Upon watching 50 advertisements late in the evening last night, I noticed several similarities, and I categorized the patterns into five groups. The firstare cars. The second arethe animals, and the third is family. Next are the visual ads and the last are the sexy ads. These are based on the image and identification stages of decoding advertisements.
The first object, cars, is quite evident in its use. The ads are basically selling car brands. Thus, the ad frames are mainly composed of the car brand swiftly running on long-winded highways and the surroundings becoming blurry (“Hyundai Elantra nice”; “Kia challenge the luxury”; “Jeep stay restless”; “Maserati now we strike”).Other car ads were action-packed, lighting frames with spotlights and explosions (“Jaguar good to be bad”; “Kia challenge the luxury”).Interpreting the use of the other elements in relation to the main object, they appear to symbolize discovery, endurance, and power. These symbols influence us to become active and fast-paced jet setters.
On the other hand, some of the car ads almost focus on other elements that they could be considered belonging to other categories. They either feature family members,including friends, or they talk about the family (“Hyundai Genesis”;“Honda hugfest”;“Chevy life”). The meaning I could link to this element is thatthe car is depicted as having the ability to care, since families do care for each other. Another element I noticed was thatthe driver of the car was a man. Mixing these elements together, the ads influence the men of our society to be the family men, the heads of the family, the ones who take care of everyone.
The unlikely element that is featured in a car ad is animals, whether real, freaky, or the Muppets. What’s surprising is that two of these ads have animals, particularly a dog and Kermit the frog, driving the car. Meanwhile, the other ad has a bull on a trailer being pulled by a bulky Chevrolet. A cowboy-looking man is driving. The freaky one features a computer-generated mix breed of a Doberman and a Chihuahua (“Subaru dog tested”;“Toyota Highlander Terry Crews”;“Chevy Silverado romance”). The only ad that was easy to understand was the one with Chevrolet and the bull. The car was directly compared to the bull, making us idealize the car as tough and as something that must be used in labor-intensive industries such as ranching.
The rest of the ads perhaps just want to get attention since it’s unexpected to see animals in a car ad. Better yet, people associate animals to cultural values through learned meanings from various consumed media. With this in mind, the dog in the Subaru dog tested ad symbolizes trust and reliability because dogs are known as man’s best friend(“Subaru dog tested”;Phillips, 1996). Thus, the influence that the ad imparts to society is interdependence.
Speaking of animals, the next category that will be discussed is the animal ads. Animals are not the main product of these ads. However, the animals are the main element seen on the frames. Instead of people, animals are the ones interacting with each other and people are merely placed on the side. The Budweiser Best Bud ad where a puppy looks up to a horse and the horse chases after the puppy when it was taken away is an example of this interaction (“Budweiser best bud”). Based on the explanation above where people associate animals to values, the Budweiser brand may want to capture the idea of a best friend. Thus, it featured two animals that are known for their loyalty. With this being associated with the brand, the message we would get is that Budweiser is also our best friend. This means that in times of joy or sorrow, Budweiser will always be around.
The other set of animal ads feature animals interacting with people. The animals in these ads talk and act like humans. Still following the logic of the animal-value association, one of the ads parodied Goldilocks and the Three Bears. Goldilocks was role played by TV host Ellen DeGeneres. She loves to dance in each of her shows. Not surprisingly, in the ad, she was seen dancing with the bears to the Beats music. I think in this case, it is not directly using the animal-value association. What it uses is the culture of storytelling and fairytales, the ones that end with “and they live happily ever after”. The ad ends on a happier note compared to the popular plot of the story. Certainly, the ad is something people would want to see and hear again, just like the good stories that have been told for generations (“Beats music three bears”).
Other than these interpretations, the message I got from seeing human-animal interactions is that even animals would want the product. In reality, they could not reason out. However, they live instinctively. Thus, in relation to the product, they simply want it. No excuses. The examples of this are the Geico ad and the Chobani ad. The Geico ad features a pig on a counter being assisted by a front liner about his insurance application. The Chobani ad, on the other hand, features a bear ready to pay at the counter for a Chobani despite ruining the convenient store because of the panicking people(“Geico Maxwell at the dmv”; “Chobani how matters”). Here, they are depicted as instinctively needing to have the product in order to live, so why not us humans?
