Persuasion/Advertisement analysis essay Chosen Ad: ?Ann Taylor?: ELM: Credibilility and Peripheral Persuasion (Transfer Effect)

Description
Pick?a?print?advertisement?from?a?magazine?and?analyze?the?advertisement?through?the?lens?of?one?or?more?of?the
theories?discussed?in?Persuasion:?Social?Influence?and?Compliance?Gaining?by?Robert?H?Gass?and?John?H
Seiter..?In?addition?to?a?well?organized?introduction?and?conclusion?the?paper?will?have?three?sections.?
Section?One:?Explanation???explanation?of?the?theory?or?theories?being?used?and?justification?for?its?use?(e.g.
why?is?this?theory?appropriate?for?use?with?this?advertisement).?
Section?Two:?Application???apply?the?theory?to?your?advertisement.?
Section?Three:?Implications???what?have?we?learned?from?this?analysis??Can?societal?implications?from?your
analysis?be?drawn??Are?there?methodological?implications?

Advertisement analysis essay Chosen Ad: ?Ann Taylor?
ELM: Credibilility and Peripheral Persuasion (Transfer Effect)
This ad, for Ann Taylor, shows a picture of two children sitting on a counter, while their mother, actress Kate Hudson, is tousling the head of one of them. On top of the ad is the text ?We believe life is one part style, one party substance.? The purpose is to convince the audience to buy Ann Taylor clothing/accessories. The intended audience for this advertisement is mothers. The image of the mother laughing with her children in the ad is something women can relate to. The woman is smiling and happy. She looks relaxed. The image implies that women who wear Ann Taylor clothing have a relaxed lifestyle. For example, the mother looks as if she is about to go to party or is hosting a party.
Demographic Analysis
This implies that Ann Taylor clothing is for people who are upper-middle class. The woman is wearing nice clothes and a nice watch and has nice hair. Her children are well-dressed as well. Finally, her kitchen looks very nice.
Emotion: Warmth
Parents often are happy, or at ease, when their family is safe. This advertisement is playing off that emotion. The children on the counter are smiling and appear to be getting along well together. This happiness would appear to be brought on by their surroundings ? a happy and attractive mother and a nice house. This is something that would be appealing to mothers, who are worried about their children?s happiness. Furthermore, the children appear to be happy with out their mother?s help ? which means the mother can relax. It is implied that Ann Taylor clothing can make this happen, or that happy mothers wear Ann Taylor clothing.
Celebrity Endorsements
It is common for a celebrity such as a high profile actress or model to endorse a product and in this case Kate Hudson is the celebrity. As a high profile celebrity Kate Hudson assures the credibility of the product is immediately boosted. This is a technique as many modern day females admire celebrities, their beauty and success, therefore not only noticing the product, but also associating it with her success, glamour and beauty.
Emotions and advertising: Sexuality
Although Kate Hudson is wearing a low-cut and somewhat sexy top, which does depict ideas of seduction and sexuality it is interesting to note that she does not appear to be looking directly at us. ?When advertisements portray women as sex objects, they are likely to cause strong negative reactions. The retailer might, more effectively, use a picture of an attractive female model without the explicit sexuality and innuendo? (Courtney, 1983, p.202) Because this is an ad depicting a mother with her children, this reinforces the idea of why Hudson appears to be looking at her children, rather than directly out at the viewer.
Brand Association
The female is depicted as a celebrity who is successful and attractive and living a glamorous lifestyle which is similar to the real life of Kate Hudson. Again, this relates to the idea of Ann Taylor creating a brand revolving around ideas of glamour and luxury, which could suggest why Kate Hudson is shown like this. This creation of a brand is extremely powerful when successful, as the brand will automatically be associated with luxury and glamour. This will ultimately help to sell a brand universally, whatever the product, due to the connotations of the brand name.
Demographic variables and market segmentation
Kate Hudson is showing a stereotype. She can be seen as the ?ideal? woman through a process of buying Ann Taylor clothes, and if we buy it, we will come a little closer to being like the ?ideal? woman. However, feminist theories also believe that advertisements such as Ann Taylor?s show an unrealistic idea of femininity, as ?images of glamorous women or perfect mothers may not correspond to the experience of most women, but they do define femininity in ways which are perceived as actually existing? (Betterton, 1987, p.22).
In conclusion, we can accept that this advertisement is created with many tools to create the ideas of glamour, beauty, luxury, seduction and femininity portrayed. Overall, I believe Ann Taylor?s advertisement is successful in creating meaning and is in keeping with the aura of the brand as a whole, which is important for marketing purposes and as a long-running campaign is obviously successful.
I also believe that this advertisement is effective. It relies on a mother?s emotional connection with her children and family, her quest for calmness and tranquility, and her desire for style. The advertisement is aimed at upper-income individuals who have the money to spend on nice clothing and nice houses and the time to throw or go to fancy events.

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