Free essay about applied buyer behavior: analysis of two advertisements

Tom Ford Men fragrance in 2007. 5

Target audience. 6
Offer details.. 7

Time of placement7

Advertising channels. 8
Perceptions8
Buyer process. 8
Involvement level. 9
Marketing mix. 9
Product. 10
Promotion. 10
Placement. 10
Critique and Recommendations10
Yves Saint Laurent Opium fragrance for women12
Target audience13
Offer details. 13
Time of placement14
Advertising channels. 14
Perceptions. 14
Buyer process15
Involvement level.. 15
Marketing mix.. 15
Product.. 15
Promotion.. 15
Conclusion and Recommendations.. 16
CONCLUSION16

References. 17

Executive Summary
The media advertisements are meant to be creative so as to meet the required needs in the market. The advertisements involving the sexual contents are increasingly becoming common, and therefore a balance is required in such creations so as not to display the extremely sexual content that would end up creating controversies. It is important for the adverts to be featured in the media that will meet the needs of the target market for the products, and also be in line with the required standards of advertisement. Many cases have come up handling different aspects of the controversial adverts that have been carried out before, and therefore this paper is meant to handle two cases on the field of the fragrance advertisements.
Introduction
This report is aimed at examining and evaluating the fragrance advertisements by Tom Ford. The report analyses the two advertising campaigns which appeared on different media channels over a period of 7 years, and each of the advertisements were produced by Tom Ford who has been known to involve a lot of sex appeal from the marketing campaigns that tackles. This report will therefore present each advert through a detailed analysis, and then it will conclude with a comparison of the two adverts and recommendations for the efforts carried out by Tom Ford.
Tom Ford Men fragrance in 2007
This advert has remained to be one of the controversial sexual advertising techniques that have ever been created. The advert was created in 2007 by the American fashion designer and director of films, Tom Ford, and it was photographed by Terry Richardson. The advert featured on the cover of Time magazine, and it was considered to be somehow crude, but the sexy technique of the advertisement proved to be effective from the market that the product received along with the sales of the magazine . The advert stood out due to the nudity that had been displayed, and had the slogan: “ The first fragrance for Men from Tom Ford”.
The commercial attracted a lot of attention as a result of the provocative image that has been displayed of a woman who grabs her unnaturally round and full breasts using her manicured hands, and pressing them together for purposes of showing off a bottle of Tom Ford for Men Fragrance placed in her cleavage. More details from the picture have the lubed-up woman wearing her bright red lips that have parted wide creating an impression of having a good time.
TARGET AUDIENCE
The advert carried out was meant to target the casual male who would be looking for cologne that would match their laid back look. The contents of the cologne itself contains citrus and the woody notes like lemon and leather which have been combined to creating a masculine scent that adds an air of taste and elegance. The cologne is targeted for the men who are undergoing their normal day with a need for minimum complications or sophistications through the day.
The advertisement also targets men from 25-35 years old who are working and mature enough in identifying with women. These target markets are the professional men who work in places like the Wall Street since these men are attentive to their appearance as that phase of their lives defines the future success of their careers .
The advert was also featured in the Time magazine; a factor that indicates the target audience for the cologne product being adults since the magazine is mainly bought and read by the adult population. The magazine is also global with a wide market in the whole of Europe and America, and therefore this factor indicates a global segmentation of the market with people of different cultures that would be targeted for the market of the cologne.
OFFER DETAILS
The advertisement is detailed on the subconscious connection that is meant to be created between the cologne brand and the sexy appeal that would be associated with the product. The catchy phrase on top of the cologne bottle is “ The first fragrance for Men from Tom Ford” which indicates that the cologne has been associated with Tom Ford to being the first of its kind in the market, and this is an important detail since Tom Ford has always been associated with high quality and the best products in the market. The nudity that has been displayed from the advertisement is a detailed factor that is meant to communicate a perception of sexual appeal feel on the users of the product.
TIME OF PLACEMENT
The launch of the advert came at the time when Tom Ford had proved himself to be a remarkable figure in the carrying out the campaigns that would go viral and help in increasing the sales of the product. Ford had at the time been credited with the reinvention of Gucci when he was working as their creative designer after he creatively made use of the unabashed sexual appeal for their marketing campaign, and even though it was controversial, it saved the company from collapsing . The designer had also carried out a number of other edgy and sexual advertisements that had greatly attained success due to the notable increases in the sales of the corresponding products, and thus the use of Ford was appropriate due to his creativity and success at the time.
ADVERTISING CHANNELS
