1. Introduction
This paper looks at the self-activation effect of advertisements, which holds that attractiveness-relevant products in advertisements can increase consumer self-activation and lower consumer self-evaluation. Four hypotheses were made and experimented on to find out the underlying relationship between the different products in advertisements to self-activation and self-evaluation:
1. Advertised-enhancing (but not problem-solving) products may affect whether consumers think about themselves;
2. Advertisements may cause consumers to evaluate the self in relation to the advertisement;
3. Self-evaluative effects of advertised products arise when self-activation is directly manipulated; and that
4. Self-activation effect of advertisements
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The reason being that the last study added into the paper gave it a very holistic overview of the first three studies, and any potential confounds were identified and eliminated. More evidence was gathered about the advertisement context and proven that not just some specific property of the advertisement design drove the effects. There was also a pilot test conducted prior to the experiments, which ensured that the problem-solving and enhancing products were well represented. However, I feel that the sample obtained from the pilot test (female students) is not representative of the population – that is, consumers as a …show more content…
Managerial Plan
Managers should look at the ethical implications of this research findings, be conscious about the message they bring across, and not make use of the vulnerabilities of the consumers’ selves.
Bourjois, a makeup company, goes by the mission to have “Clever, Feminine Products that Simplify Beauty”. As a Marketing Manager of Bourjois, I will use these findings, and leverage on how our makeup products can empower women, instead of using it to lower their self-evaluations. This can be done by marketing Bourjois products as not “beauty enhancing” (long staying power on the face, colour selection), but our other attributes, such the fact they they are against animal testing, which can positively evoke consumers’ selves. By having a brand personality that is sincere to producing products that are cruelty-free, women will be more inclined to support the brand not because they cannot do without it (low self-evaluation), but rather, because by owning these products, they will in turn feel even better about
Cover Girl cosmetics have been the top-seller since 1961 and are still going strong. It is hard, with all the advanced lines of make-up for one product to go as far as Cover girl has, so how does Cover Girl cosmetics do it? A lot of Cover Girl’s strong, on going successes are due to changing the look of the product, exceptional promotions which the public can’t look over, giving a cosmetic appeal to both older and younger aged women and most importantly by using near perfect women and teens to model their products. Although it’s wonderful that Cover Girl has been and still is so successful, it has put a dentation in today’s society in what women’s appearance should and shouldn’t be. Women and young adolescence are confused of what their appearance should be. Cover Girl has many famous models; one inparticular is the famous country singer Faith Hill. Faith is tall, skinny, and flawless. When women see models like her doing the advertising for Cover Girl, they automatically feel that they should look the same. Later in this paper I will go into semiotics which derives from the Greek word semeion meaning sign, it basically describes how people interpret different signs, such as models, and how these signs might effect one’s life and self-esteem. Proctor & Gamble are the owners and starters of Cover Girl cosmetics. To keep up the success of Cover Girl they must keep on top of the advertising game to stay above the competitors. To do this they do many promotions, some include using famous singers, changing displays, giving away samples and one of the most important advertisement of all is the models Cover Girls incorporates in their ads. Cover Girls did one promotion with Target stores to promote their product. They used the famous group 98 Degrees to make a sweepstakes called, “Fall in Love with 98 Degrees Sweepstakes.” The grand prizewinner of this sweepstakes is an appearance in the new 98 Degrees music video. This advertising doesn’t just take place in the Target stores; it also takes place in Teen magazine, stickers on the new 98 Degrees CDs, a national radio campaign, and the national Teen People magazine. Because it’s teens that mainly listen to the music that 98 Degrees produces, it’s the teens that this particular promotion is focused on. I s...
After watching the movie, Miss Representation, I have decided to use Dove’s new Real Beauty Campaign. I believe this company accurately counteracts the emotions and anxieties facing our female population in this generation by confronting them. I believe they antagonize what every other company chooses to exploit in order for their consumers to buy their products. Using the vocabulary provided in our textbook, I will define pathos and ethos along with their sub terms to analyze the advertisement. With so many advertisements and companies influencing women of our society to conform to a mold, Dove is sending a different message. After describing the ad, I will then use the rhetorical tools I have chosen to analyze and explain them.