Moving on to the third category, let’s discuss visual ads. I just labeled it visual ads because I found them different in a way that they appear distinct even when compared to each other. These ads use at least one fun phrase. When I say fun, I mean something that is catchy and that I would want to keep watching (“Weathertech you can’t do that”).Fun could also mean adorable like the way that children are (“Doritos time machine”;“Doritos lasso”;“Intuit Goldie Box; “ “Cheerios Gracie”). They also use catchy or familiar tones that resemble pop songs (“Pepsi get hyped”; “Sonos hifi system”; “Bank of America U2 invisible”; “Heinz if you’re happy”). Most of the time, these ads are heavy on graphics, props, gimmicks, and effects. They may not necessarily be all flashy with explosions but based on the looks and screen quality, the makers have obviously put in tremendous efforts for them (“Bud light up for whatever”; “T Mobile no contract”; “Radioshack goodbye 80s”; “Squarespace the web”; “M&M delivery”). On the other hand, some are simple, such as one that resembles a Zen PowerPoint presentation (“T Mobile break up”).
The one ad I would particularlylike to discuss unfortunately does not have a catchy phrase or tone. It also does not have sophisticated productions. It certainly is simple but instead of the Zen feel, this ad made me cringe. It features a gorgeous female model and a chubby guy with glasses making out. This is not because they love each other but because the host said so. He was comparing the brand to the combination of the two stereotypes of people he invited (“Godaddy kiss”). I emotionally reacted to it first before I thought of interpreting it. Indeed, it was a shocker. It would certainly get attention because the normality of societal stereotypes is challenged.
The next category is huge in number because an ad that is family-oriented presents various interconnected themes such as origin, relations, emotions, and inspirations. As a result, some of the ads from cars or any other category may also be found in the family category. Nonetheless, the adsthat would be discussed here use the family as their main element.
The first isthe family home, which symbolizes a celebration of the place that we came from. One can say that these ads are American through the national anthem, the watching of NFLgames, and the celebration ofa soldier’s homecoming (“Coke America is beautiful”;“NFL together we make football”; “Budweiser a hero’s welcome”). The family can also symbolize relations. We are all connected in some ways that make us have a high regard for each other, may it be as neighbors or as friends (“Spring framily plan”; “Carmax slow clap”). When we are connected, the family becomes an inspiration (“Axe peace”; “Microsoft empowering”; “Intuit Turbotax it’s amazing what you’re capable of”; “Godaddy live your dream”). Its influence is undeniable because it touches our core.
The last category features sexy ads where a lot of skin is shown and suggestive acts are depicted (“Godaddy body builder”; “Oikos fuel your pleasure”; “Butterfinger cups”). Of course, some of these ads feature top stars widely known as sex symbols (“H&M David Beckham”; “D&G Claudia Schiffer”; “Sodastream save the world”). Sex has always been a taboo subject. However, we can’t deny that it’s a natural human function (Winser, 2013). Such ads are simply leveraging that. In this regard, we can say that the influence of these ads is instinctive.
References
Audi doberhuahua [Video file]. Retrieved from
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G2Y6tpQD9Nc
Axe peace [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AFSLhcPhtuk
Bank of America U2 invisible [Video file]. Retrieved from
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hEyKdpsHKy0
Beats music three bears [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_yf-
dw934Rc
Budweiser a hero’s welcome [Video file]. Retrieved from
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K7L5QByvXOQ.
