Research
Analysing two adverts
Adverts are vitally important to manufactures as they can promote their products, and ultimately they help to persuade people to buy them. The adverts also help spread awareness of their product which is very important when the market is saturated with many different products. Adverts are a very powerful and necessary tool as when they are shown on a media platform such as on television they can be shown to millions of people at once - which really helps promote the product. Also adverts have the ability to play with human emotions which is really powerful as this can really help the manufactures to persuade people to buy their product. Television adverts also give many jobs to TV producers, and can make them lots of money. In this essay I will be doing research into two different adverts which promote a similar product and analyzing them closely to get a deeper understanding of how they promote their product.
The two adverts I will be looking into is a 'Apple iPad Pro' advert and a 'Microsoft Surface Laptop' advert.
For both of the adverts I believe the target audience is for the younger generation (e.g. from teens to mid 30's as both of the central figures in these adverts are in this age range. Furthermore in the Apple advert for example, the girl seems to be creating a poster which could be for school - this will appeal to a younger audience similarly the Microsoft advert focuses on a women who is a fashion blogger - an area which appeals mostly to younger people. Furthermore I think the audience demographic would be someone that is middle to upper class, and has quite a high salary as both adverts have a premium look and therefore a premium price.
In terms of the narrative Apple advert focuses on one teenage girl using her iPad Pro for productivity - she is creating a poster about the life of bugs and it shows her using all the features of the iPad such as the camera, the Apple pencil and the keyboard which can be purchased separately for this product. We see the girl exploring her local area with her iPad which emphasizes the portability - a very good selling point of this product.
The narrative for the Microsoft advert is slightly different but it does have similarities. In this advert we see a woman describing how this laptop has really helped her with her fashion blog and just like the Apple advert it shows her using all the laptops features such as how it has a keyboard and touchscreen functionality and furthermore her using the photo and video editing software. One of the major differences between these two adverts is that the Apple advert has very little dialogue - it shows the features of the iPad through a girl using it for everyday work tasks whereas the Microsoft commercial shows a woman talking about how useful her laptop is for her blog.
The mise-en-scene for the Apple advert is really effective. The locations seen in this advert are everyday relatable places such as the girls home, the cafe and the bus. This clearly communicates to the audience that this product is portable and can be taken with you everywhere you go, which makes the iPad seem more appealing to buy. Props such as a bike are used in this advert - again to show you can the product with you anywhere, even if you are on a bike. We see a lot of color in this advert such as the colorful leaves of the trees, the insect and also lots of color on the iPad screen. This could communicate to the audience quite a positive feeling and that with the iPad you can capture this color through using its camera to take photos or sketching on the iPad like we the girl doing. This in turn persuades you to want to buy this product.
Like with the Apple advert, the Microsoft advert also contains lots of color such as flowers and balloons - which helps communicate a positive image to the audience about this product. The major difference with this advert though is that instead of it being filmed in many locations it's just filmed in one room. However it still works well as we see many different pictures bursting with color of different locations on the woman's laptop which makes you feel as a audience like you are on a adventure with her. In terms of props there are very few, just a table, chair, sofa and laptop however we see colorful props such as balloons and flowers on the screen so we still get the same positive effect that we would if they were actually in the room. Furthermore we see a projected background of colorful buildings, which makes you feel like you are there.
In the Apple advert the music used is effective in promoting the product. It's upbeat and makes you feel good about yourself furthermore the main lyrics are "Where is it you wanna go?", which reinforces one of the big unique selling points of the product that its portable and that you can literally go anywhere with it. The Microsoft advert also has upbeat music that is quite jolly and sets a happy tone to the advert. This positive atmosphere makes you as a viewer feel more good about the product which in turn could persuade you to buy the product.
The Apple advert has many different shot types - the most common being the close-up to show exactly is what is happening on the screen of the iPad. This is a great shot type as it clearly shows the audience what they can use the iPad for. It also uses close up shots of the girls face. For example when the girl is reacting to a video call there is a big close up of her face which clearly gets across her happy reaction to the video call.
In the Microsoft advert, there is many medium shots and medium long shots, which show the women's body language and emphasize the passion she shares for the product. Furthermore like the Apple advert there are close-ups of the screen to show what she is doing on it and demonstrate the power of the device.
