Stage 2 Retail Advertisements

Retail Advertisements: 

Retail advertisements often are very centered on products and price as they intend on selling products. Due to this fact retail advertisements are often lack creativity, and are produced on small production budgets.  Biswas and Blair (1991) cite how many consumers are highly skeptical of prices being shown on advertisements and that this form of communication is often ineffective because of this issue. Nonetheless, many retail brands choose to promote in this manner. 

Biswas and Blair (1991) Journal of Marketing

Biswas, A., & Blair, E. (1991). Contextual effects of reference prices in retail advertisements. Journal of Marketing, 55(3), 1-12. Retrieved from Business Source Premier database.

Advertisement 1) David Jones Miranda Kerr

B+T 7 August 2008

http://www.bandt.com.au/news/89/0c059189.asp

This advertisement is apart of an overall part of an integrated marketing campaign produced by Saatchi & Saatchi  (BandT 2008). This advertisement is typical of the style the major clothing retailers in Australia adopt. David Jones and Myers have both been competing on the angle of fashion, and that their stores have the image that is the most up-to-date with the latest fashion. Both often use celebrity endorsements to promote this image. David Jones has in the past years famously used Megan Gale and Miranda Kerr. David Jones has implemented this strategy more effectively than Myer and have established themselves better as the fashion centre for retail in Australia. 

If we look at advertisements from the 1980's and from today we can see a copycat approach to the style of advertising with these two highly competitive retail brands. 

Myer and David Jones in the 80's

Myer and David Jones in the 2010

Clearly both retailers have moved towards a fashion orientated position.

Advertisement 2)

Advertisement 2) Harvey Norman Retail advertisements

Harvey Norman 1987 Commercial

Harvey Norman 1999 Commercial 

Harvey Norman 2008 Commercial 

It is clear that in almost 20 years of advertising Harvey Norman has kept with almost an identical communication method. The graphics are the same, the voice is the same, the message and format is the same.  Whilst this may have been effective for Harvey Norman and that is why they have persisted. It may have also been highly effective in establishing the Harvey Norman brand, as well as establishing Harvey Norman as a household name, nonetheless, it is an old format and Harvey Norman needs to be more innovative in its advertising. 

 The lack of any creativity  has potential to have negative effects for the brand in the long term. Consumers may become over exposed to the brand and start to look for alternatives. It is for this reason that Kogan electrics and new up and coming electronic retailer is using the Harvey Norman advertising format uses satire of the Harvey Norman advertisements to illustrate and to highlight negative attributes of the advertising campaign and that they have more choices when it come to electronic retail. 

Kogan Advertisement 2010- Aired once during Ben Cousins' documentary on Channel 7 in August 2010 

Stage 2 Global

Global Advetising is often a heavily debated topic in both the academic and the real world of marketing. The question of is it possible to create one message that can appeal to all people and all cultures. The majority of academic research suggests that this is not possible.

Despite this many of the top global brands use social media network such as Facebook and Twitter to share viral video's that they post on video sharing networks such as Youtube, it is hoped that due to the creativity of the advertisment that users will share the advertisment with their friends. However, as we will see with a comparision of two global brands, both brands feature heavily in Interbrands top 10 global brands survey, that some agencies and brands comprise their message for the big creative idea.

An integrated theory of Global advertising

Zou, S., & Volz, Y. (2010). An integrated theory of global advertising. International Journal of Advertising,29(1), 57-84. Retrieved from Business Source Premier database.

 

 

Advertisement 1) Nokia N8 mini-stop-motion 

Campaignlive.co.uk-September 2010

http://www.campaignlive.co.uk/news/1029078/Nokia-ad-sets-Guinness-World-Record/?DCMP=ILC-SEARCH

This advertisement is designed to highlight Nokia's brand as being "record breaking", break through technology highlight the fact that for Nokia its not about the brand its about inspiring creativity. This ad is also successful in the fact that its target audience is the online global community. However, the advertisement plays like a short animated stop-motion movie, the connection to the product is weak at best, as it was more an advertisement for the microscope then the phone. What is more, it is border line deceptive as one knowing the advertisement is for a Nokia might mistakenly believe that an attribute of the phone is an advanced camera zoom.  

