Advertising Techniques Journal

May 2, 2012


Give a brief description of the ad:
This advertisement is very plain and simple. It does not say anything about what product it is promoting, it simply has an image of Michael Jordon drinking orange Gatorade with the words "BE LIKE MIKE" written across it.


What propaganda techniques are used? Point out where/how each technique is used.
A big technique that is used in this image is a symbol. Ever since his glory days in the NBA, Michael Jordon has become a symbol for not only incredible skill in the sport of basketball, but as a role model for boys and girls all across the world. To be like Mike is exactly what so many people want and strive for in their lives. This, in a way, ties the ad to another propaganda technique which is simple solutions. The picture gives off the vibe that if you drink Gatorade while you are working out you will eventually get to a place where you will be like the most recognizable name in sports.


What effect do the techniques have? In your opinion, do they do their job?
I think the combination of these two techniques work wonders for Gatorade. The feeling that is evoked from this image is sheer motivation to go out, buy some Gatorade, and go play some basketball. This is what an advertisement is supposed to do, give a consumer the drive and the feeling of need to go out and buy their product.


Who is the audience for this ad, and how do you know?
The audience for this ad, in my opinion, is boys who are athletic and between the ages of 7 and 30. This age group holds the little kids who idolize their icons as well as the adults who have grown up with the love and respect for Michael Jordon. I think this is the audience because not many other would appeal to the image. Women do not have the "personal connection" that a lot of men feel they have with Michael Jordon.


What is omitted from this ad? What is the effect of the omission?
The details are the things that have been omitted from this ad. There is no information regarding anything about the product, not even the name of the product is listed in the image. I think this omission was really smart for Gatorade because it takes away things that, in this case, would just cause clutter. The black and white with the orange popping makes it clear that it is an advertisement for Gatorade's sports drinks. It doesn't need the product name or nutrition facts for to have an affect on people.


April 25, 2012
Give a brief description of the ad: 
This advertisement is a picture of a weight set that has words instead of weight amounts. The progression of descriptions is buff, cut, ripped, chiseled, and idolized. This is an advertisement for PowerBar Protein Plus. 

What propaganda techniques are used? Point out where/how each technique is used. 
The propaganda technique that is used is a symbol. This is because the combination of the words that are used and where they are placed, it is clear that they are hinting at somebody at the gym getting big. Especially since the pin is on the “idolized” weight, you can guess that this person is the all star of the gym because of the protein plus power bar. Glittering Generality was also used because the words are very appealing and desirable. Another that was used was simple solution because the ad makes it seem that just eating the bar would give you that type of body. 

What effect do the techniques have? In your opinion, do they do their job? 
I think this technique is an interesting way at approaching a muscle building product. I think they do their job because they bring the picture of a huge buff guy lifting weights to mind and make people think that by eating the protein plus power bar that they will have those same results. 

Who is the audience for this ad, and how do you know? 
The audience for this as is people who want to gain muscle mass. This is a little obvious because the words they used on the weights are descriptions that meat heads want to achieve. It targets the males who are in their "prime" in terms of weight lifting as in high school up through mid thirties. 

What is omitted from this ad? What is the effect of the omission? 
It is too hard to tell what is omitted from the ad because of the small print at the bottom of the image. But it is clear that there is no nutritional information or a picture of somebody who uses the product. This omission was smart because it takes away the body image that people would either want to attain or feel like they can in no way attain. 

Would different audiences have different reactions? Explain! 
I think people who are not interested in weight lifting would have a much weaker reaction to this ad than people who do because they would have no need for this product and no drive to someday be “idolized” for their big muscles. I also think that certain women would find it funny because of the testosterone filled men who care about nothing but their muscles. 

What message, lifestyles and values are encouraged and/or portrayed through the ad? Make connections to what is in the ad. 
The lifestyle that is encouraged in this ad is one of bodybuilding. The whole image is a weight set and the words directly relate to gaining muscle mass. The ad tells you that each time you go up in weight, you go up in status with the descriptions people could give you. Also how desperate people can be to attain the perfect body. Another thing is that just being buff isn't good enough. You need to be "idolized" for how you look rather than just being content.