Like McClintock wrote in Propaganda Techniques in Today’s Advertising, it is the “most-loved and most-used propaganda techniques.” It is the easiest way to win over customers. They see a celebrity they admire, and they think if they use the product, so should they. In L'oreal's ad for instant tan lotion, the viewer sees the beautifully tanned, clear skinned, long-legged model Karlie Kloss. Her hair blonde, effortless wavy hair paired with an unbuttoned white dress shirt and stiletto heels is the L’oreals definition of beauty. Next to her in ‘handwriting’ font has a quote of her saying “In an instant my skin is ready to glow.” For those who are familiar of Karlie Kloss, her modeling career, or just after seeing her appearance, they might buy the product to try because they trust her “judgement” and hope to maybe look as flawless as she does. L’oreal uses Testimonial to teach women that they should strive to look as flawless as Karlie Kloss using their
Overall, his claim that males respond best to simple, seemingly straight-forward advertisements was well thought out and supported through sufficient evidence. Gladwell successfully provided the proper amount of evidence supporting his claim and had he showed opposing views or views of the consumer it only would have added to an already successful paper. This essay is a perfect example of the importance of a thorough introduction to provide the reader with a concise synopsis of what the paper intends to covers. Had Gladwell excelled in both areas he neglected, this would be an extremely interesting, thought-provoking look into the world of advertising.
First, Kilbourne’s research should be praised tremendously for bringing to light the unhealthy impression of true beauty in today’s culture. Kilbourne challenges the audience to reconsider their viewpoints on advertising that is sublime with sexual language. The evolution of advertising and product placement has drastically changed the real meaning of being a woman. According to the movie, every American is exposed to hundreds and thousands of advertisements each day. Furthermore, the picture of an “ideal women” in magazines, commercials, and billboards are a product of numerous computer retouching and cosmetics. Media creates a false and unrealistic sense of how women should be viewing themselves. Instead of being praised for their femininity and prowess, women are turned into objects. This can be detrimental to a society filled with girls that are brainwashed to strive to achieve this unrealistic look of beauty.
This book has opened a whole new perspective on advertising and the reasons we buy things and regret them later. Thinking that I have the urge for a McDonalds hamburger may feel real, or it might just be an elaborate, expensive advertising technique used to manipulate my buying behavior.
There are so many forms of propaganda that surround our lives on a every day basis, and these negative messages persuade and shape our thoughts of perfection, of who we are, and who we ought to be. The beauty industry and its’ advertisements is one type of propaganda that ultimately characterizes the way we think of ourselves. The media is relentless in reminding us every chance they get why women need to be perfect and what we need to achieve that. There is endless pressure as women to have a perfect body and appearance. The beauty industry’s aim through advertisement is to make women feel as if we need to buy the beauty products in order to look and feel like the models on television, magazines, and in commercials. The beauty industry is very successful because as women, we often feel compelled to buy whatever is necessary to look “perfect.” In years past the beauty industry has been solely focused on the obvious beauty tools such as makeup, hair accessories, lotion, etc. However, we have become more intrigued by even more aspects of the beauty world such as undergarments and everywhere in between. In other words, media propaganda is more interested in the “selling of sex” now than ever before. An unfortunate yet accurate depiction by actress Helen Mirren reads, “Flesh sells. People don’t want to see pictures of churches, they want to see naked bodies.” Just as Mirren knows this to be true, so does the beauty industry and they have taken it and ran with it.
I have examined and analyzed the COVERGIRL™ NatureLuxe advertisement that uses common feminine stereotypes. In this advertisement, COVERGIRL™, which runs in Seventeen magazines, targets women through their choices of colors, fonts, and images used. Certain stereotypes are used; such as, those who are more feminine tend to prefer lighter, happier colors, such as pink. Also, the use of a celebrity, who many young women look to as an icon, assists in the advertisement of the COVERGIRL™ product. COVERGIRL™, more than likely, is able to successfully market their lip-gloss product in the United States by using common gender stereotypes to show femininity and how those, mainly women, should be presented in today’s society.
