My Farewell Post

I hope you all have enjoyed reading this blog as much as I have enjoyed sharing all that I know about advertising with you. Advertising is a great field to get into and the reason I made my blog about advertising is because I would love to work for an advertising agency and create commercials or print advertising. So if anybody has any good contacts- let me know :) I'd prefer a nice large office in New York City with a great view of Central Park.

The next time you see a great advertisement, I hope you can relate it to one of the topics I have talked to you about. We have covered Celebrity advertising, Sales Promotions, Superbowl Advertising, Message Strategies, Absolut Advertising, Sex & Advertising, Branded Entertainment, Magazine Advertising and some other topics. I may continue to write some blogs after this class is over, so feel free to stop by and check if you have time.

Don't forget to go back and check out some of the great links I have included if you ever need any research for advertising. Also, feel free to contact me at any time I would love to help you out.

As for advertising, it is a staple of our society and without it I don't know where we would be. It surrounds us everywhere we go- from games, to concerts, to taxi cabs, to work, and even to the bathroom. And it will continue to affect us in the future. When you are sitting watching the Superbowl this winter, try and think of how much money it is costing these companies to place these ads and if they really are effective.

I want to thank everyone for all the comments that they have left and hope you enjoyed this site. Have a Happy and safe Thanksgiving!!

Celebrity Advertising

When I look at celebrities who endorse products I often wonder if they really do use those products. I mean if you think about it- do you think Shania Twain really shops at Wal-Mart with all the money that she has? Does Michael Jordan really wear Hanes? Well, the FTC apparently has specific rules for advertisements that use a celebrity as their endorser. "In the case of celebrities (such as Tiger Woods as a spokesperson for Buick or Nike), FTC guidelines state that the celebrity must be an actual user of the product, or the ad is deceptive" - Thomas O'Guinn.
I'm sure celebrity endorsements are very effective, but to me I have never been pressure to go out and buy a product just because I have seen a celebrity use that product. I think celebrity endoresements are more aimed at children who want to be like the celebrity endorsing the product, and then feel that they too need the product if their favorite celebrity is using it.
I came up with a little quiz to see if advertisements have had any effect on you based upon their celebrity endorser. See if you can guess the company that the celebrity endorses for and see how many you can get right!! Some may have more than one answer.. but keep in mind- if you dont have what I wrote then it is wrong- because it is my blog and I can do what I want :)

1. Anna Nicole Smith
2. Kirstie Ally
3. Bill Cosby
4. Fran Drescher
5. James Earl Jones
6. Donovan McNabb
7. David Beckham
8. Donald Trump
9. Sarah Jessica Parker

Well for those of you who didn't cheat- I will give you the answers!!

1. Trim Spa
2. Jenny Craig
3. Jello
4. Old Navy
5. Verizon
6. Campbell's Chunky Soup
7. Adidas/ Gillette
8. Visa
9. GAP

If you were able to identify at least 5 of these, I think you could agree that the advertisement, or the celebrity had an impact on you in that you were able to remember them. Some of these endorsers are old and from a while ago, but you still remembered some! By using celebrity advertisements, companies are able to gain an edge over competitors. People will associate that company or product to the celebrity who is endorsing it and most likely associate positive feelings towards it. Some celebrities have gotten themselves into trouble however such as Kate Moss and Kobe Bryant, to name a few, and have lost their celebrity endorsement deals. I think this was a smart move on behalf of the companies that endorsed them because if people look up to these celebrities as role models, and are then doing things to get them into trouble, they should not be representing companies in a negative way.

Sales Promotions

Sales promotion is the "use of incentive techniques that create a perception of greater brand value among consumers, the trade, and business buyers." Sales promotions are designed to affect demand slightly different than advertising. The point of sales promotions are to try and persuade a customer to purchase immediately. Some examples of sales promotions are coupons, free samples, contests, sweepstakes, rebates or other incentives that will move a consumer to purchase immediately. While sales promotions encourage short term purchasing, advertising is still important in that it creates the image for the product over a longer period of time. Accordign to PROMO Magazine, in 2003 the investments by advertisers in sales promotions reached over $107 billion!
Now you may be wondering what exactly are some of the objectives for Consumer Sales promotions? Well, I'm going to tell you.

