Ad Analysis Paper

Submitted By chamo008
Words: 1705
Pages: 7

Ad Analysis Advertising has long been a form of marketing in order to sell something. It is a powerful way of catching the public's attention towards either a product, issue, idea, or belief. In today's modern society, technological advances and an increasingly connected society have allowed advertising to extend to other forms in order to reach a wider audience. This has enhanced the market's ability to attract more consumer's to it's products. As a result, the advertising industry has grown to be a billion dollar industry. This enormous industry, however, can be broken down into specific areas that deal with certain targeted audiences. To facilitate our understanding, one can divide the ad industry into different sectors in regards to dealing with certain gender audiences. These different sectors are: guy-guy, girl-girl, guy-girl, and girl-guy. For the purpose of this essay, we will focus on one. Specifically, the girl-guy section will be analyzed into further detail regarding the Axe commercial provided by the following link, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fvIzHgWtwTU&feature=related. After viewing this commercial, it can be noted that the male-female form of advertising is one in which not only sex, but also seduction and exaggerated metaphors can be perceived by the public as literally desirable when it comes to Axe sprays. There is a psychological element used that proves beneficial for the Axe-Effect advertising campaign. The Axe spray commercial is approximately a thirty-second advertisement representing its spray product through the use of a variety of elements. To set the setting, the ad is perceived to take place on a notably hot, sunny day at a school. Chronologically, the ad starts out with a young man (around his early "20s") walking into a classroom and sitting down in a chair, studying a map. This character is immediately noted to be a well-dressed, attractive individual (as noted by the immediate attention he gets from all the women around). As he sits down, a woman sitting to his left seductively stares at him while she begins to sweat around her neck and chest area. As the commercial progresses, more women are shown to be present in the classroom. It is evident that they are all very attractive. As the man looks at his map, he then unzips his duffle bag. As he does this, a girl across the room is standing in a seductive position and her boot unzips as he unzips his bag. Then, the man turns to a radio to adjust the sound, but while he does this, a blonde to his right evidently becomes sexually aroused as he plays with the radio knob. This is because the camera zooms in on her breasts and shows that her nipples are enlarging. Right after this, another attractive woman walks in the room, again immediately staring at the male individual. He catches her gaze as she sits down in front of him. He then opens his book, but as he does this, the a button on her shirt unbuttons, exposing some of her chest. The man notices this and humorously closes his book. The girl raises her left eyebrow, seductively. He opens the book again and then the second button on her shirt is undone. The commercial then fades out to show the Axe Touch body spray. Additionally, there is a song, "Feeling the Love" by Reactor, playing during the commercial that can be noted as having a "sexy" tone to it. This is evident by the rhythm, melody, voice, and sounds it utilizes to enhance the commercial. From the elements used, it can be said that the viewer is immediately attracted in a seductive way to this advertisement. Specifically, we know that the intended audience is the male gender because Axe Touch spray is for men. Also, the attractive women used in this commercial make it obvious. The fact that the man is controlling the women's clothes without even touching them is something appealing to young men, who are more sexually active than other age groups. Of course, one can't control another's close through the use of an object that