Would different audiences have different reactions? Explain!
I think that the varying audiences would have very similar reactions to this ad. This is because of how iconic Michael Jordon has been throughout the years. Everybody knows who he is and everybody respects him for the following he has gained. The only difference I can pick out in reactions would be that some would see it as an ad for Gatorade and want to buy it because they see MJ drinking it, and others would see it as a respectable photo of a great man. 


What message, lifestyles and values are encouraged and/or portrayed through the ad? Make connections to what is in the ad.
The message that is encourage, and written in capital and bold letters, is to be like Mike. The only other message that comes across is that in order to achieve that goal you need to drink Gatorade. I really cannot pick out any types of subliminal messages that are being hidden between the lives of this advertisement. 
 

April 24, 2012 (GRADE THIS ONE)

Give a brief description of the ad: 
This is an adbusters ad that is satirical against the Camel “celebrity” Joe Camel. In the past, Camel used this cartoon to show people that it was cool to smoke. In this ad, Joe is sitting in a hospital bed looking down on his sunglasses and probably thinking that because of his Chemotherapy, he is no longer that cool icon. He was renamed from Joe Camel to Joe Chemo. 

What propaganda techniques are used? Point out where/how each technique is used. 
The propaganda technique that is used is fear and scare tactics. This technique is displayed in the ad through the character of Joe Chemo. Looking down at what he used to have in his sunglasses and what he now has in his hospital bed is something that could come across as scary to one who once thought smoking was the cool thing to do. Also, the surgeon general's warning states that "smoking is a frequent cause of wasted potential and fatal regret." This statement is a clear shot into the mind that smoking will give you no benefits. Another technique that I saw being used was symbolism. Joe Camel was a huge symbol for how cool it was to smoke in previous years. This picture takes the opposite of that and changes what he was previously seen as and what the smoking actually caused him to become. 

What effect do the techniques have? In your opinion, do they do their job? 
This technique has a very easy to understand message. It does its job in bringing fear to people because of the image of somebody who was once on top now laying in a hospital bed sick and most likely dying. For a smoker, I would imagine that this photo would make them think a little bit about what they are doing with their lives. I also think that the ad is perfect for changing people's minds on what kind of image smoking gives you. 

Who is the audience for this ad, and how do you know? 
The audience for this ad is people who smoke and who have been influenced by the character of Joe Camel. I know this because people who don't smoke would not be effected at all by this ad. They would see it as something that needs to be geared towards the other people who do need to quit to save their lives. If the ad showed some random person in the hospital bed who was simply dying from cancer, the audience would shift to all people who smoke. Because it is Joe Camel, someone who was a staple in Camel Cigarette's advertising campaign, it narrows the audience down to Camel smokers. 

What is omitted from this ad? What is the effect of the omission? 
The only thing that I can think of that is omitted from this ad is the severity and the type of sickness that this camel is suffering from. I think if there was little hints as to, if it is cancer, the type and stage that he is currently in the ad would have a much stronger effect on people. Another thing that is omitted is the effect it has on the people close to Joe. It is clear that the chemotherapy has brought him down, but the picture does not show the full scale of how serious this problem is in his life. 

Would different audiences have different reactions? Explain! 
Different audiences would definitely have different reactions because not everybody smokes. Also, in the category of smokers, not everybody thinks it is vital to their health to quit right away. I think that the smokers who truly believe they are in no health crisis would find the ad to be stupid and a waste of money. 

What message, lifestyles and values are encouraged and/or portrayed through the ad? Make connections to what is in the ad. 
The message that is portrayed in the ad is that smoking will give you cancer, it will bring you to a feeling of regret, and it will waste a lot of your potential. This idea is clearly depicted in every single aspect of the ad. From the surgeon general's warning to the image of Joe Camel in the hospital bed, the whole ad gives a vibe of STOP SMOKING.