Both adverts use the Pathos advertising technique to help persuade you buy the product they are advertising. As I have already mentioned both adverts contain some bright colors which make you associate a happy feeling with this product, an appeals to the viewers emotion. Furthermore in the Windows advert, the women smiles quite a lot which again reinforces the positive feeling that you associate with the Microsoft Surface Laptop.
To conclude, both adverts show people using the device to shows of its capabilities, and promote the power of both devices. While the apple advert shows the iPad in everyday locations such as on the bus and in the cafe, the Microsoft advert is filmed in just one room. I think the most effective advert is the Windows advert as I feel the female we see on screen is a lot more warm and friendly than the girl in the Apple advert. Also I find the girl in the overall Apple advert rather irritating, and in fact many other people agree with me " I hate this commercial" this is an occurring comment on the chat room reddit - This person on redit for example stated: Also as the Microsoft advert is filmed in just one room, I feel like I get to be up close and personal with the lady and really understand her passion for the product, something I'm going to try and replicate in my advert. I therefore connect more with the Microsoft advert and it wants me to purchase their product. From this research this made me realize that I need to ensure that in my advert the characters are relatable and have a good warm personality to help sell the product - although the apple advert is effective in showing the iPad being used in the everyday locations which makes it very relatable to the audience and therefore will make people want to buy it more.
This research has made me want to create an Apple advert where I have warm characters on screen promoting a product and explaining why they love it. I realized after doing many brainstorms that I should do an advert for the MacBook Pro as its something I own, and a product that I am passionate about. This means I can share and show this passion through my advert. I thought about doing an advert for a Windows product or an iPad product but I don't share the passion for these products so I knew it was the wrong choice.
Primary and Secondary research
One thing I learnt when planing an adverting campaign was that research was very important. I found out that there were two main types of research which were primary and secondary.
Both methods have advantages and disadvantages. For example as I learnt primary research is very time consuming as you have to create things like surveys, questions for interviews from scratch by yourself however with secondary research the surveys and research reports have already been done, so you just have to pick out the information you want from it. I used focus groups for some of my primary research such as asking 10 members of my class for their opinions on different print based adverts, as you will find out later on in the blog. However one of the disadvantages of secondary research is the information is sometimes not that specific to what you are trying to find out, whereas with primary research you can design things like questionnaires to find information that is exactly what you are looking for.
For me I found secondary research most useful as I am going to advertise for an Apple product, so I already found many websites and case studies containing information on Apples target audience such as this: Hunch.com.
Analysing adverts and demographics
James Fox showed us a 'PlayStation advert'. We were then asked to comment about how we felt about the advert and then comment on what the target audience was for this advert. The advert was very upbeat fast paced intense and even a bit aggressive with lots going on in the advert. It made me feel that the PlayStation was targeted for younger people (for example 15 to 30) , as the fast paced nature of the advert would attract young people that are young and free supposed to older people who stereo-typically prefer a more of a slow paced lifestyle. The upbeat music helped create this fast paced mood. In terms of the target audience I think this is more for single working class males. I think the target audience for this advert would be someone that has quite a low education level such as just GCSE'S or lower, I think the race of this person would be black as historically they have tended to have less money and working class, with a lower education level. I think the target audience would have a low income such as minimum wage (around £12,000 per year). The mobility of the person I think would be very good. The reason I think all of this about the target audience is because the advert has quite a grimy feel to it, (it was deliberately filmed with a VHS camera) which makes me think of people that have quite a low standard of living.
Looking into this advert made me realize how important target audience was, and that it would be vital in creating my advert campaign. I already know from research (secondary research) that as I am promoting an Apple Mac product, it needs to be targeted to an audience of a middle to upper class, that have quite a high salary, as their products are premium and you have to pay a premium for Apple products. You can see my research further into the blog.
Geo-demographic
With James we looked at the importance of researching the geo-demographic when creating an advert. This is very important as when you find out the geo-demographic of your target audience you can release this advert in locations that they live in, so it is seen by them and then they will buy the product.
