Unique Advertisement - Shock Value Technique
By Sharon White Advertisements became a part of our life. They are everywhere and we are so used to them that often we dont even notice them anymore. However, some of the advertisement images capture our attention and stay in minds for a very long time. Advertisements can evoke the wide variety of emotions in people. Every advertisement is different from one another. In this article I will concentrate on the advertisement idea of one of the leading clothing companies- United Colors of Benetton United Colors of Benetton have produced some extraordinary and uniqueadvertisements. Benetton’s originality in their advertisements isunlike any other clothing company. Instead of advertising theirclothes on beautiful female and male models, Benetton uses realpeople, and situations and dilemmas in the real world to get theirname across. Their controversial ads are notorious for the shock value they exhibit.People sometimes cannot believe that a certain advertisement isactually aimed at selling clothes. This “shock value” technique hasrecently been the new trend in 20th century advertising culture. It isa clever tactic that has recently been employed by various companies,agencies, and institutions throughout the world. Benetton’s aim is for the public to see their distinct ads andremember them. They want people to see an advertisement and thinkabout it, discuss it, love it, and even hate it. In their minds, anypublicity is good publicity. They believe that their unique ads willdrive you to their stores, and it does just that. Benetton’s profitsalmost doubled to nearly two-hundred-forty-five million Euros (392million Canadian dollars) in four years (1996-2000). The questionthat lingers on everyone’s mind is how do you make someone remember anad when they are bombarded by hundreds of advertisements daily? Theanswer; Shock them. Unlike normal clothing companies whose aim is toonly sell their clothes, “[Benetton] believes [that they] can do morethan sell products. [They] can broaden minds”. Benetton usesadvertisements featuring people dying of AIDS, dead soldiers,cemeteries, poverty stricken children, etc. Their hope lies within thepublic. They want people to see their advertisements and take it toheart. Just as the Du Maurier cigarette company uses pictures ofdiseased organs on their cigarette packs in hopes of getting people totake action and quit smoking, Benetton uses real life images in theirads to instil their humanitarian cause in the rest of the world. Thesegraphic images are not sugar coated and fancy like advertisements thatother large clothing companies use. Instead they are meant to startleor shock the public and create an image in people’s minds that maycreate concern for the well being of people, animals, and the planet,and at the same time, create a curiosity that would impel someone tovisit their clothing stores and learn more about them. Benetton has a hard time understanding why their advertisements sparkso much controversy. All of their ads feature real life situations.Nothing is made up or fake about their ads. They are not purposely outthere to exploit human suffering. Instead they are trying todemonstrate the extent of the problem. Many of their ads featureissues of multiculturalism, peace, the tragic effects of war, anddisease. Many people are aware of these problems but choose to turntheir heads or forget about them, instead of doing something to helpthe cause. Two specific advertisements that I foundto be very clever and interesting are those that promote the breakingdown of race discrimination. The two ads remind the public that nomatter how we look on the outside, everyone looks the same on theinside; literally. One of these advertisements has a picture of threereal hearts. They are obviously not human hearts, but the viewer ofthe ad gets the idea. On each of the three hearts it says one word;Black, White, and Yellow. As mentioned before, the advertisement hopesto remind and convince the public that although we might lookdifferent on the outside, that on the inside we are the exact same.Benetton tries to promote equality regardless of colour, race, orreligion. The second such advertisement that hopes to communicate andpromote the need for compassion with all other human beings is that ofthree girls. The picture shows the three girls, one of Africandescent, one of Caucasian descent, and the third girl of Orientaldescent, with their heads side by side, sticking out their tongues.Once again, Benetton shows that regardless of the way we look on theoutside, that on the inside we are all the same. All our tongues arethe same colour, and look the same. The same goes with our hearts. Itis these types of advertisements that define Benetton and their cause.They are campaigning for equality. They want people to remember thatwhen it comes down to it, we are all human beings, and that there isno need for hate amongst us. Benetton has made a bold move in theadvertising industry and should at least be commended for trying to dosomething that is very unorthodox. But of course, not everyone seestheir campaign towards progressing humanity in the same way. Manybelieve that “Benetton is trying, through its depiction of the intensesuffering of living things, to evoke a feeling of compassion on thepart of the consumer, and to suggest that it is sympathetic”.Controversy has erupted due to its numerous ads. Some people have seenBenetton’s advertisements and have been outraged but have not takenaction, while others have been more active in taking a stand andensuring Benetton stops publishing their immoral ads. A few ads inparticular have stricken a chord with many of Benetton’s opponents.Opponents of Benetton’s ads have been angered with Benetton forexploiting human suffering. A few advertisements that have gainedrecognition for their degree of controversy are “pictures of awaterfowl stuck in an oil slick, a human body stamped ‘HIV-positiveand child labourers in the Third World–all bearing the slogan,’United Colors of Benetton’. The article was produced by the member of masterpapers.com. Sharon White is a senior writer and writers consultant at term papers. Get some useful tips for thesis and buy term papers. Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Sharon_White http://EzineArticles.com/?Unique-Advertisement—Shock-Value-Technique&id=310441 dallas small business cash advance cash advance in fishers indiana cash advance scams where to get bank loan with bad credit
