Advertisement Research

What is advertising?

Advertising is a way of promoting products, services and information through numerous media platforms as well as hard copy advertising locations (e.g. on buses, posters etc). Advertisements serve as a form of communication and relationship between manufacturer and consumer; an example of this is the high-speed distribution of new ideas through the use of single images/clips, slogans and logos.

"Audience research is a vital part of any campaign, and is these days a painstaking and complex process. Research must take into account current and predicted trends, consumer values and how these drive popular culture" -http://www.mediaknowall.com/as_alevel/Advertising/advertising.php?pageID=research

Wieden and Kennedy is one of the largest independently owned advertising agencies in the world, headquartered in Portland. Some of it's leading clientele are positioned in Portland, New York, Sao Paulo, London, Amsterdam, Delhi, Shanghai and Tokyo; consisting of ties with Coca-Cola, Nike, Facebook, Tiffany & Co and other well-known brands/companies.

Honda Civic advert created by Wieden & Kennedy

This advert consists of no script or speech other than the catch-phrase "some say the most powerful thing you can build... is a feeling". This is very effective as the voice-over (the source of speaking is not visible to the audience) does not appear to be selling or promoting the intended product, however the slogan alongside the graphics and audio instantly provokes a feeling of desire through the audience, causing them to lust over the product itself.

The advertising industry took off during the Second World War through the use of biased propaganda (although it had been around for many years before) in order to entice everyday citizens to either join the force (males) or participate in the industrialisation of weapon construction (females). In support of the hypodermic needle theory, such advertisement glamorised certain ideas/concepts in order to push similar opinions onto others; this had a massive impact on society due to the misleading information being presented by authority figures and individuals of higher power in order to convince others into having similar beliefs.

Such propaganda played on the stereotyped roles of both gender and class in order to entice the desired target audience.