Because the concept of real women was implemented, women were able to relate their own self-identity, flaws and overall body image to the women on the advertisements. The use of “real people” in Dove’s campaign helps people realize that average citizens can still be as beautiful as the people that are consistently portrayed in the usual advertisements. These real people offer a connection to an individual’s everyday body issue struggles and allows Dove’s audience to recognize the fact that beauty should not be limited to western societies view. Ultimately, this section of the campaign allows viewers to make personal connections to the models in the advertisements, which furthers Dove’s intentions for the Real Beauty campaign.
Today, vast product selections require marketers to identify and understand their target market, and to ensure their message is specifically directed to, and clearly received by their target market. In Dove’s example, early marketing strategies targeted all woman who needed an alternative to harsh soaps. However, as soaps progressively became less harsh, the Dove brand required more strategic positioning in the minds of their consumer. When speaking to Dove’s re-positioning efforts, Flagg (2013), points out that while similar products associate brand image with slender, stereotypical models, Dove’s “2004 campaign for Real Beauty” (p.1) specifically targeted ordinary women, celebrating women’s diverse body shapes, and the importance of every woman feeling good about herself (p.1). With ever increasing product offerings entering the marketplace, marketers must clearly communicate to their target group why their product is right for them, as compared to other
The campaign has certainly yielded the results it set out to accomplish. However, the long term effects of this marketing strategy remain to be seen. Will younger women or women who believe in the supermodel definition of beauty be attracted to the brand? Society’s definition may not change even though women feel more confident. Beauty is subjective and cannot be applied to an entire group. Women might feel more confident but that may not make them any more beautiful in the eyes of society which might cause the whole message to
In conclusion, I believe that the advertising can affect and manipulate consumers to buy things they do not actually need. Nevertheless, if we want to buy something, our decision-making processes will be additionally influenced by our income, relatives and lifestyle.
The media has increasingly portrayed unrealistic views of women in the media. Whether it be on billboards or in commercials, it is almost always the same image; a beautiful woman with an amazing body and no visible flaws. In 2004, Dove challenged those advertisements and came up with the Dove Campaign for Real Beauty. It is a world-wide marketing campaign with the goal of banishing the conventional standard of beauty, and defining what ‘real beauty’ is. Despite having good intentions, I believe Dove’s real purpose is to simply broaden the definition of real beauty while making a profit.
Goodman (1997) asserts the average young person views more than 3000 ads per day on television (TV), on the Internet, on billboards, and in magazines. At this rate, teenagers are exposed to a vast range of advertisements that create awareness and knowledge of products and services in the market. Moreover, the objective of advertisements is to increase sales and grow profits. Though advertisers are not psychologists, they are aware of strategic techniques that will cause teenagers to be convinced to buy their product. For instance, the method of using product placement and celebrity endorsement is common, and in spite of this, advertisements tend to be more memorable namely due to popularity. According to the traditional hierarchy-of-effects models of advertising state that advertising exposure leads to cognitions, such as memory about the advertisement, the brand; which in turn leads to attitudes, i.e. Product liking and attitude toward purchase; which in the end leads to behaviors, like buying the advertised product
Advertising is an information source to inform people about the products and prices of the company, which can help them to make informed choices. More recently, a huge amount of money has been spent on advertising throughout the world. Different types of advertisement such as television, radio, magazine, newspaper, the internet, billboards and posters can influence consumer’s behavior positively or negatively as there are different arguments and opinions. This essay will focus on the purpose of the advertisement for the company, the positive and negative effects of the advertisement on consumer behavior. According to Shimp (2007), there are five important factors which determine the purpose of an advertisement in terms of marketers’ communication with consumers.