Ad Analysis

Advertising is the most powerful tool when selling a product. Product researchers tap into the unspoken need of the people and that leads consumers to buy things they don’t necessarily need. Since we all have our unconscious needs and impulses, marketing companies target us in order to get more money for their products. Jib Fowles’ “Advertising’s Fifteen Basic Appeals” describes what the big companies tend to target to make sure that their product sells; some of these appeals include the need to achieve, the need for attention, the need to feel safe, and of course, our physiological needs including food and drink. According to this article, we watch over 500 ads but only 75 access our minds and out of those 75, usually 12 can produce a reaction. Advertisers know our drives and longings as Jib Fowles says: “And that is the immediate goal of advertising: to tug at our psychological shirt sleeves and slow us down long enough for a word or two about whatever is being sold.” Corporations pay over 50 billion dollars every year in advertising costs. I chose the Very Sexy Makeup by Victoria’s Secret as my ad analysis because it attracts a lot of people when they flip through the magazine. Six models are in this particular ad. They all have the same appearance, barely wearing anything, no accessories, just make up. They all have strong looks, no smiles on their faces. The picture seems to be taken from a studio and not wearing any colored clothing helped a lot notice their faces instead. Since the words printed in the ad says “Very Sexy Makeup”, it only makes sense to use good-looking, well-fit models to justify the message, which has just the right amount of words to capture attention. The ad is in Victoria’s Secret magazine and you can find similar posters – if not the same ones – inside their retail stores. The ad used dark color as the background to emphasize the faces of the models. Victoria’s Secret Models are used for the ad instead of some random ladies because consumers are familiar with their faces and being one of the models, people are already expecting you to be good looking and has a toned body. The advertiser used this particular setting because it gives the models the attention they are trying to get. They are not wearing colorful clothes either since the advertisers intended for consumers to focus on their faces alone. The product is called Very Sexy Makeup, suggesting that if you wear this product, you will feel good about yourself. The promises are not necessarily real but it might just be something that a customer need. Since Victoria’s Secret has its own magazine that they mail out to customers almost every month, it makes sense to promote their latest product in it. They also advertise throughout the store to attract more customers to buy more products. Victoria's Secret is an American retailer of women's wear, lingerie and beauty products. It is the largest segment of publicly traded Limited Brands with sales of over $5 billion and an operating income of $1 billion in 2006. Victoria's Secret is known for its annual fashion show, the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show, and for its catalogs, both of which feature top fashion models. The company gained notoriety in the early 1990s after it began to use supermodels in its advertising and fashion shows. Throughout the past decade, it has turned down celebrity models and endorsements. Among other recognitions, the Victoria's Secret Angels were chosen to be part of People Magazine's annual "100 Most Beautiful People in the World" issue in 2007. The key strength of Victoria's Secret is brand recognition and brand loyalty. Its massive advertising campaigns have been largely successful due to the brand equity of the product. Victoria's Secret products make their customers feel sexy and good about themselves. Generally they prefer to use pink because of their new collection. PINK is a lineup of loungewear, sleepwear, and intimate apparel geared mainly towards university and high school students. They use pink because in that ages most of the girls like pink color. The images of this website are effective because of the beautiful, magnificent models. When you open the site you desire to buy something. I think this is the only good part of this site. The editors can make this web site better by using different colors to make the site more attractive by implying that the brand is sexy. Victoria’s Secret has truly evolved from lingerie, to swim wear, and now, their famous fashion show. Advertising agencies go through a lot of scrutiny before they make it on the magazines. Not all people are attracted to certain ideas that are why they have to choose their models, pictures, and messages to make it more appealing and more accepted in the society. Most ads use celebrities and famous models to catch more attention. Victoria’s Secret featured models like Heidi Klum and Tyra Banks, both women representing what it means to be a model, with perfect skin and great shape. Nowadays, being a model requires a certain age, height, and weight. It’s a full time job. Some of their models that get married and have kids have to get back in shape in a short period of time in order to be competitive and stay in the business. The advertisements help us choose what brands to wear, food to eat, and even medicine to take. It influences us in different ways, not just by printed ads, but also television commercials and radio announcements. Ads basically give us the idea of what to buy and whether we like it or not, the ads are here to stay.