The Geert Hofstedes dimensions, Fons Trompenaars dimensions and Edward T. Hall's cultural dimension will greatly help in this case. In regards to Hofstede's cultural dimensions theory, the six dimensions of value namely: collectiveness, power, uncertainty avoidance, temporal orientation, masculinity and indulgence will greatly help in analyzing the advertisement in Brazil. Each one of these dimensions will have an opposite contrast to help in revealing the positives and negatives of advertisements.
Skyscraper sized hoardings and massive billboards line up in the streets of Sao Paulo waving to the pedestrians and motorists caught up in traffic jam. This is just a clear indication that advertisement has taken a new trend in Brazil. The long and big billboards catch attention easily and it is available to everybody unlike other forms of advertisement. Billboards do not have a specific target audience since anybody has access. Choice of products normally displayed on the billboards at times bear witness to the unrestrained natural history of the Brazilian society.
Brazil has a sort of westernized culture since the billboard contain some very suggestive pictures. A big number of advertisements mark gigantic metaphors of women and men clothed in only their under wears. A culture that is not westernized would have a very big problem handling some of this content. The confirmation to that is the Brazilian publication of playboy with cutouts and posters of the latest models. These models are almost naked and very seductive. Many may see this city as a version of South America portrayed in blade runner.
Gilberto, the mayor of Sao Paulo takes a faint view of this barrage that is non-stop of manufactured goods promotion. Many admit that much of these advertisements put up illegally but it becomes inevitable due to acceptance by the culture. The mayor calls all this pollution of the eyes and goes ahead to say that if he has his way, he will ban all those big displays meant for advertisement from the city. However, he would have a difficult task since the Brazilian culture already accepts the occurrences and has no problem with the displays.
Grey concrete vs. the colored billboards
Gilberto has come up with a bill that he says it is necessary for the purposes of a good city. He submitted this bill to the city council of Sao Paulo arguing that it could entirely change the urban surroundings by banning all forms of outdoor advertisement. He continues to add that the bill is emblematic though radical. Gilberto thinks that the Brazilian culture is not very moral and not suitable for small children. It is a controversial bill but necessary to the city, he continues to add.
Ordinary citizens of Paulo pay no attention and fear that the city’s concrete colored grey saying that it would become even greyer when there is no presence of splashed color in the advertisements. They seem to like the advertisement and have no problem with it as the mayor suggests. The culture they have allows advertisements of any kind. One of the Brazilian citizens said that Sao Paulo city without outdoor advertisement is just like New York without the Times Square. Another one also said that it would be like the absence of communism in Eastern Europe.
Advertisement agencies are under great pressure since some Brazilians have dismissed the program as a stunt of public relations.
CONAR
This a non-governmental organization that aims to enforce the self-regulation code of advertising in Brazil. It acts from all over the territory of Brazil and defends the freedom of advertising as a way of expression. It also defends the legitimate rights concerning the commercial media hype. It exclusively regulates the advertisement already exposed in the media without necessarily censoring it. In Brazil, CONAR has been winning crucial positions in Brazil for conducting advertisement cases. It has handled more than 4000 cases concerning the same and reached many consensuses too. The most distinguished advertising entities in Brazil keep up this organization monetarily (Karanian, 2008, pg 37).
Advertisement in Brazil seems communal because the individuals support it apart from the mayor who wants everybody to follow his word. He as an individual cannot move the whole mass. It will take years before the city becomes what he wants. He wants a city with no billboards or any other form of outdoor advertisement. This has mace the billboards to lose ground based on his individualism that he thinks will bear good fruits in future.
The huge, elegant hoardings are also losing ground since no one will invest on something that does not have a bright future in authenticity terms for the next few months. This has greatly affected marketing in Brazil just because of one person’s impact.
Mass audience and masculinity
Impressive as they are, billboards are one element of the flourishing landscape of advertising in Brazil. They particularly make the city beautiful with colored pictures and images of celebrated icons in the music and entire entertainment industry. Of all times, television remains the most selected choice during national campaign launch.
In the United States and the United Kingdom, television has the largest audience and the trend is taking a positive way up. Television is a culture that will not fade soon as it has brain washed the mass not individuals. It is for that reason collective. Globs, which is the main terrestrial network in Brazil is so dominant in values of production and share of audience. The multichannel television has a long way to go before it makes such an impact in Brazil alone.
Pay-tv compared to other media services in Brazil is still very tiny but it is showing some encouraging growth. According to the leading consultancy firm in Brazil, it has less than 10% subscribers of the total households.
Advertising self regulation code in Brazil
The main function of the code is ruling over the cultural rules applicable to commercial marketing. The code has a design to encourage the consumption of products and services. It promotes institutions, ideas or concepts. It is for the general welfare of the public and community. Some examples of the most important principles recognized in the code are cultural and educational development
All the professionals involved in advertising activities observe the cultural behavior standards. It includes the advertisers, media broadcasters, advertising agencies, journalist and all other professionals in communication taking part in the process of advertisement. The general cultural rules are also applicable to specific main beliefs such as respect, decency, honesty, fear, superstition, violence and truthful presentation.
Other principles are comparative advertising, safety and accidents, protection of privacy, pollution and ecology, children and teenagers. There is also copyright and plagiarism, which protects creativity and originality. Some special categories fall under advertisement. These are rules that serve as exhibits. The main categories of advertisements are commercial ads, which is for selling goods and services. Under this category, anyone buying or selling goods or services have the permission to advertise. The other one is commonweal ads; this contains messages and information from social organization and the government. The third one is the regional ads where messages go to certain geographical areas on target.
Stereotypes
People say that the population of Brazil comprises of many blacks who came from slavery in Africa. However, one aspect of Brazilian advertisement that puzzles many is that blacks never appear on these advertisements. There is a cruel logic of economy to this. Some say that the lighter you are, the more likely you are to come from a rich background. Since many advertising agents want to go by the culture of skin color, they tend to go light skin men and women leaving out the blacks. A culture runs across the region therefore communitarian has undergone change and many ads are now for blacks. They have the greater purchasing power as compared to the blacks (Karanian, 2008, pg 87).
Change in culture
A survey conducted revealed that most ads discriminate the black people. Initially, black people could only appear in ads as house helps or tea boys and gardeners. It has however changed since one can now see a black person in a fashion ad or even bank or pharmaceutical products commercial. This to some extent is collectivism. The reason behind that is that the black people started to migrate to the middle group. This made them an important consumer market and even the whites wanted to be like them. They had a class of their own that every one liked. Many of the advertisements are multi-racial.
Brazil has a commercial responsibility and not a social responsibility. When it comes to commercial and advertisements, Brazilians show their communitarians culture in full. Communitarian is the culture that considers a group as the end and improves individual capacities as the means to that end. The culture helps in development and growth.
References
Karaian, Jason. 2008. Trompenaars Hampden-Turner Consulting's Fons Trompenaars: CFO.
Blanchard, D. 2007. advertisement: best practices. John Willey & sons publishers.
Hoboken. New Jersey.
