Gender Roles in Stereotyping

One of the most memorable yet disturbing commercials that I could remember from this year's Superbowl was from Go Daddy. Now to be honest, I've seen heard of the name of this company but I had no idea what it was for until I looked it up tonight. Go Daddy is a place where people can create websites and Domain names and found that this was an appropriate way to advertise themselves.

They portray two sides of Go Daddy:
The "Sexy Side" was represented by a blonde beauty, Bar Rafaeli.
The "Smart Side" was represented by a short stubby nerd named Walter.

This Perfect Match is meant to show that Go Daddy is both Smart and Sexy. Having a model kissing a nerd shows that this company has the best of both worlds, but to me I was so disturbed to have witnessed the PDA.

Stereotypes in Advertising

As I was searching the web, I found it pretty difficult to look for a stereotypical ad that was recent. I did however, come across this ad that showed actor, Ashton Kutcher, playing different types of men "looking for love" as they describe their different favorite flavor of Popchips. Originally this ad was intended for laughs as he role played as an Indian, Hippie, Biker, Diva, and himself. Unfortunately, people didn't catch the humor of this ad and found it as offensive. I would want to say that racism should be a thing of the past, but it's not. Why couldn't Popchips just hire different actors that we already know portray these characters that they wanted to create? We all know that advertising is used to get messages across and sell a product in a matter of time. Advertising should have ethical responsibilities, but they don't think about them and the big picture when they make commercials. If you're trying to sell different flavors, or "flavors around they world," you can't do that without being in that setting. So is it still racist or stereotypical to be in that setting? Back to the Popchip ad, they were just trying to sell different flavors desired by different people around the world. Is that a bad thing? 

Semiotics: Advertising to your senses

Semiotics are used in advertising to sell to an audience through signs and symbols. These signs are signifiers to something more than what the company actually wants to sell. What's the story behind the product and why should we as consumers buy these products? Advertisements are ridiculous, yet capture everyone's attention.


Outdoor Ad:
One of the popular shows to come back this sunday was The Walking Dead. This fairly large billboard found in Toronto's Union Station. Everyday from February 1st through the 10th, one finger of the gruesome looking hands were chopped off and left laying around near the billboard. Creepy right? I found this billboard was very interactive and eye catching. How often do you see large zombie hands in public?

TV Ad:

One of my favorite commercials that I've seen on TV was for Old Spice Body Wash. Titled "The Man your Man Could Smell Like" The semiotic of this advertisement is trying to sell to women who have men that use their body wash. In this 30 second fast paced commercial, the Old Spice Man tells you all the benefits of their product and how it will make your life better. 

  

Magazine Ad:

Orbit's main slogan is "dirty mouth, clean it up with orbit." With this gum advertisement it shows that no matter how dirty you are, your mouth with remain flawless and sparkling. Whether you're rolling in a pile mud, Orbit will do the trick to give you that clean feeling that you want.

The Name Game

A friend of mine once said "a shirt is like a walking billboard" and it's hard not to believe that. 

I've been working at Hennes & Muaritz also known as H&M for a little over a year and it doesn't surprise me that so many of our customers asked if we had a shirt with the "H&M" logo on our clothing. Well, first off, we aren't exactly the most expensive store in the mall, but I wouldn't compare the company to any hole in the wall store either. In fact, we carry names like David Beckham brand underwear and on occasion, feature a collab artist, the most recent being Maison Martin Margiela. Some of you may have heard him from Kanye's lyric "What's that Jacket Margiela?" H&M is an affordable clothing store and people are proud to wear our clothing. So much that they would want to wear a piece of clothing that shows that it is from, just as they would sport their Vans, Levi's, and Nike clothing. Unlike all those other top brands, we really don't show off that a piece of clothing belongs to us outside our door.

Brands have a huge relation to our generation today. Now, not talking about the big name brands since it's already a given, but many local artists have been using their talents and todays technology to get their names out their in the world. The most recent story that automatically popped into my head was how Orly Locquiao, owner of Humble Beginnings Tattoo and Cukui created a shirt dedicated to 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick. Released just in time for the superbowl, Cukui's little store in San Jose's Japantown was flooded with customers wanting this shirt. With just a few photos of credibility from Kaep himself, Orly was given so much publicity and there were over 1000+ orders made after the release. I'm excited for Cukui and the rate that they're going up in popularity, but at the same time, I'm scared that they may raise the prices of their one of a kind shirts.
Photos borrowed by their instagram @cukui