Decoding and Deconstructing a Magazine Ad
LANGUAGE
The headline doesn’t have any specific facts it’s just suggesting to the buyer that Nike is the best selection. It uses words such as best, right and associates it directly with females. The way this relates is that the ad says the right stuff for women and there is a picture of a woman running. There also is a lot of pink clothing around her. Pink is considered to be a feminine colour. The slogan they used is ‘choose to play’. This is an effective slogan because it is short and uses simple words.
VISUAL ELEMENTS
The mood of this ad is a very light, feminine yet athletic mood. It isn’t a serious ad but more of a fun ad. This is created by using feminine colours (pink) and a woman running. Their slogan ‘choose to play’ adds a sense of fun to it. They have used very simple lettering that isn’t too big or small. The colours that are shown are mainly pink and white there is a bit of red and blue. The images shown are that of a woman, four pictures of the product and the display window of a store. Things are arranged so that the shoe is the first thing you see. You then see the woman running and then the pink clothing. At the end you see the different colours of the shoe and the slogan. Things are arranged in a good way because the advertisers want to make sure that people see the product first and if the last thing you see is the slogan you’re more likely to remember it.
In this ad a woman is running. This woman represents a feminine yet athletic lifestyle. The reader is probably supposed to think, “If I buy this shoe I can be athletic but still be feminine.” There is a Nike and Finish line logo it they don’t communicate very much because they are very small.
ADVERTISEING TECHNIQUES AND APPLEAS
The human needs that are being appealed to in this ad are the need for a better body (running and doing sports keeps you fit) luxury (having nice shoes) and being feminine (colours used). Techniques that have been used are a slogan and the glittering generality. For example the ad says the best selection of the right stuff for women. What is the right stuff though, how do we know this is the best selection. I think this ad fairly uses appeals because there are no inappropriate images of language and it doesn’t make people feel bad about themselves or their body. The targets of this ad are females, who like sports, from the ages of 11 to 25. It was placed in YM, which is a magazine that a lot of teenage girls like to read. That is why I think it was placed in a good magazine.
EVALUATION OF AD’S EFFECTIVENESS
I think that the ad is extremely effective because some girls may be able to relate to it and think, “Finally there’s a product that this both feminine yet good for sports.” I myself am inclined to buy this product because I need new shoes, I know that Nike has good quality shoes and I like the design.
By: Azarnoosh Sadeghi
June 19, 2003
