in Grazia, a trendy fashion magazine and Cosmopolitan, an upscale lifestyle magazine. The target market this product is aimed at spends time on social networks, but also spends time browsing magazines, to stay abreast of current fashion trends and products. The full page colour print ad is meant to make a bold statement to the target market, that this product is something they must have. Research into consumer behavior shows that marketing targeted at certain demographic segments can influence their spending habits.i Therefore, it is important to consider the target audience and its ability to purchase the product. It is also important that this target audience is able to use social networks to share experiences about products purchased. Big Idea The big idea that Estee Lauder wants to communicate to readers is that they can have the great eyelashes they have always wanted, lashes that are attractive and accentuate their appearance. They can do so with the mascara and vibrating applicator brush. There is no need to consider more time consuming options, such as implants or false lashes. The target audience is highly motivated to purchase this product, as a must have essential beauty essential in their cosmetic bag. The idea is to make women view the vibrating brush concept, that comes with the mascara, as the only solution for the lashes they have always desired and that will make them more desirable. They will get noticed as the woman in the ad is noticed, for her thick, long lashes. While there are other methods of achieving longer, thicker and curlier lashes, they may be too time consuming for this target audience, who are educated and likely to be very busy with work, taking care of a home and possibly children. They are also very social, which further limits their free time. The idea works because, although it does not mention the ease of application, the audience can see that this solution is simple and one that is not likely to require much of their time. Message strategy employed Based on the big idea and promotional goals of reaching the target audience and positioning its product as a high end cosmetic product that is highly desired, Estee Lauder uses the image/emotion/feeling message strategy. The company addresses the need for the audience to experience satisfaction in knowing they can become completely desirable, when their lashes are manipulated into a facial feature that is more becoming. Estee Lauder speaks to those women who believe that image is everything. They must maintain a certain standard in how they live, how they dress and how they look. It also appeals to this audience through the packaging of the product, in a stylish, attractive bottle, which stands out among other brands of this product type. Upper-class factions want to purchase goods made for people of their perceived level or socio-economic status.ii Women in this audience who purchase this product will not only have eyelashes that stand out, they will have a bottle or package they will be proud to carry in their handbag, on the dressing table or vanity. Though this product of Estee Lauder is more utilitarian, designed to serve a general purpose, it can appeal to an audience with a wide age range, such as in the target audience. Marketing experts hypothesized that utilitarian appeals will be more persuasive for products which are highly differentiated from competitors, are in the developmental stage of the product life cycle, are used by most consumers, or are not highly conspicuous in their usage.iii This product is differentiated with the vibrating brush, is a newly developed product, is something used by many women and does not draw undue attention to the audience for using such a product. Message approach and execution The message appeals to the audience in two different ways. It appeals to the audience on a rational level. The bottle of mascara and brush are shown on the right of the model, taking the full length of the image. This suggests to the audience that use of the product will make lashes look long and full, like those on the model. It suggests a simplistic solution as well. A single product that is applied as any mascara, simply by using the brush. Estee Lauder also uses an emotional, sexual appeal, to target women in the target audience, by utilizing the provocative model who has apparently applied the product to her lashes. Estee Lauder uses sex appeal to enhance recall of the message point and provoke a positive reaction.iv Readers will remember the look of the model who has applied to product. They will think positively about how using the product will change their look to one that is more sophisticated and desirable. The other emotional appeal Estee Lauder uses is one designed to meet hedonic needs,v or those that are associated with enjoyment and things that are valued. For this target audience, enjoyment may come in knowing that one looks good with tasteful fashions and with the use of quality cosmetic products. It may also come from knowing that there is a product than can give a woman the long, thick and attractive lashes she has always dreamed of having, but was not able to achieve with other products. Looks and appeal are highly valued by this segment. So, a product that helps them achieve this is desirable. An attractive package that looks good in the handbag or on a table is also something that members of this target audience value. With its strikingly attractive model, glamour and highly visible product in the foreground of the ad, Estee Lauder uses involuntary attention to lure in readers. Involuntary attention occurs when attention is captured by the use of attention-gaining techniques rather than the consumer’s inherent interest in the topic at hand.vi Emotive response The emotions that are likely to be invoked when viewing this add can vary, though they are more likely to be those of excitement, pleasure and confidence. Excitement in wanting to have lashes with more attractive features and knowing such a desire is possible may be an initial reaction in viewing the lashes on the model. It also comes from knowing there is a product available that the target audience can purchase that will bring about the desired effect. Pleasure is a thought and an emotion. It is something that produces positive associations with specific events or things. Knowing that a product can help achieve a specific look is likely to evoke pleasure responses and positive associations, through imagining how one will look or feel when a specific event takes place. Thinking that one will look better, received looks and compliments and be regarded more highly are pleasurable thoughts. Looking at the model and how attractive and full her lashes are creates positive emotional responses to the ad, which serves to promote the product through the emotions of readers. Women in this audience view looks and fashion as a means of making a statement about their status. They are also values as means for attaining and maintaining relationships or connections within the social circles they belong to. In order to remain connected, they must possess the confidence to relate on a specific level. Looking good is a means in which many women in this audience remain confident about themselves, their abilities and their status among social groups. Products that help them maintain a specific look or help them fit into a social group are likely to give them confidence. If a woman has lashes that are long and thick like others within the group, she will feel she belongs. Even better, if a woman feels she can be the envy of other group members, her confidence level will become even higher. Choosing a well known and respected medium for advertising can also boost confidence of the target audience. Credible and respected media outlets for your advertising can boost customer confidence because of the ‘halo effect.’vii Though this statement is made in regard to newspaper advertising, it also applies to other printed material. The idea is that using a printed medium with a reputation among the target audience is likely to generate more credibility among viewers, thereby giving them the confidence to purchase products promoted within that medium. Eye movement Because there are two images to look at in the ad, readers will move from the model to the bottle of mascara and back again. While the product is not the entire focus, it is visibly seen as an image as large as the other, suggesting the product’s importance to readers. While the image of the model will give readers in the target audience a point of reference, or visual example of what the product can do for them, the image provides readers with a reference for purchasing the product. It will be difficult to ignore the blue and gold accent bottle of mascara. Providing this image gives the target audience a point of reference to use while in the store, searching for the right product. Eye movement does not have to be limited to how the reader takes in an advertisement or which direction the reader will go. It can also refer to the direction of the eyes of models used for such ads. In this particular ad, the model looks directly at the reader. According to Albert King, advertisers use eye direction as a means of relaying a mood within the message. Eyes pointed to the right can indicate rational thought, while movement to the left can indicate emotion.viii Looking straight ahead than can be an indicator of balance between both. Whether this is an intentional strategy of Estee Lauder is unknown. However, it is consistent with the appeal to the logical application of the product with a quick and easy tool and the various emotional appeals to the audience. Effectiveness The desired effect of Estee Lauder’s ad is to give readers in the target audience the idea that a simple, new product feature can help them achieve a new, more desirable look for their eyelashes. This causes readers to pause and think about how easy it will be to achieve the desired look, if this brand of mascara is purchased. It is a motivator to the audience to seek out such a product, which will quickly give them the look they desire, without too much effort. Read More