Starbucks

This commercial reminds me of an average day for a HISP sophomore. The man in this commercial reluctantly wakes up with a big sigh and gets ready to start his day. He sadly begins to brush his teeth, put on shoes, and make some coffee. This first part of the commercial is filmed in black and white. After taking his first sip of coffee, the man transports from his black and white house to a colorful, happy-looking field.

The use of lighting  is important in making the viewers experience different feelings throughout the commercial. In the beginning, everything is black and white which expresses the somber feeling of waking up early in the morning. As the color returns at the end of the commercial, the tone changes to being happy. The makers of this ad used this contrast to show that coffee will make you happy when you wake up in the morning.

Got Milk?

One of images that is most often seen in school cafeterias is the "got milk?" ad. These ads usually show a celebrity with a milk mustache. These ads are used to encourage people to drink milk. They do this by using the technique testimonial.

 These ads succeed in appealing to several different demographics because of the people that are in them. To appeal to teenage girls, they use Taylor Swift. They use super heroes, such as Wolverine and Superman, to appeal to boys between the ages of 8-18. They even use Martha Stewart, an iconic author and TV star, to appeal to women between the ages of 35-65.

Be Stupid

From all the ad campaigns I have seen this quarter, this one stood out the most for its stupidity. But, unlike the other ad campaigns, this one is stupid on purpose. This ad campaign, for the clothing brand "Diesel", features a series of ads that glorifies stupidity, mainly by showing people do dangerous things. It also compares so-called "smart" people and "stupid" people by saying things such as "Smart may have the brains, but stupid has the balls." It seems like this ad campaign is just encouraging people to do stupid stuff.

 Although this these ads are very memorable because of their ridiculousness, I do not think they are very effective. Instead of associating themselves with something that has a good connotation, such as intelligence, the makers of these ads decided to associate their products with being stupid, which has a fairly bad connotation. I think that many people, especially those who strive to be smart, wouldn't want to buy products that are associated with stupidity.

The main need that these ads are trying to fulfill is the need for autonomy. The makers of these ads want people to believe that if they wear their products, they will unique (mainly because they're stupider than everyone else). Being smart is too boring and predictable, so you need to be stupid so you can stand out. 

Hard Times For Mr. Burns

If you're a fan of The Simpsons, then you'll be familiar with Charles Montgomery Burns (Mr. Burns), the main character of this commercial. In the show, he is a mean, greedy billionaire that owns a nuclear power plant in Springfield. But, in this commercial, Mr. Burns faces the loss of his fortune and all of his worldly belongings. As Mr. Burns sadly walks through a park, he sees a lot of people hanging out with their friends and drinking Coca Cola. Seeing how sad he is, Apu, another character from The Simpsons, offers him a Coke. Immediately afterwards he is thrown a football and he is accepted by the people that previously hated him.

The main need that this commercial appeals to is the need for affiliation. This need is emphasized in this commercial because it shows everyone together in a park, drinking Coke. Even the greedy billionaire is accepted once he get a bottle of Coke.

One technique that this advertisement uses is wit and humor. The commercial uses a popular cartoon in addition to several funny scenes when Mr. Burns sells all of his stuff. This commercial is especially memorable for people who are fans of the Simpsons.

Vive Cuervo

At first glance, it did not seem like the picture matched the product being sold in the advertisement. This ad shows a man embracing a woman in her bathing suit along with the phrase "Pursue Your Daydreams". To me, that seemed like an unusual slogan for an alcoholic beverage. Instead, it sounded like it could be on an advertisement for a travel agency or a theme park.

The use of this interesting image and phrase is the technique called transfer association. The makers of this ad are trying to associate this drink with luxury and paradise by using this image of a man and a woman happily embracing. They are hoping that buyers will associate Jose Cuervo with "Pursuing their daydreams" so it will make the drink seem more desirable.

One need that this advertisement is attempting to fulfill is the need to escape. Daydreams often seem distant and unobtainable, so this ad is encouraging people to buy this product because it will somehow help you pursue your daydreams.

Walmart Helps With Your New Years Celebration

The holidays are the most stressful time of year for many people. People are often busy planning parties, buying gifts, and celebrating the holidays in many other different ways. Using this advertisement, Walmart is trying to take advantage of the fact that many people do not have time to prepare for parties. Walmart is offering to "get people ready for New Year's Eve". The makers of this ad are hoping that buyers assume that shopping at Walmart will relieve them from all of the stress they have.

The demographic that this ad is probably targeting is middle-class people from the ages of 35-65. This group is likely to have a social gathering for celebrations, such as New Year's Eve. People in this group also might not have a lot of time to prepare for such social gatherings because they are busy with work or buying gifts for family members.

One of the needs that this ad uses is the need for guidance. It is attempting to show that Walmart can give people guidance with party preparations so that they won't have to worry. In order to fulfill this need the ad uses the technique simple solutions. They are implying that Walmart will have everything you need to get ready for New Year's Eve and have a successful celebration at home.