Old Spice Stole My Son Coming of age has never been easier! One spray of Old Spice is all young men need to become more independent, more masculine, and most importantly: more popular with the ladies, or at least that is what we are lead to believe! This commercial aims to sell its product to adolescent boys, by offering them a new sense of independence, masculinity, and attractiveness through the use of the product; the message is further emphasized by showing distraught mothers, all the while using humor to peak the viewer’s interest and attention. Adolescent boys are the primary audience for this ad, but it is not exclusive. Throughout the ad there are kids both in school lunchrooms and out and about driving. This suggest that they are marketing to an audience that is still very dependent, as well as to a slightly older group of individuals that might be in the process of gaining more independence. Also this commercial could possibly be selling to mothers who want their sons to spread their wings, an important secondary audience. This particular age group, adolescence, is a very important audience to sell to, because puberty is the time when most boys will start to use deodorant for the first time. If Old Spice can be the first deodorant they use, chances are they will stick with that brand in the future to come. It is a tactic to reel them in young. It is important to address the secondary audience as well. Most mothers want their sons to be healthy successful, and good smelling young men. To a large degree mothers will be the ones who will be purchasing deodorants for their sons, making mothers an important secondary audience. This commercial not only targets primary and secondary audiences effectively, but is also relatable and humorous for both the primary and secondary audiences.
One of the methods used to sell the product in this commercial is the attempt to aid boys in the pursuit to gain independence. The strategy used to achieve this objective is the use of crying mothers. By showing these mothers upset and alone, the viewer’s infer that they will gain a new independence from their mothers. Moreover these mothers are absent from the boys’ attention. Throughout the ad, the mothers are always right next to their sons, yet the mothers are never once acknowledged by the kids. The boys seem to be completely involved with the girls, and the mothers are nothing but a distant memory. This might be a sad moment for the boys’ mothers, but it is an effective selling point for young men who desire freedom from home. By showing viewers images of independent young men; the viewers will then desire independence for themselves. The commercial is a musical and uses humor as a way to relate to the boys. The message is very clear and simple, and is repeated several times in different ways. The chorus of this musical, “Old Spice! Sprayed a man of my son”, is very obvious and easy to understand. The verses reinforce the success that the young men are having with women, for example, “Now he’s touching, kissing, feeling all the women because Old spice”. Its point is very clear, but also very funny. Having a funny commercial is essential to selling a product to young men. The musical theme is not only a major source of humor in the commercial, but is also what makes this ad so original and attention grabbing for the viewer. The placement of the mothers throughout the
