Fresh Breath - does it really matter?

Today in class we learned the aims of marketing and the role advertising plays.
One of the aims of marketing was to create exchanges that satisfy the perceived needs, wants, and objectives of individuals and organizations.

An when discussing advertising role in the promotion part of marketing, we looked at the PERCEPTION of a need. Does advertising HELP the perception of needs/wants or CREATE it out of nothing?

The example for this post is hygiene products. When we were learning about the history of advertising through american society, the Roaring 20s was a time when cleanliness products were advertised as a part of basic necessity. In other words, if body odor or bad breath didn't bother before, it SHOULD now....so use our product.

This has translates into the standard of "freshness" that we have now...

Look at this Eclipse gum commercial:



Besides being hilarious (hahaha), this commercial shows how advertising 1.) made us feel bad if we had bad breath, 2.) presented us with the "only" solution, and 3.)set their brand apart from others - "natural germ killers"...

This ad also reinforces satisfaction, because this campaign always shows a 2nd encounter...the first guy who had bad breath is now enjoying the gum, and now recognizes the error of his stinky ways.

so it reminded you why you bought it in the first place...
and enables you to persuade others about it.

and now gum is something that many of us (me!) can't live without.

Breaking away from the PC image

One of the most popular and in my opinion, effective forms of comparative advertising (that is fair)is the Mac vs. PC campaign.

It's use of personifying the Mac computer as a young, good-looking man and characterizing the PC (Microsoft)as a nerdy, older man has left an impression on the Microsoft brand that many feared couldn't be broken.

It has come to the point where many college students buy their first laptop - usually a Mac- because it just "seems cooler".

Mac's commercials aren't unfair - they simply state the advantages of their product and the problems withe PCs. Below is one of the Mac vs. PC commercials.



But FINALLY the time has come:

Microsoft is ready to fight back the stereotype of what is in reality a quality product.

I recently saw this commercial while watching TV in my dorm room. Both me and my roommate agreed: it was effective in trying to erase the PC image. It used real people in many different industries. People who are "old", "young", "conservative", "liberal"....This way, more people can identify with the product.

It used hipsters, little children, celebrities, and even Bill Gates himself.

Here is the ad below.



And as a consumer who hasn't bought her laptop yet, i just might reconsider getting that Mac.

Socially Acceptable - shock value?

At first, these commercials may startle you --- and motion your little cousin out of the room in a hurry.

In class today we talked about the social impact of advertising, and what is acceptable or offensive in different target audiences.

The advertisement above is very recent. Levis jeans campaign is currently running on TV. The first one is called "First Time" and just like the name suggests, you think it's about....sex. But in reality, the commercial is about taking risks (like jumping into that lake) and how that brand helps you achieve that confidence.

But it certainly has some sexual shock value.

In the U.S., this kind of ad is just a little extreme, but for the most part acceptable. Levi hooks you in, because you want to know WHAT THE HECK this commercial is about?!?!?! It definitely puts a personality and abstract idea of youth and freedom on the brand of jeans.

The video below uses that same shock value of "oh my gosh, little brother cover your eyes!"

But what i've found is that most people that watch these ads end up saying:

"all that was just for a pair of JEANS?!?!"

Interactive Advertising

While searching for other things to post to my journal, i realized that advertising has gone FAR beyond ad agencies conveying a message to the consumers (the audience). There are whole interactive websites dedicated to products.

NOT in the SELLING of these products, just the INTERACTION.

Just type in any brand of food, beverage, candy, etc. in google, and there will be a whole website. Typical features include GAMES, MESSAGE BOARDS, MEDIA (like wallpaper or icons).

This makes use of the idea we learned that buying a product these days allows you to express yourself. Buying stuff is an extension of you.

To see Examples:

1.) http://www.stridegum.com/#/home/
2.) http://www.pepsi.com/
3.) http://www.covergirl.com/

these are only a few...

Stride Gum - continuing a motto

Stride Gum distinguishes itself as a brand by promoting how long the flavor lasts. It realizes that this could be a problem for production, as you only eat a new piece if the old one loses flavor, right? These ads make fun of that idea..."What if they WON'T spit it out???"



Previous commercials have been in the stride factory, and it is shut down because no one buys new packs of gum.

I think it shows a lot of creativity to think of a NEGATIVE aspect of your product and turn it into a comical quality.

And i do admit, i buy it because it last longer. :)

STRIDE - THE RIDICULOUSLY LONG LASTING GUM

VW beetle: old meets new...

In this commercial, VW is using the actual product as the persona. It is comparing the old (original) version of the VW with the new SUV version. The ad agency has given it a name (Max) and an identity - a German man, who makes clever comments.

This may stick out to consumers amid all the "noise" we get everyday on television, etc. If we are used to seeing people telling us about a product, seeing an automobile doing that would catch our eye.

The commercial is trying to show progress while still maintaining the qualities that make VW a specific brand. By using the European SUV of the Year award, it is establishing a level of excellence. It is trying to appeal to the idea of an SUV, but when Max says "you're so compact you're practically my size!" VW is trying to tell consumers that like the original product that things haven't changed too much.

My favorite part of the video was the second commercial. Max says he and the new SUV are like twins. The new version is the FASTER, MORE POWERFUL one...and he's the funny one!

I think this was an effective advertisement; using that band, and setup, it is the making of a good campaign.

Doublemint Gum

In these videos, Wrigley's Gum is capitalizing on the popularity of Pop songs already available to consumers.

Both commercials (Doublemint and Juicy Fruit are both owned by Wrigley's) use the melody of the original song, changing the words to talk about their product.

I think the idea is: if they liked the song/the artist, etc...then they'll listen to them talk about our product. Chris Brown and Julianne Hough signify a certain type of person. Cool, pretty, hip hop, country - all these things and all these kinds of people will identify with them, and thus the product.

And plus, the graphics and effects are pretty cool. Targeted toward young adults.

Old Navy, models and target audience

I used to think that persuasive advertising wouldn't work on me. That i understood what the ad agency was trying to do. But this Old Navy commercial proved me wrong. Yes, their target audience in this particular ad is young women, but what is important, especially in the United States, where there are many different ethnicities, is to represent them in your product. In this series of Old Navy commercials, there's an African American girl - VERY pretty- and she's living a fabulous life, wearing stylish Old Navy clothes, etc.

The next day, i found myself at Old Navy, where i DON'T usually shop!!! I was only attracted to that store AFTER those ads ran on television. Since the model, or persona for that advertisement looked more like me, i was able to identify with the brand...and was actually going to buy something from it!

This is very clever, because when you think about it, companies would make a lot more money if they made an attempt to appeal to all races.