English
Analysis of Advertisements According to Fowles’s Categories and Their Effectiveness with Bovee et al.
Under Fowles’s list of fifteen emotional appeals, “giving form to people’s deep-lying desires and picturing states of being that individuals privately yearn for, advertisers have the best chance of arresting attention and affecting communication,” while Bovee et al (1989), suggests “that an effective sales pitch contributes to the advertising’s appeal to customers.” ‘The Time’ magazine, dated January 31, 2011, has quite a few news breakers, but one distinct advertisement that draws the attention of most of its readers is the one with the caption that reads; ‘Bread Is Life: The Role of Food in Egypt's Upheaval’ (www.time.com). The image of a boy carrying food items on his head against the backdrop of positioned police tell the story of the people of Egypt’s precarious position today. There are other stories also doing the rounds in the magazine. This particular advertisement can be classified as a part of Fowles’s ‘need to escape,’ or ‘need for attention.’ In addition to drawing the attention of the readers to the picture of the boy carrying food items on his head, the policemen in the background with guns in hand, tells the story of the event in Egypt. While the picture draws the readers to it, the caption above it activates the reader’s mind, as he or she, begins to relate to the situation and experience, wondering how it would to be there at that time. This is precisely what happens when, advertisements according to Fowles’s categories and Bovee et al.(1989) sales pitch are combined.
Similarly, many car manufacturers use shapely models to pose with their cars to ignite the feelings or emotions of consumers. The way advertisements are produced, cars, though they represent status and culture, it is advertisements that create a differentiation among customers, and develops their taste. Sales pitch using Greek gods is not unusual, because in Greek mythology, gods, such as Apollo and Dionysius, are names associated with nobility, and spontaneity respectively. When a customer visions him or herself to be the proud owner of a car that symbolizes Apollo, they are sure to yearn for it, even if they can’t afford buying one. Apollo, the god of music, is the Sun god. So, if advertisers were to equate a car symbolic of Apollo, it had to be one that is smooth, resplendent, and extremely powerful. They are methodological in whatever they do. Considering these qualities, one car that matches the Apollonian style would be a Rolls-Royce. Who wouldn’t want to own a Rolls–Royce? Owning something unique is difficult, and to own a Rolls-Royce would be the ultimate for a car connoisseur.
Patterson (2013), describing the Apollonian philosophy, says “it can be best described as one that is over-organizational, bureaucratic, homogeneous, hierarchal, logo-centrism, and technocrat.” All these characteristics are part of the Rolls-Royce legacy. They are a class apart, and easily identifiable in a crowd. If such is the stature of this car, it is obviously going to be beyond the practical reach, but not the imaginative reach, of the majority of people on this planet. In that particular advertisement, there is a Phantom Vi parked near a private jet. The picture is from a motion picture, and has an attendee-in-waiting bending to open the passenger door, while an airhostess waits patiently for the VIP to climb aboard the plane. Nothing can displace the royalty of the Rolls-Royce, and it would be hard for anyone to see an advertisement having a Japanese fuel-efficient car take the place of the Rolls-Royce. Such advertisements appeal to the viewer, which makes him or her yearn for. In another advertisement, again depicting an old model of the Phantom VI, which had a caption that read; “All rise for the Rolls-Royce Phantom VI: Not-so-reasonably-priced-car plays minor starring role in royal wedding” (Jones, 2011). The first thought that comes to mind is, “how I wish, I could be the proud owner of one of those.” The car stands for aristocracy, and the owner, a nobleman. It is obvious that only a few people would have the privilege of driving their car to the tarmac to board a private plane. They, the car and the nobleman, belong to the Apollonian society.
A Harley-Davidson or a Triumph motorbike is also well advertised. One particular advertisement of Triumph had this picture of a woman in scantly striped, torn tops and bottoms, kneeling on a Triumph in the middle of wilderness (dotheton.com). The caption just above the picture read: “For that great escape, Go Triumph.” Here, the advertisement follows Fowles’s ‘Need to Escape’ principle. Bikes can be driven anywhere and go to places where cars can’t, and so, by showing a pretty woman standing beside a brute of a bike, it is obvious that that is something every American would desire to do, escape from the fast-paced city life. It is advertisements like these that form wild desires and vision in people to state that as being what they privately yearn for. The role of advertisement in the evolution of product placement, and targeting the senses of consumers cannot be overlooked.
Conclusion
In studying the advertisements of the Rolls-Royce Phantom Vi and Phantom VI, and Triumph Motorbike, it is obvious that advertisers seek to giving form to people’s wild desires and vision to state that as being what they privately yearn for, and affect effective sales pitch to contribute to the advertising’s appeal to customers. It is evident that advertisers target their audience by striking at their taste bud, and in the case of a car manufacturer like the Rolls-Royce, they would stress the Apollonian quality of individuality, and uniqueness. They believe in portraying their product as one having a polished outlook and logical expression.
Works Cited
Bovee, C, L, and Arens, W, F, (1989), Contemporary Advertising, 3d ed., Homewood, IL: Irwin
Jones, M, (2011), All rise for the Rolls-Royce Phantom VI: Not-so-reasonably-priced-car plays minor starring role in royal wedding, Retrieved April 16, 2014, from http://www.topgear.com/uk/car-news/rolls-royce-phantom-royal-wedding-car-2011- 04-28
Patterson, B, (2013), Dionysian vs. Apollonian, Retrieved April 16, 2014, from http://www.opednews.com/articles/Dionysian-vs-Apollonian-by-Bob-Patterson- Censorship_Journalism_Logic_Media-131004-19.html
Rolls-Royce Phantom Vi, Retrieved April 16, 2014, from http://www.imcdb.org/vehicle_22688-Rolls-Royce-Phantom-VI-Prototype-PRH1500- 1966.html
Triumph: For that great escape: go Triumph, Retrieved April 16, 2014, from http://www.dotheton.com/forum/index.php?topic=54009.0
