Slate magazine published, “Mac attack”, “Apple’s mean-spirited new ad campaign”. This article was posted in Slate magazine, on Monday, June 19, 2006, at 6:2 9 AM ET. The article was written by Seth Stevenson an analytical writer who’s, work is periodically published in Slate magazine. The article summarizes Stevenson’s view of Apple Computers advertising campaign.
Seth Stevenson has written an exemplary article denoting his opinion of Apple’s advertising campaign using PC man, actor John Hodgman, versus Mac boy, actor Justin Long. The commentary is well documented with examples and opinions generated from Stevenson’s experience and knowledge. He generates a sense of belonging, to some of the audience by appealing to the experienced PC user’s knowledge of PC functionality. This inclusion may be lost on those not well versed in PC usage, or those whose only knowledge is that of a Macintosh.
Stevenson places himself in the midst of the targeted demographic in paragraph three, where he states, he is a PC user that has envisioned moving to the Mac realm. He goes on in paragraph 3 to say that the advertisements, while wonderful, have not made him want to switch to a Mac. This information, along with the description of the actors involved, gives us the ability to recognize Stevenson’s grade for the advertisement campaign as being accurate, or inaccurate.
The Advertising campaign focuses on multiple video ads depicted during a period of time; the name of each advertisement is given within the article. Stevenson gives some detail on each of the advertisements by depicting verbally the content of the ad as well as a verbal depiction of the visual content. Stevenson starts the article, with an informative verbal depict...
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...uld have been swayed with this presentation. I am not a user of Macintosh products, but the advertising campaign used Humor and good-natured stabs at the PC crowd to gain a following, and possibly using the in-crowd philosophy a partial gain in market share. Stevenson graded this advertising campaign with a “C” rating, which in the period involved may have been an accurate score. Today’s standards would probably change the grading scale somewhat. If there were modern products involved, and the same strategies were employed, the rating should be higher than given in 2006. This campaign strategy is in use today on the T-Mobile advertisements, and for some it works perfectly, but in that it gives little information on the products themselves, it leaves the consumer without resolution. This may explain the Grade of “C,” given by Stevenson, to this advertising campaign.
Advertisement over the years have been very relentless with a few inventories for its expansion. It can be a very persuasive tool towards getting a result. GM uses a tradigital marketing strategy type of advertising which combines both the traditional way of advertising and the new age way of advertising which is computer based also known as digital. However, there’s always room for improvement. According to John Wanamaker, he stated that “I know that half of my advertising dollars are wasted…I just don’t know which half” (Rosenblum, 2011). It is known for years as an accepted truth that 50% of every advertisement dollar is wasted. Is it because we are doing too much or too little to convince our potential buyers? This is a questionable factor that need answers. I recommend changing the key performance indicators from a marketing to a business focus, create a superior experience that at the end of the day simplify consumer’s lives and create an educational platform.
More advertisements than content fill most magazine’s editions. Advertisements may seem like innocent attempts from companies to get people to buy their products; however corporations spend billions of dollars in researching the best way to advertise their product. Dos Equis is one such company. Dos Equis for example, has a current and popular advertisement series which portrays like three friends having a night out on the town. However, as we dive deeper and deconstruct this advertisement we find that this subversive advertisement has some insensitive and subliminal messaging included within its ploy to get the viewer to purchase its product.
“The average American is exposed to some 500 ads daily from television, newspapers, magazines, radio, billboards, direct mail, and so on” (Fowles 2). In the lives of Americans, it is roughly impossible to avoid advertising. Advertisements are meant to capture the attention of a particular group of individuals; based on their age, desires, and motives. For example, the product Glucerna presented in a 2015 AARP magazine appeals to audiences dealing with diabetes. This 2015 AARP Glucerna advertisement attracts its audience through a variety of techniques which include satisfying the need to feel safe, aesthetic sensations, and glittering generalities.
