A Post About Advertising

In this Milestone we watched the  Apple advertisement Welcome Home. It was 4 minutes long and featured moving walls powered by hydraulics. Our task was to analyze and dissect it. 

Here’s the paragraph that I wrote about how I interpreted this video. 
I think that the message of the advertisement ‘Welcome Home’ is that you can rise above your troubles. They are trying to tell you that the Apple HomePod – the product that is being advertised – can make you feel happy and uplifted even after the most tiring day, and it  can help you can do the impossible. Mostly they are trying to get across that you- the consumer – should buy their product. I think that they are marketing the Apple HomePod towards busy people who don’t have a huge amount of time or who need help in their everyday life. They want those people to watch their ad, think about the amount of effort and care that went into it, and think that the HomePod had the same amount of care put into it to make it the best it could be. Basically, the point of the ad is to make people want to buy their product.

In this Milestone we were learning about demographics – particular groups within a population that have something in common (age, race, gender, religion, etc.). We interviewed a person in a different demographic as us, and then compared their answers to ours. I chose to interview my dad – we are different genders and ages. It was interesting to see how our answers varied. 
Here is the interview that I did, and the reflection I wrote afterwards.

My dad and I see advertisements in different ways. He is in a completely different demographic than me – he is a middle aged man, and I am a teenaged girl. For example, he sees ads in different places, and did especially when he was a kid. He likely saw ads on posters, billboards, on TV, at bus stops, and heard them on the radio. Now, I see them on YouTube, apps and games, and all over the place online, as well as the previously mentioned ways of seeing them. He also interprets them differently. He might see a shampoo bottle and think of it as “women’s shampoo”, while I would look at the same bottle and not see which gender it’s advertised at, because I am in a time and culture in which ‘gender’ is a very broad term, not just limited to women and men, and so a shampoo bottle for women could be for pretty much anybody. We both, however, have been won over by the power of advertising, as shown in the examples below. I think that even though the advertisements themselves, and how we interpret them, is changes over time, the power of advertising is timeless.

1. Do you collect any ads or advertising products? (e.g. Coca-Cola, Starbucks mugs)

I don’t collect any ads, but my dad gets Gears of War merchandise because he works on that game, and he sometimes brings home some for my sister and me.

My dad says:

“No.”

He does have Gears of War merchandise, but he says that he doesn’t actively collect it; it’s given to him.

2. Do you have any clothing with a visible designer name? (e.g. Old Navy) Give examples.

My mum works at Arc’teryx, so I have me some of their jackets. I probably have other clothes with brand names on them. For example, at some point my dad brought home an Xbox shirt, but I can’t think of many other items with clothing designer names on them. I usually don’t pay much attention to what brand my clothes come from, because I don’t have much interest in those kinds of things, but I’m sure I have some sort of brand name on a jacket or shirt somewhere.

My dad says:

“No. I specifically choose clothes without brands on them. I do have Arc’teryx clothing, and several pairs of SmartWool socks.”

3. Do you have any clothing with a visible designer logo? (e.g. Nike) Give examples.

I have an Arc’teryx jacket, like I said, and I probably have some shoes that have a Nike logo on them. I also have a hoodie with the logo of my diving team logo on it, but that isn’t a clothing brand. 

My dad says:

“Didn’t I just answer that question?”

He has some Arc’teryx jackets and a polo shirt with a penguin on it from Original Penguin. He also has some Adidas sneakers.

4. Have you ever bought any products based solely on advertising? Which and why?

I don’t think that I have bought many products based on advertising. However, I have walked into Cobs, seen a sign for Cranberry Custard Danishes, and then bought a Cranberry Custard Danish. (Those things are delicious.) I already know about those from previous experiences though, but the ad was a reminder. I’ve also seen recommendations for books on the backs of other books that I’ve finished reading, and then taken those books out from the library, though I’m not sure if that counts as buying the product. Generally I don’t just see an ad for something and then buy it. Though I did do that once. When I was a bit younger, my sister and I liked to play this cupcake making game where you got to decorate virtual cupcakes that you baked. I really wanted to have all of the different icings for the cupcakes, so we pitched in and paid $10.00 for them. I really regret that purchase now, but that is an example of when I bought a product based on advertising.

My dad says:

“I’m sure I have. When I was in Grade 2 I really wanted this battery-run ‘Imperial Walker’ toy (a StarWars robot machine thing) based on advertising. I got it for Christmas, but it could only take one step before it fell over. I haven’t done that since I was a kid. We don’t have TV in our house to watch ads anymore, so we don’t see many ads like that. Now I do research before making purchases.”

5. Have you ever not bought products specifically based on advertising? Which and why?

I usually don’t pay much attention to ads. If I see a bad ad for something, but I want that thing, I’ll still look into buying it. Then again, if I don’t know anything about a product but I see an ad that I don’t like, I probably won’t buy that product later because I will have subconscious negative feeling towards that product.

My dad says:

“I’ve never bought women’s deodorant, even though it’s the same as men’s deodorant, because it’s marketed towards women. It just doesn’t seem ‘manly’ enough. Also things like shampoo and soap marketed towards women.”

6. List the places where you think you see advertising on a daily basis:

Places where I usually see advertising are:

• YouTube
• Billboards
• Signs in stores
• Posters and flyers
• On free apps and games
• Radio
• Online (social media, search engine, websites)

My dad says:

“Where don’t you see it?”

• Billboards
• Buses
• Podcasts 
• Bus stops
• On an Xbox dashboard 
• Websites
• Emails (40 a day)

This Milestone was all about different advertising techniques and appeals. We created a chart with two print ads, two web ads, and two commercials and recorded their use of different techniques and appeals. I used a bunch of ads from McDonalds, which was cool because it’s such a well-known brand. 
I wasn’t able to include the chart in this post, but my teachers have seen it already. (That’s who’s going to be reading this blog post anyways.)

For a while during this project we were reading The Highest Tide, by Jim Lynch. It was about a teenaged boy named Miles who had an interest in marine biology and who lived near Puget Sound. We actually got to visit Puget Sound when we went on a trip to Oregon as a class, but that’s another story. (You can learn more in my reflection on that field study here.) Anyways, in my humble opinion the book didn’t have that much to do with advertising, but our task was to write an analysis on it for this fourth Milestone. 
Here is the analysis that I wrote. 

What did Miles learn about the media and messages?

In The Highest Tide, by Jim Lynch, Miles discovered that though the media is very influential over people’s decisions and outlook, you can’t prioritize it over your real life. 

We witnessed his learning in the story because throughout the plot there were references to media and advertising. In the book, Miles appeared on television, in the newspaper, and even did a live talk with the leader of a cult. He learned not to make it his priority, and to focus instead on his personal life: family, his friends, Florence, and spending time on the mudflats. 

Miles was a pretty private, personal character, so being such a celebrity in his hometown really affected him. He didn’t like to share his feelings with other people, and he didn’t really think much about how other people perceived him. He learned that he had to be careful about how he presented himself.

The setting of The Highest Tide was Skookumchuck Bay, a small inlet off Puget Sound. There hadn’t been much publicity about the small community in which Miles lived, so when he discovered the squid and the BioBlitz happened right outside his home, he learned about how much media can influence people’s actions. He discovered that a place can be completely changed by advertising.

The events in The Highest Tide provided opportunity for new experiences for Miles. He discovered that the media has a huge influence on the world around him, and that though it can affect so much, it should not be your focus. You have to consider the most important parts of your life and give them your attention.