Nonetheless, this is the growing trend with 'viral' ads as the brand cares more about hits on Youtube than actual relevance to the commercial.

Advertisement 2)  

marketingmagazine.co.uk September 2010

http://www.marketingmagazine.co.uk/news/1026923/Coca-Cola-tests-happiness-machine-UK-students/?DCMP=ILC-SEARCH

This Coca-Cola viral advertisment is far more brand orientated. The commercial unlike other virals does not hide behind the movie, but rather is at the forefront of the creativity of the movie. This advertisment is the second verision of the campaign. The first one shot in an American university has been highly succesfull with over 2 million views. The advertisment clearly highlights and reinforces the age old Coca-Cola message that their product brings a sense of community and overall happiness. Furthermore, the fact that this advertisment targets university is also a delibrate ploy as many of Youtube users fit a similar demographic.

In conclusion viral advertisments by their nature need to be and contain a global message in order for them to be successful. Many global companies utilse the online medium to spread their message, many in a bid to reach the maximum audience sacrifice the brands true meaning for hits and ultimatly even those that watch the video are ultimatly not moved to purchase, this after all needs to be the ultimate goal of any advertising campaign.  

Stage 2 Business to Business

Business to Business advertising or B2B as it is often referred to as, is often seen as being clinical, direct. and professional. This is due to the fact that B2B advertisements often reflect the professional nature of a business and what the product offers, in a short succinct manner. Business to Business advertisements are also highly targeted and as such usually use magazines and print media to communicate to their target audience. Furthermore, B2B is one of the most important fields of advertising as an effective campaign has potential to save business millions of dollars in sales calls. As if the purchasing business is familiar with both the product and the brand name they are far more likely to close the deal in a fast fashion. 

Hartley and Patti Evaluating Business to Business Advertising 1988

Hartley, S., & Patti, C. (1988). EVALUATING BUSINESS-TO-BUSINESS ADVERTISING: A COMPARISON OF OBJECTIVES AND RESULTS. Journal of Advertising Research, 28(2), 21. Retrieved from Business Source Premier database

Advertisment 1) Verizon Altogether Better TVC 

Verizon Business shifts ad focus. B to B 2010

Maddox, K. (2010). Verizon Business shifts ad focus. B to B, 95(5), 9. Retrieved from Business Source Premier database.

The purpose of this advertisement is clear Verizon are a major telecommunication company in America, and whist, its target audiences is business due to the large scale of the business and the product that is offered Verzion advert unlike most Business to Business advertisements, resembles more of a business to consumer approach. This is highly effective for Verizion as it clearly highlights their position as an innovative and industry leading company. Furthermore, as the advertisements illustrates many different business scenario's that benefit from Verizon's product, Verizon managers to appeal to a wide range of businesses. This is something that is usually difficult to achieve in a 30second TVC.  

Advertisement 2) Microsoft Dynamic

Microsoft Dynamic print advertisement- Scanned from 'The Bulletin' -February 27 2007

This advertisement has more to do with the location in which it has been found than to do with the actual advertisement. The  print advert appeared in February 2007 of the Australian business magazine 'The Bulletin'. The readership of this magazine is clearly that of the professional class, as the articles almost exclusively relate to business and economic issues. The actual Microsoft Dynamics advertisement clearly uses a professional tone, the colours of the advertisement are reflective of the standard "Windows" colours namely red,blue yellow and green, they are nonetheless subdued and blended together. The man is in traditional work attire including a plain shirt and plain tie, and the women too is in brown work attire. What makes this advertisement is that is not clear who is the customer and who is the seller. It can be inferred either way, this is very cleaver on Microsoft's behalf as they are careful not to alienate any potential client.  

Stage 2 Direct Response

Direct Response ads:

Direct response advertisements  are often seen as the most annoying forms of commercials.  However, despite this fact many companies choose to promote their product via this form of advertising communication, insurance companies, and impulse purchases are some of the biggest users of Direct Response, and if done well can produce highly effective results.  