Advertisers and marketers use the following elements of demographics to plan and base their marketing campaign for their advert. They use these elements to create a buyer persona
Adverts are vitally important to manufactures as they can promote their products, and ultimately they help to persuade people to buy them. The adverts also help spread awareness of their product which is very important when the market is saturated with many different products. Adverts are a very powerful and necessary tool as when they are shown on a media platform such as on television they can be shown to millions of people at once - which really helps promote the product. Also adverts have the ability to play with human emotions which is really powerful as this can really help the manufactures to persuade people to buy their product. Television adverts also give many jobs to TV producers, and can make them lots of money. In this essay I will be doing research into two different adverts which promote a similar product and analyzing them closely to get a deeper understanding of how they promote their product.
The two adverts I will be looking into is a 'Apple iPad Pro' advert and a 'Microsoft Surface Laptop' advert.
In terms of the narrative Apple advert focuses on one teenage girl using her iPad Pro for productivity - she is creating a poster about the life of bugs and it shows her using all the features of the iPad such as the camera, the Apple pencil and the keyboard which can be purchased separately for this product. We see the girl exploring her local area with her iPad which emphasizes the portability - a very good selling point of this product.
The narrative for the Microsoft advert is slightly different but it does have similarities. In this advert we see a woman describing how this laptop has really helped her with her fashion blog and just like the Apple advert it shows her using all the laptops features such as how it has a keyboard and touchscreen functionality and furthermore her using the photo and video editing software. One of the major differences between these two adverts is that the Apple advert has very little dialogue - it shows the features of the iPad through a girl using it for everyday work tasks whereas the Microsoft commercial shows a woman talking about how useful her laptop is for her blog.
The mise-en-scene for the Apple advert is really effective. The locations seen in this advert are everyday relatable places such as the girls home, the cafe and the bus. This clearly communicates to the audience that this product is portable and can be taken with you everywhere you go, which makes the iPad seem more appealing to buy. Props such as a bike are used in this advert - again to show you can the product with you anywhere, even if you are on a bike. We see a lot of color in this advert such as the colorful leaves of the trees, the insect and also lots of color on the iPad screen. This could communicate to the audience quite a positive feeling and that with the iPad you can capture this color through using its camera to take photos or sketching on the iPad like we the girl doing. This in turn persuades you to want to buy this product.
Like with the Apple advert, the Microsoft advert also contains lots of color such as flowers and balloons - which helps communicate a positive image to the audience about this product. The major difference with this advert though is that instead of it being filmed in many locations it's just filmed in one room. However it still works well as we see many different pictures bursting with color of different locations on the woman's laptop which makes you feel as a audience like you are on a adventure with her. In terms of props there are very few, just a table, chair, sofa and laptop however we see colorful props such as balloons and flowers on the screen so we still get the same positive effect that we would if they were actually in the room. Furthermore we see a projected background of colorful buildings, which makes you feel like you are there.
In the Apple advert the music used is effective in promoting the product. It's upbeat and makes you feel good about yourself furthermore the main lyrics are "Where is it you wanna go?", which reinforces one of the big unique selling points of the product that its portable and that you can literally go anywhere with it. The Microsoft advert also has upbeat music that is quite jolly and sets a happy tone to the advert. This positive atmosphere makes you as a viewer feel more good about the product which in turn could persuade you to buy the product.
The Apple advert has many different shot types - the most common being the close-up to show exactly is what is happening on the screen of the iPad. This is a great shot type as it clearly shows the audience what they can use the iPad for. It also uses close up shots of the girls face. For example when the girl is reacting to a video call there is a big close up of her face which clearly gets across her happy reaction to the video call.
In the Microsoft advert, there is many medium shots and medium long shots, which show the women's body language and emphasize the passion she shares for the product. Furthermore like the Apple advert there are close-ups of the screen to show what she is doing on it and demonstrate the power of the device.
Both adverts use the Pathos advertising technique to help persuade you buy the product they are advertising. As I have already mentioned both adverts contain some bright colors which make you associate a happy feeling with this product, an appeals to the viewers emotion. Furthermore in the Windows advert, the women smiles quite a lot which again reinforces the positive feeling that you associate with the Microsoft Surface Laptop.