April 18, 2012 

M&Ms "Sexy and I Know It" Commercial

Give a brief description of the ad:
This is an advertisement for the candy M&Ms where the brown M&M girl is talking to two other women at a party. She notices a man across the room is laughing at how she appears to be naked and sees that assumption as ridiculous. Soon after, the red M&M appears and exclaims, “So it’s that kind of party!” rips his red coating off, and begins to dance to the LMFAO song “Sexy and I Know It.” The ad ends with the M&M candy with the phrase “not your average chocolate” underneath and closes with a short dance move from the red one.

What propaganda techniques are used? Point out where/how each technique is used.
The propaganda technique that was used throughout the commercial was humor. This is seen when the man across the room thinks the brown M&M is naked as well as when the red M&M strips and starts dancing.

What effect do the techniques have? In your opinion, do they do their job?
This technique did exactly what a humorous ad was supposed to do, it makes people laugh. M&Ms have had very funny commercials throughout the years and it keeps the candy in the minds of people when they are at the store or they make the connection when they hear the overplayed LMFAO song.

Who is the audience for this ad, and how do you know?
I think the audience for this ad is mainly the younger people who listen to the mainstream radio the most, just because of the song choice. But I also think it can be projected to everybody because the humor is not something that only kids or only adults would understand. For the most part, it is funny no matter who you are.

What is omitted from this ad? What is the effect of the omission?

The only things that are omitted from the ad are price and basic nutrition facts for the candy. This omission does not really have much effect because of how well known of a product M&Ms are and because they are generally not very expensive.

Would different audiences have different reactions? Explain!

In general, I do not think that different audiences would have different reactions. I think that based on the simplicity in both the humorous aspect and the commercial in its entirety, it would have the same effect on all different types of people. It is not something that would go over the head of a small child, it is not offensive to any specific group of people, it does not have any controversial connotations, and it is not too “dim-witted” for the older crowd.

What message, lifestyles and values are encouraged and/or portrayed through the ad? Make connections to what is in the ad.

I think in the beginning, this ad portrays elegance and a certain level of formality when the brown M&M is talking to the two other women. Then it shifts and shows the more outgoing and crazy lifestyle when the red M&M starts to dance around “naked.” When the phrase of “not your average chocolate” comes up at the end, the whole commercial can be summed up into a meaning that can be interpreted as something along the lines of M&Ms being a candy that a sophisticated person can enjoy M&Ms in a peaceful manner just as easily as the life of the party can. 

April 19, 2012

Dr. Pepper 10 Commercial 

Give a brief description of the ad:
This ad is an overly “macho” commercial for Dr. Pepper 10. It goes on listing things about movies that, in general, are very manly and things that a woman would not look for in a film. The last line being “It’s not for women!” clearly stating the intent of the commercial.

What propaganda techniques are used? Point out where/how each technique is used.
The main propaganda technique that is used is obviously stereotyping. The main man in the commercial makes the overly generalized assumptions that all men enjoy watching action-packed, violent, intense movies. Also they stick with the stereotype that women only like sappy romantic comedies and that they hate the more macho films.

What effect do the techniques have? In your opinion, do they do their job?
I think this technique definitely makes an impact when people view it. Whether that means making men laugh or making women angry by its sexism. I think the strong feelings that the commercial brings out make it that much more powerful. Saying “It’s not for women” makes men feel superior and it makes women want to prove a point by buying it.

Who is the audience for this ad, and how do you know?
I think the audience spans out to a very wide range of people. It appeals to men with the very explosive nature of the whole commercial, but the sexism gears it towards gaining the attention of women.

What is omitted from this ad? What is the effect of the omission?
I didn’t notice anything that was obviously omitted. With anything involving food the main things they leave out are things like calories and sugar content, but the name of this product clearly states the calorie content. I think including this is something that can really boost the sales of the soda.

Would different audiences have different reactions? Explain!
The only audiences that would have contrasting reactions to this are men and women. The men see it as entertaining and funny due to its blatant disrespect to women, while the women see it as wrong in so many ways.

What message, lifestyles and values are encouraged and/or portrayed through the ad? Make connections to what is in the ad.
The message that is portrayed in this ad is that all men like the same things and that when something is for men, women can’t have it. Giving off a vibe that makes one think that men are better.

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