Geoffrey De Weaver writes that "Direct response TV is under-valued and misunderstood in Australia...It gets results and can also build your brand"(B&-T Feb 22 2002)

One major advantage of the DRTV is tangible in that you can precisely measure how effective the ad is, as studies show that most people call within the first three minuets of the commercial being aired.

General Article: on Direct Advertising- BandT Febuary 2002, Geoffrey De Weaver

B+T Australia Febuary 22 2002

Journal Article:   

Profiling Heavy, Light and Nonusers

Woodside & Soni Journal of Advertising Research 1991

Woodside, A., & Soni, P. (1991). DIRECT-RESPONSE ADVERTISING INFORMATION: PROFILING HEAVY, LIGHT, AND NONUSERS. Journal of Advertising Research, 31(6), 26-36. Retrieved from Business Source Premier database.

Advertisement 1) ShamWow!

ShamWow! is an American product that has been on air in Australia since early 2010. The advertisement airs usually on Australian subscription Television during day time hours.  

Trade Press Article

Advertising Age, Trade Press Publication 

Neff, J. (2009). Amid cutbacks, ShamWow marches on. Advertising Age, 80(10), 1-14. Retrieved from Business Source Premier database.

As downturn worsens, DTRV 'bottom feeders' pick up slack for media

The 30-second spot may be an endangered species, even if its wake has proven largely premature and overbooked. And the 30-minute spot also has seen better days. But the 60- and 120-second spots have never been healthier, as direct sellers of everything from gadgets to personal-care products increasingly fill the breach left by an economy in retreat.

Direct response isn't totally recession-proof. Vendors of big-ticket items and continuity plans are taking a hit as consumers clutch their wallets tighter. But suffice it to say Billy Mays and Vince Offer of ShamWow are doing just fine, thank you.

DRTV advertisers are often seen as the bottom feeders of the media ecosystem. But just like in nature, they play an important role. While many traditional TV advertisers pull back significantly amid the sharp downturn, short-form direct-response advertisers have been quick to take their place. And some, in fact, would say the PedEgg, Snuggie and Loud 'N Clear could yet save an economy where consumers have largely lost their will to buy.

"Over the years, the number of successful infomercial products diminished because the airtime got expensive," said Gerald Bagg, president of Quigley-Simpson, Los Angeles, an independent direct-response shop that ranks as one of the largest, if not the largest, buyers of direct-response media. "Now that airtime is coming down, you're going to see more and more entrepreneurs re-emerging. … Recession creates inventiveness on the part of most people. … They've lost jobs, but they now have the opportunity to pursue the dream or the patent they never applied for or the product they thought up but never applied for because they had an adequately paying job."

Not even the credit crunch is likely to crush such dreams. Anthony Sullivan, the DR producer who's helped sell millions of Swivel Sweepers with his British-accented pitches, and who discovered the industry's now-legendary Mr. Mays, said it's possible for an entrepreneur to get a sample run of a product, produce a DRTV ad and buy time in a test market for around $50,000.

Conclusion of the advertisement

This advertisement is clearly targeted to a certain demographic. Whilst to many viewers the obnoxious hyperactive American presenter is an instant turnoff, it may be for many the energy they need to stimulate their day, (and make impulse purchases). The target audience for this commercial is clearly stay at home mothers or housewife's that have the uninspiring and non-stimulating task of during the house chores. This commercial makes that job seem easy and fun. This is a highly targeted commercial and whilst to many it is annoying and uninspiring, as Neff suggests it is nonetheless highly successful. 


Advertisement 2) Zurich Insurance

  


This advertisement plays like a normal 'Slice of Life' TVC, the only difference is it has the website and phone number constantly on the screen. I feel this is effective as it both has strong branding and enables the viewer enough time to record the number and place the telephone call, or conduct research on the internet. Zurich is a highly successful insurance agency in the United Kingdom and this advertisement reflects their strong position. 


This advertisement is arguably more effective than that of ShamWow! as the advertisement appeals to a far greater target audience and does not alienate any members of the public that would potentially be interested in insurance.