Stimulate Trial Purchases- When a company wants to attract a new market, or new consumers, it will have to do something in order to reel the consumer in. This is often done by offering a free sample, or a reduced rate so the consumer will be able to try the product for the first time.

Stimulate Repeat Purchases- These kinds of offers are normally found once the product has already been purchased- and an offer is made to save money for next time this item is purchased. An example of this might be coupons for Cheerios inside the Cheerios box, or at Amazon.com when you purchase a book- you will receive 10% off your next purchase. The point of this is to keep customer retention high and have your consumers keep coming back.

Stimualte Larger Purchases- If you've ever gone to Costco or the Supermarket you will often see Promotions that encourage you to buy more of a product to save money. I've seen it before with a bottle of shampoo and conditioner that come together, and you will save money if you buy them as a set, instead of just buying one or the other.

Sales promotions would not be possible without advertising. Initially it is the advertisement that will draw the consumer into the sales promotion. Are there any sales promotions that you can recall that might have affected you or persuaded you to buy something?

Superbowl Advertising

Well, its almost that time of year again that millions of men (and women) across America look forward to each year... the SUPERBOWL!! And since I'm sure many of you wont be reading this blog after this semester, I figured I would write about it now. Each year prices for spots to advertise during the Superbowl increase significantly. In 2005 the average price for a 30 second commercial was between $2.5 - 3 Million!! This price is a 6% increase from only a year ago in 2004! The Superbowl is an advertisers DREAM. It is the most widely watched sporting event in the United States and has received the highest ratings of any television program.

I tend to watch the Superbowl just for the commercials and tend not to care too much about the game. If you didn't see any of the advertisements that ran last year- let me remind you of some of the highest rated advertisements that were made:

Bud Light: This commercial shows a pilot jumping out of a plane for a six pack of Bud Light since the skydiver would not do it. It was a funny commercial that emphasized that anyone would do anything for a Bud Light, such as jumping out of a plane with no parachute.


Pepsi: Pepsi ran a 45 second commercial (lots of $$$$) featuring P.Diddy whose car breaks down in a desert and he then hitches a ride to Hollywood in a Pepsi truck. When P.Diddy arrives in the Pepsi truck, he starts a new craze where stars such as Eva Longoria, Carson Daly, and Wilmer Valderrama all go out and buy Pepsi trucks.

Frito-Lay: They ran a 3o second commercial which featured a cranky man who would not return his young neighbor's ball after it came flying into his yard over the fence. The kid then tosses a bag of Lay's over the fence. After a few seconds, the ball comes flying back over the fence along with things the neighbor has kept over the years, and then coming flying over the fence is MC Hammer who sings and dances to "Cant Touch This."

Each year, more and more companies are competing for certain times to advertise during the Superbowl. Ads are either pre-game, 1st quarter, halftime, 3rd quarter or post-game. I think it is ridiculous how much money companies spend on a 30 or 45 second commercial. Do you really think their commercials make people want to go out and buy their products? Or is it just for social buzz to have everyone talking about it? I dont necessarily think these commercials increase sales significantly, but it would be interesting to find out if they do- however I do know that they definitely get people talking about certain companies and brands. Are there any commercials that you remember from the Superbowl or have any favorites?

Message Strategies

Message Strategies are a major part of advertising and promotion. They are different kinds of objectives and methods that define the goals of the advertiser and what kinds of ads will be used in order to obtain these goals. Today I am going to show you some different objectives advertisers use and the kinds of ads that they use.

Objective #1: Scare the Consumer Into Action

Some advertisers believe the best way to get a consumer to buy your product is to scare them into buying it. Fear is a very powerful emotion and is used to grab the consumers attention by provoking a sense of fear. The method used to do this is called Fear- Appeal Ads. These ads show the risk, harm, or negative effects that can happen if you do not use the recommended brand. An example of this would be a commercial that is trying to scare a consumer into purchasing a burglar alarm- because if they dont, then they are risking their home being robbed, where the consumer or their family members could be hurt, or valuables could be taken. By instilling the fear that anyone's house could be broken into, many consumers may wish to go out and purchase a burglar alarm in order to feel safe.