To conclude, both adverts show people using the device to shows of its capabilities, and promote the power of both devices. While the apple advert shows the iPad in everyday locations such as on the bus and in the cafe, the Microsoft advert is filmed in just one room. I think the most effective advert is the Windows advert as I feel the female we see on screen is a lot more warm and friendly than the girl in the Apple advert. Also I find the girl in the overall Apple advert rather irritating, and in fact many other people agree with me " I hate this commercial" this is an occurring comment on the chat room reddit - This person on redit for example stated: Also as the Microsoft advert is filmed in just one room, I feel like I get to be up close and personal with the lady and really understand her passion for the product, something I'm going to try and replicate in my advert. I therefore connect more with the Microsoft advert and it wants me to purchase their product. From this research this made me realize that I need to ensure that in my advert the characters are relatable and have a good warm personality to help sell the product - although the apple advert is effective in showing the iPad being used in the everyday locations which makes it very relatable to the audience and therefore will make people want to buy it more.
This research has made me want to create an Apple advert where I have warm characters on screen promoting a product and explaining why they love it. I realized after doing many brainstorms that I should do an advert for the MacBook Pro as its something I own, and a product that I am passionate about. This means I can share and show this passion through my advert. I thought about doing an advert for a Windows product or an iPad product but I don't share the passion for these products so I knew it was the wrong choice.
Primary and Secondary research
One thing I learnt when planing an adverting campaign was that research was very important. I found out that there were two main types of research which were primary and secondary.
- Primary research is when you carry out research to find answers to certain questions. This can be done using many different ways such as doing questionnaires, interviews with groups of different ages for example or individual people and surveys.
- Secondary research is when you use information that has already been researched for other purposes furthermore this is publicly available. Secondary research can be obtained from published research reports in the library, the internet or surveys.
Both methods have advantages and disadvantages. For example as I learnt primary research is very time consuming as you have to create things like surveys, questions for interviews from scratch by yourself however with secondary research the surveys and research reports have already been done, so you just have to pick out the information you want from it. I used focus groups for some of my primary research such as asking 10 members of my class for their opinions on different print based adverts, as you will find out later on in the blog. However one of the disadvantages of secondary research is the information is sometimes not that specific to what you are trying to find out, whereas with primary research you can design things like questionnaires to find information that is exactly what you are looking for.
For me I found secondary research most useful as I am going to advertise for an Apple product, so I already found many websites and case studies containing information on Apples target audience such as this: Hunch.com.
Analysing adverts and demographics
James Fox showed us a 'PlayStation advert'. We were then asked to comment about how we felt about the advert and then comment on what the target audience was for this advert. The advert was very upbeat fast paced intense and even a bit aggressive with lots going on in the advert. It made me feel that the PlayStation was targeted for younger people (for example 15 to 30) , as the fast paced nature of the advert would attract young people that are young and free supposed to older people who stereo-typically prefer a more of a slow paced lifestyle. The upbeat music helped create this fast paced mood. In terms of the target audience I think this is more for single working class males. I think the target audience for this advert would be someone that has quite a low education level such as just GCSE'S or lower, I think the race of this person would be black as historically they have tended to have less money and working class, with a lower education level. I think the target audience would have a low income such as minimum wage (around £12,000 per year). The mobility of the person I think would be very good. The reason I think all of this about the target audience is because the advert has quite a grimy feel to it, (it was deliberately filmed with a VHS camera) which makes me think of people that have quite a low standard of living.
Looking into this advert made me realize how important target audience was, and that it would be vital in creating my advert campaign. I already know from research (secondary research) that as I am promoting an Apple Mac product, it needs to be targeted to an audience of a middle to upper class, that have quite a high salary, as their products are premium and you have to pay a premium for Apple products. You can see my research further into the blog.
Geo-demographic
With James we looked at the importance of researching the geo-demographic when creating an advert. This is very important as when you find out the geo-demographic of your target audience you can release this advert in locations that they live in, so it is seen by them and then they will buy the product.