Budweiser best buds [Video file]. Retrieve from
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uQB7QRyF4p4
Bud light up for whatever [Video file]. Retrieved from
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7D3lBaGuZAU
Butterfinger cups [Video file]. Retrieved from
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MHXPtOZdWkE
Carmax slow clap [Video file]. Retrieved from
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=URgQdz7qd8A
Cheerios Gracie [Video file]. Retrieved from
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LKuQrKeGe6g
Chevy life [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7vhMpXMPvdU
Chevy Silverado romance [Video file]. Retrieved from
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dOMrA-BGuLY
Chobani how matters [Video file]. Retrieved from
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ABxP3t7XP3g
Chrysler America’s import [Video file]. Retrieved from
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KlSn8Isv-3M
Coke America is beautiful [Video file]. Retrieved from
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=443Vy3I0gJs
Considine, D. M., & Haley, G. E. (1992). Visual messages: Integrating imagery into instruction.
Libraries Unlimited, pp. 106-107.
Doritos lasso [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o5192E9Pnfo
Doritos time machine [Video file]. Retrieved from
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xKj12ZNGWF4
D&G Claudia Schiffer Naomi [Video file]. Retrieved from
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AFSLhcPhtuk
Geico Maxwell at the dmv [Video file]. Retrieved from
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=slk7yCySQ3s
Godaddy body builder [Video file]. Retrieved from
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WycoJMKzXZ4
Godaddy kiss [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mWasVhqe7V4
Godaddy.com live your dream [Video file]. Retrieved from
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gf0vzLgF-OI
Heinz if you’re happy and you know it [Video file]. Retrieved from
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YqPUeQy0MXE
Honda hugfest [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9elQDMUTzpc
Hyundai Elantra nice [Video file]. Retrieved from
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O3eBVnRnc8k
Hyundai Genesis [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TKL_cn8vhjo
H&M David Beckham [Video file]. Retrieved from
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1yI5GVCqO7Y
Intuit Goldie Box toys for future [Video file]. Retrieved from
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZVCC83cDch0
Intuit Turbotax it’s amazing what you’re capable of [Video file]. Retrieved from
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8eZkufFMOgQ
Jaguar good to be bad [Video file]. Retrieved from
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Bls1KKDwmo
Jeep stay restless [Video file]. Retrieved from
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mHg9XSyd8Fo
Kia challenge the luxury [Video file]. Retrieved from
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=diPICUxtRdo
Maserati now we strike [Video file]. Retrieved from
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=asvCv4d3ZfM
Microsoft empowering [Video file]. Retrieved from
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qaOvHKG0Tio
M&M delivery [Video file]. Retrieved from
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q3Z4TQKGXbE
NFL together we make football [Video file]. Retrieved from
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a3cGCjBR46Q
Oikos fuel your pleasure [Video file]. Retrieved from
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DrcaeAumAZo
Phillips, B. J. (1996). Advertising and the cultural meaning of animals.Advances in Consumer Research Volume 23, eds. Kim P. Corfman and John G. Lynch Jr., UT: Association for Consumer Research, pp: 354-360.
Pepsi get hyped [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iISQEwleMuo
Radioshack goodbye 80s [Video file]. Retrieved from
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n5i91rOlFMY
Sodastream save the world [Video file]. Retrieved from
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W7ivSdvc4S0
Sonos hifi system face off [Video file]. Retrieved from
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2HQvDbEKcpk
Sprint framily plan [Video file]. Retrieved from
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m0NDxUaKyNY
Squarespace the web [Video file]. Retrieved from
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HI5Fe_XPrYg
Subaru dog tested dog approved [Video file]. Retrieved from
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ve7pVR7-yVA
Subway Fritos chicken enchilada [Video file]. Retrieved from
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fou8lQ7Crg0
Toyota Highlander Terry Crews and Muppets [Video file]. Retrieved from
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=69BrmoebK-M
T Mobile break up [Video file]. Retrieved from
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dJEp76Idg7o
T Mobile no contract [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-
eoxKy_uD_I
Weathertech you can’t do that [Video file]. Retrieved from
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4nSfQbz8WAU
Winser, K. (2013). Why do we use sex to sell clothes. Forbes website. Retrieved from
http://www.forbes.com/sites/kimwinser/2013/12/17/why-do-we-use-sex-to-sell-clothes/
Appendix