The positioning of the advert on the Time magazine was an appropriate move due to the global appeal of the magazine. The magazine has a large market throughout the world with more concentration in America and Europe, and therefore the advert was meant to reach this global market and in turn create a wider market for the product. The magazine is also produced using high quality technology with display of class, a factor that this particular cologne needed.
ADVERTISING INTENTION
This advert was purposely carried out to display the masculinity of the male users, and in one of the reviews by Vingan (2008), the display of the nudity in the advert displayed the conquering feeling of the men when they purchase and wear the cologne. The nudity that had been exposed from the advert is also an approach that is targeted at grabbing the attention of the potential buyers to the product, and this is an aspect that would be meant to spark a debate that would be targeted at making the product known through their target markets.
PERCEPTION
A lot of meaning has been communicated from the photographic image that has been used for this advert. The use of colors has stood out from the advert, and this involves the use of the red color on the lips and finger nails of the nude woman holding the cologne bottle at the cleavage of her breasts. The red color has been indicated through research to being a signal color that helps to increase the awareness of the people who access the image through media like the magazines. .
The open mouth of the woman is also an indication of the good feeling that one has from the use of the cologne product. The open lips also represent the conquering nature which fills the need for self esteem and belonging that forms one of the Maslow’s needs for human motivation. The other perception is the psychological need that displays the possibility of nudity but not going through the whole nudity phase; a factor that would keep the buyers wondering and hoping for more that can be attained through the advert.
BUYER PROCESS
The stages that are involved in the buyer process are important in the evaluation of the appropriateness and effectiveness of the advert that is carried out. The nudity in the advert is a factor that promotes the cologne brand, and it is in line with the advertising style that has been employed by Tom Ford through the majority of advertising campaigns, therefore an aspect that most consumers can identify with.
INVOLVEMENT LEVEL
The advert experiences the risk of missing out on the market segment from the people who would perceive the advert to be out of a provocative nature. The criticism that the advert has faced can also end up affecting the future creativity and use of the product in the market.
MARKETING MIX
Product
The advert has been used to feature a cologne product that is meant to spark a viral market for the product. Tom Ford is an accomplished figure in the fashion industry, and therefore the slogan “ The first fragrance for Men from Tom Ford” is meant to attract a large number of buyers who would want to associate with the products from the designer.
Promotion
The promotional objective of the advert is centered on the creation of a fragrance that would attract men by establishing a psychological connection towards its purchase and usage. The advert showcases a good sex appeal and a yearning for the attainment of more freedom and independence for the users.
Placement
The placement of the advert in the Time magazine was an appropriate move because of its high global accessibility and the classy way through which products are placed and hyped .
CRITIQUE AND RECOMMENDATION
The Tom Ford Men fragrance in 2007 advert can be attributed to have been a great advertising campaign that greatly promoted the popularity of the product. The advert was a new idea that was successfully applied to create attention and be able to market the cologne product that was held with high esteem and targeted the professional men who valued their image.
The problem with the advert was however on the extreme nudity that was displayed through its photographic presentation. The nudity is an aspect that sparked a lot of controversy which could act against a large proportion of the market segment that would perceive the advert to be of a provocative nature and against their morals.
Yves Saint Laurent Opium fragrance for women with Sophie Dahl in 2000
The fragrance was featured on a controversial billboard advert that showed a suggestive pose of a naked female model. The advert which was created in 2000 by Tom Ford has been termed as one of the most controversial adverts through the UK, and has since been banned by the Advertising Standards Authority ruling. The Advertising Standards Agency in the UK released their annual report and featured the advert as one of the most complained about advert of all time.
The advert that came in the year 2000 was shot by Steven Meisel and Tom Ford with the intention of salvaging the brand. It consisted of a naughty shoot that had model Sophie Dahl lying with her back while nude, an aspect that sparked controversy after its release, including over 900 complaints on the aspect of the picture being sexually suggestive and most likely to create a serious offence through the states . The advert was ordered to be withdrawn because it was considered to be offensive and degrading for women.
TARGET AUDIENCE
The advert targeted young women of over 18 years who had grown their bodies and were cautious of their image and sex appeal. The advert featured a famous model Sophie Dahl lying on her back and displaying her sexy curves, and this is an aspect that would act as an attractive factor for majority of the grown up ladies that would want to have the same sex appeal. The market was therefore meant to have the young women of over 18 years having the need to purchase the fragrance product as a way of associating with the sexiness that had been displayed in the adverts.