Advertisers and marketers use the following elements of demographics to plan and base their marketing campaign for their advert. They use these elements to create a buyer persona
- Age
- Gender
- Income
- Race
- Ethnicity
- Social media e.g. Instagram, Facebook, Youtube and Twitter
- Show exhibition
- Web Promotion
Buyer Persona
Using research I am going to put together a buyer persona for my Apple MacBook Pro. I got most of this research from an online article called "Apple Segmentation, Targeting and positioning" where they have published key demographics from an Apple inc. report. I also got a lot of research from a survey done by "Hunch.com" where they surveyed 388,315 of its users to compare the demographics and personality traits of Mac and PC users. This is all secondary research and has come in very useful for my marketing strategy. The data I collected is reliable because its from a well-respected advert 'Hunch.com' so therefore its valid data.
- Age - 17 to 34
- Gender - White Males
- Income - High earners (well above minimum wage)
- Race - White
- Ethnicity - USA and international
Now that I have created a buyer persona I am going to use this to come up with a marketing strategy. I am going to market my advert in the USA as the USA is Apples largest market. Statistics show that the Americas accounted for 36% of Apples total sales in 2014 a lot more than anywhere in the world.
Specifically I am going to target my advert to people in a major US city, which will be New York as according to "Hush.com" Mac users were more likely to live in a city than PC users therefore there will be many potential customers living here. Furthermore my target age range is 17 to 34, so I am going to ensure that social media advertising is my main way of getting my advert across as social media is very popular amongst this age group. My advert is going to focus on white males (the DCMS statistics also showed the sectors' workers continued to be predominantly white) - one of Apples market strategies is to focus on how their products are useful in industries such as the creative sector.
I am also going to target my advert to people who live in the wealthier parts of New York City as I have found out from research that many Mac users are quite wealthy and are middle to upper class. Furthermore a large part of Apples target audience is professionals such as people working in the creative industry so I am going to focus my advert on that. For example I am going to focus how Mac's are powerful tools for video editing and music production. These are the places I am going to release my advert in, in New York City:
Specifically I am going to target my advert to people in a major US city, which will be New York as according to "Hush.com" Mac users were more likely to live in a city than PC users therefore there will be many potential customers living here. Furthermore my target age range is 17 to 34, so I am going to ensure that social media advertising is my main way of getting my advert across as social media is very popular amongst this age group. My advert is going to focus on white males (the DCMS statistics also showed the sectors' workers continued to be predominantly white) - one of Apples market strategies is to focus on how their products are useful in industries such as the creative sector.
I am also going to target my advert to people who live in the wealthier parts of New York City as I have found out from research that many Mac users are quite wealthy and are middle to upper class. Furthermore a large part of Apples target audience is professionals such as people working in the creative industry so I am going to focus my advert on that. For example I am going to focus how Mac's are powerful tools for video editing and music production. These are the places I am going to release my advert in, in New York City:
- Upper East Side/Carnegie Hill
- Soho/Tribeca/Civic Center/Little Italy
- Turtle Bay/East Midtown
- Lincoln Square
- Battery Park City/Lower Manhattan
- Midtown/Midtown South
- Hudson Yards/Chelsea/Flatiron District/Union Square
- West Village
- Brooklyn Heights/Cobble Hill
- Upper West Side
Persuasive advertising techniques
I did some research into persuasive advertising techniques and I came across three main techniques called:
- Pathos - this is an appeal to emotion
- Logos - an appeal to logic or reason
- Ethos - this is an appeal to credibility or character
In my advert I am going to ensure I have some uplifting music in the background, as this will mean I can incorporate the pathos technique, the audience will be emotionally uplifted by the music and associate this happy feeling with the Apple product, and will help persuade them to buy it. I am going to use this song in the background.
I am also going to incorporate the Logos technique, I am going to ensure I give facts and statistics such as how the Apple MacBook Pro has a retina display, and a quad-core processor which makes video editing and music production a faster and smoother process.
I am also going to incorporate the Ethos technique in my advert. I going to include a statement that that emphasizes how this is a leading laptop in top creative industries. e.g. 9/10 of the top creative industries use MacBooks. This will make people that work in creative industries feel like they need one as these are the leading laptops in their industry - it will make them feel insecure if they don't have one.
Collecting Data
Data needs to be reliable - the reviews of a product for example need to be repeatable - multiple need to have the same opinion of a product, to make it a reliable comment about the product.