Objective #2: Change Behavior by Inducing Anxiety

Anxiety can often make people feel uncomfortable, which is a reason they purchase products to make them less anxious. Advertisers try to change consumers behavior by inducing anxiety onto them to make them purchase a certain product. They do this by using Anxiety ads. Social, medical and personal care products most frequently use anxiety ads. These ads convey the message that there is a problem and the only way you can avoid it is to purchase the brand. Anxiety ads typically show dandruff, bad breath, body odor, athlete's foot and others to make the consumer aware that this could be a potential problem for them. Even on the package for Eclipse gum, it tells the consumer that it "Quickly Eliminates Strong Mouth Odors." This makes the consumer aware now that they could have bad breath and can leave them feeling anxious and willing to buy Eclipse to rid the anxiety.

Objective #3: Define the Brand Image

Most brands are associated with a specific type of image. If I mentioned Mercedes, luxury might come to mind; or when I say McDonald's then cheap and fast may come to mind. These types of images are created through advertising. Images are the most prominent characterisitics of a brand. If one saw the Jose Cuervo tequila ad to the left, then you may associate drinking tequila with being fun and having a good time with your friends since everyone in the advertisement is laughing and enjoying themselves. The DeBeers ad on the right states that "A Diamond is Forever." This is building the brand image that DeBeer's makes products that will last forever and will not lose their value. Image ads can mean different things to different people depending on how they are analyzed. Here the objective is to build an image for the brand, not necessarily to scare the consumer into going out and buying the product.

These are just a few of the different kinds of message strategies that advertisers use. Can you think of any others or any examples for the three message strategies that I have already mentioned?

Absolut Advertising

Hey everyone! Welcome back- today I want to talk about something that really entertains me- the advertisements of ABSOLUT, which we all know is a very popular brand of vodka, and if you did not know that- then please stop reading.
Absolut Vodka is a premium vodka and the third largest international spirits brand in the world. It was first introduced to the U.S in 1979 and their advertising campaign has been the same for almost 25 years. With over 1,000 ads, they are continually evolving their campaign and are working to make new ads. You can check out their website to learn more about them if you want by goign to www.absolut.com, however you must be 21 to enter the site. In 1999, Advertising Age, a popular advertising magazine, listed the Absolut advertising campaign among the top 10 best advertising campaigns of the 20th century.

Absolut Vodka created a new type of advertising that tested the boundaries between alcohol, advertising and art. All the ads have the same theme; which is an outline of the Absolut bottle and a two or three word caption after the word Absolut to say something about the product or its target audience. The first ad done by them was "Absolut Perfection" which appeared in 1980.

I am not sure quite what it is that fascinates me by Absolut Ads. To pick one of my favorite Absolut ads, would be like asking me to pick which child I liked best (if I had kids). But you know what I mean- anyway if I had to -two of my favorite ads are Absolut Peak, and Absolut New York. These ads have done what every company aspires and that is to build brand recognition. Everyone knows as soon as they see something in the outline of a bottle, it its more than likely an Absolut ad. I also love the Absolut Stirring ad which came out around Christmas. I think it is not only funny, but clever as well. The mouse hole is in the shape of the bottle, hence the ad absolute "stirring." Kendo had mentioned in one of her comments that she and her friend used to collect these advertisements when they were younger and so did I- as a matter of fact I still have the Absolut Brooklyn ad hanging in my room because it is one of my all time favorite Ads, and so geniously made out of the Brooklyn Bridge. By having even young kids collect these ads because they like the pictures, they are gathering a young audience that will one day be able to drink this vodka. The Absolut Peak ad appealed to me because I am a skiier, and thought it was awesome how they layed out the trails and the trees to create the bottle image. Most of the ads on this page you can find at www.absolutad.com , however if you do not feel like looking and want to see one of your favorite ads, then leave me a comment and I will try to post that ad for you. Are there any other ads that you can think of that have crafted such a strong brand image for their company in such a unique way as Absolut?

Sex and Advertising... Does Sex REALLY Sell?