The advert was featured on the billboards through the country; a factor that indicates the target audience being all the female age groups because the billboards were meant to be accessed with everyone. The men were also targeted from the advert as a way of having them purchase the product for their loved companions since it was hyped to be the best product in the market.
OFFER DETAILS
The details of the advertisement are meant to create and establish a connection between the female sexy appeal and the use of the fragrance. Women are known to have great attention to details when it comes to their looks, and therefore the advert was meant to indicate to women on the aspects of the limit that they could attain with the use of the fragrance, and the sex appeal that they would create in the process.
TIME OF PLACEMENT
The launch that was extremely criticized was carried out in 2000, the year when the fragrance was vanishing off the fashion market. The shoot of the advert which was carried out by renowned figures at the time who were Steven Meisel and Tom Ford was therefore meant to put the ailing brand back to the fashion map . The advert was however criticized for the sex appeal that it displayed and the fact that it was on the billboards, a factor whose timing and location could not have been appropriate.
ADVERTISING CHANNELS
The positioning of the advert through the billboards in the country was not a very appropriate move due to the nature of the advert content which was sexually explicit. The billboards would have acted as an appropriate platform to carry out the advertisements, but the explicit content was the factor that sparked the controversy leading to banning of the advert.
ADVERTISING INTENTIONS
The advert was carried out to indicate the sexual appeal that could be attained by the ladies who used the fragrance. The provocative nature from the way the model posed indicated the esteem factor that could be attained by the users of the fragrance, and this forms one of the human motivational factor in line with the Maslow’ hierarchy of needs.
PERCEPTION
The pose of the model in the advert brings out the perception that is associated with the sexually provocative nature. The provocative pose is an aspect that sparked the controversy from the advert, and the other detail such as the red hair of the model was meant to increase the awareness of the photograph and have more attention being focused on the picture. The provocative nature has also been indicated in the way the model’s hand touches her breasts in a suggestive manner.
BUYER PROCESS
The advert has been created to promote the fragrance brand and be able to create attention and debate that would bring the fragrance back to attaining success in the market. The buyers who are targeted are meant to associate with the sexy nature being displayed in the advert.
INVOLVEMENT LEVEL
The creation that was made from the advertisement was meant to attain an open level of sexual appeal that would have ladies wanting more from the advertisement, and thus attaining a feel-good mood from using the fragrance . The advert did however risk their reputation from the use of the provocative image as they would tell that a controversy was certain of happening and they also risked losing a number of their sales.
MARKETING MIX
Product
The advert was meant to bring up the sales of a product that was quickly dying from the market, and therefore the creators decided to use a unique means that would attract the attention and have more customers going for the product.
Promotion
The promotional objective of the advert is centered on the fragrance that would give women the required sex appeal and confidence through their day. The advert was meant to psychologically connect the women with their sex appeal so as to help them stay confident in the tasks that they faced.
CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION
Yves Saint Laurent Opium fragrance for women with Sophie Dahl in 2000 had one of the advertising campaigns that failed to kick off due to the nature of its sexual content. The advert was meant to spark a deteriorating market, and therefore a creative team was meant to come up with a catchy advert, but the team failed to attain their purpose of attaining a friendly advert . A recommendation can therefore be made to have the organization come up with advertising content that will strike a good balance between the sexual appeal and communication of the required message to the target clients.
Conclusion and Recommendations
Both of the adverts that have been handled represent the creative work that has been carried out by Tom Ford both of which displayed certain levels of sex appeal. The first advertisement handling the Tom Ford Men fragrance in 2007 had sex appeal but in a balanced way in that even though it did receive controversy, it was a bit balanced and the media used which was the magazines had their adult target market right. The second advert had sexual content too, but it was banned as a result of the use of the billboard platforms which was seen as being inappropriate to the target population that will get access to such content. A recommendation can therefore be made to have a balanced advertisement displaying different aspects such as the sexual content and product information, but to also use the right media in meeting such targets.
References
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Henry, H. (2007) Women needs. Men’s Health, 22(8), p. 7.
Noel, H. and Johnson, T. (2009) Basic Marketing. New Delhi: Ridgeways Press.
Schiffman, L. (2013) Consumer Behaviour. 6th ed. New York: Pearson Publishers.
Tungate, M. (2008) Branded Male: Marketing to Men. New Jersey: Wiley and Sons.
VIBE (2007) Tom Ford Men fragrance in 2007. VIBE, 15(11), pp. 18-29.
Vingan, L. (2013) Tom Ford’s 20 Sexiest Ad Campaigns of All Time. FASHIONISTA, IV(9), pp. 12-14.
Wetfeet, H. (2009) Careers in Consumer Products. New York: Cengage Learning.