Reliable = repeatable
Validity= believable
Internal validity- one opinion
External validity- applied to another scenario
Representation
Black power - When I saw the image that James Fox showed me (the one above), I saw two black men holding their arms up, which says to me that their proud of their achievements. I also see a white man standing to the far left of the picture, who doesn't seem as expressive the other two men. I imagine that to black people this is a very empowering image, and also it emphasises the importance of equality.
Representation
Medical doctor -
what they are wearing? High quality suit
House? Large house
Car? Jaguar car
James Bond villain-
Owner of a nuclear plant
Suit
A mansion with a big pool
BMW sports car
Reliable = repeatable
Validity= believable
Internal validity- one opinion
External validity- applied to another scenario
Representation
Black power - When I saw the image that James Fox showed me (the one above), I saw two black men holding their arms up, which says to me that their proud of their achievements. I also see a white man standing to the far left of the picture, who doesn't seem as expressive the other two men. I imagine that to black people this is a very empowering image, and also it emphasises the importance of equality.
Representation
Medical doctor -
what they are wearing? High quality suit
House? Large house
Car? Jaguar car
James Bond villain-
Owner of a nuclear plant
Suit
A mansion with a big pool
BMW sports car
Whats life been like for a black actor in the last 50 years?
It has certainly become easier in recent years, and there are many more opportunities for black actors these days compared to back in the 60's. However there is still a lot less black people in leading roles compared to white people as I fond out from this link.
During the 60's life of black people was very difficult, lots of segregation went on, e.g. on buses. Black actors certainly had a tough time during this period.
Lincoln Theodore Monroe Andrew Perry (May 30, 1902 – November 19, 1985), better known by the stage name Stepin Fetchit, was an American vaudevillian, comedian and film actor, of Jamaican descent, considered to be the first black actor to have a successful film career. His highest profile was during the 1930s when in films and on stage, his persona of Stepin Fetchit was billed as "the Laziest Man in the World".
Perry parlayed the Fetchit persona into a successful film career, becoming the first black actor to earn a million dollars. He was also the first black actor to receive featured screen credit in a film
Does representation on TV (BBC) cause social problems and racism? - in my opinion you can't win. If black people and other ethnic minorities are represented they may argue that organisations like the BBC are doing this for the sake of it which they could be labeled racist, however if you don't represent ethnic minorities then they will complain and call you racist as well.
Fat white man with a big beard, wearing a red and white outfit with a Christmas hat. He has 12 reindeers and loves to shout "Ho ho ho". Lives in North Pole.
My advert only focuses on one character which is me (I am white)so therefore I haven't really represented different ethnicities , however I found out my target audience was a majority white, so therefore I felt like the Apple product needed to be represented by a white person.
It has certainly become easier in recent years, and there are many more opportunities for black actors these days compared to back in the 60's. However there is still a lot less black people in leading roles compared to white people as I fond out from this link.
During the 60's life of black people was very difficult, lots of segregation went on, e.g. on buses. Black actors certainly had a tough time during this period.
Lincoln Theodore Monroe Andrew Perry (May 30, 1902 – November 19, 1985), better known by the stage name Stepin Fetchit, was an American vaudevillian, comedian and film actor, of Jamaican descent, considered to be the first black actor to have a successful film career. His highest profile was during the 1930s when in films and on stage, his persona of Stepin Fetchit was billed as "the Laziest Man in the World".
Perry parlayed the Fetchit persona into a successful film career, becoming the first black actor to earn a million dollars. He was also the first black actor to receive featured screen credit in a film
Does representation on TV (BBC) cause social problems and racism? - in my opinion you can't win. If black people and other ethnic minorities are represented they may argue that organisations like the BBC are doing this for the sake of it which they could be labeled racist, however if you don't represent ethnic minorities then they will complain and call you racist as well.
Father Christmas - Stereotyping in Hollywood
Fat white man with a big beard, wearing a red and white outfit with a Christmas hat. He has 12 reindeers and loves to shout "Ho ho ho". Lives in North Pole.
My advert only focuses on one character which is me (I am white)so therefore I haven't really represented different ethnicities , however I found out my target audience was a majority white, so therefore I felt like the Apple product needed to be represented by a white person.
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