On January 22, 1984, Apple Computers released its “1984” commercial during Super Bowl XVIII. In the commercial, a dystopian society, similar to that of George Orwell’s 1984, appears in which men are aimlessly following orders. However, a woman rushes in to disrupt and challenge this conformity that appears in the commercial. The commercial ends with the introduction of the Apple’s Macintosh. In a world dominated by IBM computers, this Apple commercial serves the purpose of introducing a new innovative product, the personal computer. Ultimately, its goal is to persuade viewers to buy the Macintosh. This advertisement targets the general population with a special emphasis of readers of 1984. The commercial is able to effectively employ symbolism,
Postman states, advertisements were created to “appeal to understanding, and not to passion” (60). It is also stated that producers would make the assumption “that potential buyers were illiterate, rational, and analytical.”(58) Though Neil Postman makes it apparent that advertisers are not always truthful about what they say. Advertisers also tried to appeal to the masses by coming up with catchy slogans to lure people in.
The Onion’s mock press release markets a product called MagnaSoles. By formulating a mock advertisement a situation is created where The Onion can criticize modern day advertising. Furthermore, they can go as far as to highlight the lucrative statements that are made by advertisements that seduce consumers to believe in the “science” behind their product and make a purchase. The Onion uses a satirical and humorous tone compiled with made up scientific diction to highlight the manner in which consumers believe anything that is told to them and how powerful companies have become through their words whether true or false.
Advertisements are one of many things that Americans cannot get away from. Every American sees an average of 3,000 advertisements a day; whether it’s on the television, radio, while surfing the internet, or while driving around town. Advertisements try to get consumers to buy their products by getting their attention. Most advertisements don’t have anything to do with the product itself. Every company has a different way of getting the public’s attention, but every advertisement has the same goal - to sell the product. Every advertisement tries to appeal to the audience by using ethos, pathos, and logos, while also focusing on who their audience is and the purpose of the ad. An example of this is a Charmin commercial where there is a bear who gets excited when he gets to use the toilet paper because it is so soft.
Thirty-two years ago Apple released its first commercial during the Super Bowl. The ad contains multiple references, including its title, from George Orwell's dystopian novel “1984”. The idea was conceived by Brent Thomas and Steve Hayden who decided on the brilliant tagline “Why 1984 won’t be like 1984”. The famous Ridley Scott directed the ad while actress, model, singer, and athlete Anya Major played the lead role. Apple’s “1984” has several instances in which one can observe the use of the three appeals: ethos, pathos, and logos. “1984” uses Aristotle’s three appeals to endorse the new Macintosh and put Apple on the market. More specifically, the use of ethos is blatantly obvious in the ad.
Marshall, Patrick. "Advertising Overload." CQ Press 2014: n. pag. CQ Researcher Online. Web. 18 Mar. 2014. .
Berkman, Herald W. and Gilson, Christopher. Advertising: Concepts and Strategies, 2nd ed.. (New York: Random House, 1987). 244.
“How Advertising Has Changed Over The Years.” Locker Gnome, Bradley Bradwell. 6 January 2008. Web. 4 October 2009.
During the technological boom of our current day and age, many argue that printed media is no longer worth the paper it is printed on - between the power of television internet advertising, ads in papers and magazines have become a decaying source, and as such, it is important that the issue be addressed appropriately for the urgent matter putting the jobs of many current and future graphic designers at risk. However, while works such as Stefan Hampel, Steven Heinrich, and Colin Campbell’s “Is an Advertisement Worth the Paper it’s Printed on?: The Impact of Premium Printing Advertising on Consumer Perception” prove to provide the proper rhetorical appeals to convey both the problems and solutions that graphic designers must face, other works
Marks, Alexandra. “A Backlash to Advertising in Age of Anything Goes.” Christian Science Monitor 22 Feb. 1999: 91. Online. EBSCOhost: Academic Search FullTEXT Elite. (AN: 1562687) 19 March 2001.
Advertisements are pieces of art or literary work that are meant to make the viewer or reader associate to the activity or product represented on the advertisement. According to Kurtz and Dave (2010), in so doing, they aim at either increasing the demand of the product, to inform the consumer of the existence, or to differentiate that product from other existing one in the market. Therefore, the advertiser’s aim should at all times try as much as possible to stay relevant and to the point.
Technological advancements have changed our culture in many ways, even having it’s personal effect on advertising. With the invention...