Its no surprise that sex is everywhere. From your television screen, to a racy magazine cover in the supermarket, you are surrounded by sex everywhere. Why? In today's society advertisers have learned that one of the most popular and effective ways to sell a product is to use sex in their advertising strategies. They are attention getters for both men and women and sex is also one of the strongest psychological appeals. Ads that range from shoes, to shampoo, to cologne all use the same tactics by including half- nude models, beautiful people and the desire for the consumer to need that product.
Calvin Klein is one of the most popular companies who uses sex to sell its product. Calvin Klein has also been one of the most successful advertisers to use sexual imagery to build a brand image. The ad above is for men's cologne. So we ask, is it really necessary for a completely nude model to be the layout of the advertising? No, of course not. The ad does not even show the bottle of cologne it is trying to sell! The name appears on the top however, along with the Calvin Klein name on the bottom. Women in general might not be too happy with this ad, but what does a man see in it? Does he think that if he buys the cologne he will be able to get with women- or naked women for that matter? Ads can be very tricky to decipher sometimes, but one thing is for sure- sex sells.
I think America is a culture that idealizes dangerous and exploitative behaviors through advertising campaigns. By have a daring, and racy ad people will be more prone to talk about these ads, especially if they create a stir.
How about the ever debatable Paris Hilton advertisement that ran on TV for Carl's Jr's. Burgers. According to the research director for the Parents Television Council, " This commercial is basically soft-core porn. It's inappropriate for television." We have to also be reminded that there are young children out there that see these advertisements as well- not only adults. Do you think commercials have gone too far selling sex?

I want you all to think of an ad where you remember it being racy and sexy. Did it influence you in any way to want to buy the product? It's no surprise that if you are going to use sex in advertising that there will be issues with certain advocacy groups, lawmakers, or even consumers. Companies use sex because higher arousal affect feeling levels. If a consumer feels good about that product they may be more inclined to buy it.

Have there been any ads where you think advertisers went too far or were pushing the envelope? Or do you think it is necessary for advertisers to use sex in order to sell a product or service? Let me hear about them...

Branded Entertainment

Ok this post is personally something I am really interested in. I want to talk to you guys about something called "branded entertainment" - which is basically advertising that you see at sporting events in unique ways to try and get you to remember the brand.
Last week I was very lucky to go see the best baseball team on earth (obviously the YANKEES) play at Camden Yards in Baltimore. As Matt Fox pointed out in his comment, I was very interested in the different advertising that was presented at the game. The picture at right shows the scoreboard at Camden Yards- it is absolutely HUGE! You can tell its size by comparing it to the miniature people underneath or the brick building in the back looking very small. Anyway- the 2 ads that were presented on the board that night were for Coca-Cola and Verizon. There were many other ads all around the field such as the picture on the left- but I honestly can not remember one of them! Obviously, Verizon and Coca-Cola spent the most money on advertising that day- but in my mind it worked- and I can justify that by saying that I specifically remembered those 2 ads, and no others. Do you think it is worth the money to be one of the big advertising spenders and buy a spot on the scoreboard, or spend less money and get a spot on the field? I think it is definitely worth it to spend more money on the scoreboard because think of how many people are watching the game, and everytime the scoreboard is shown they also see the advertisement whereas a smaller ad on the field might not be that visible on television.
By definition, branded entertainment "entails embedding one's brand or brand icons as part of any entertainment property in an effort to imporess and connect with your consumer in a unique and compelling way." HUH?! Let me make this easier for you- one word- NASCAR. Yeah, it is not exactly my favorite thing to watch- actually I think it is incredibly and horribly boring- but it is an AMAZING advertising industry! And Nascar is also the most watched sport in America ( I couldn't believe it either) What better way to advertise than to have your company's product on the side of a car that is driving repeatedly in circles, and watched by more Americans than any other sport?! We talked about how if people see the same Brand name repeatedly, it tends to stick in their head and they remember it. Think of the INDY 500- the car drives around the same track 500 times and everyone is watching! General industry research has also proven that NASCAR fans are "unusually loyal" to the brands that sponsor cars. Also a very high percent of NASCAR fans are women, which is why companies like TIDE chose to advertise products geared towards women as well. Personally, I think those who choose to advertise at NASCAR are brilliant!
Can you think of any other sports or advertisements you may have seen that were very effective to you besides baseball or NASCAR? Also I am going to keep my poll up for another week if you want to still vote! I have more to say about brand entertainment, but I'll save it for next week :)