Advertisement Analysis

In Google Body Type advertisement, there exists a representation of a variety of the
youth based on sex, race, and ethnic origin. The Google Body Type advertisements’ main goals
were to make it clear that individuals have the capability to be perfect no matter how imperfect
they think they are. Besides, this advertisement aimed to enhance the self-confidence of
individuals by destroying the society that has been viewing perfection. Google: Body Type • Ads
of the World™ | Part of the Clio Network . The advertisers took what is regarded as perfect,
Helvetica, and redesigned it for the message of the target of the ad. As a result, the Google Body
Type advertisement aims at spreading love by making individuals love each other and their body
types. This would result in forging a society with confident people who all dance to their own
rhythms together. This advertisement targeted at everyone, and it was never stereotyping
whatsoever.
In Behind the Mac, A climate change promise from Apple advertisement was addressing
every individual that belongs to every age bracket. Its main goal was to communicate the
commitment of the Apple Company to curbing its carbon impact on the environment, including
damage to the ecosystem and the depletion of natural resources (Domanski, 2018). The
advertisement passes the message to its target that the Apple Company is committed to becoming
carbon neutral by 2030, in terms of what they make, how they make it, and how people use it.
The ad presents an infant sleeping peacefully in a quiet room. Apple: Behind the Mac, A climate
change promise from Apple • Ads of the World™ | Part of The Clio Network. Throughout the
ad, there was a focus on the lonely and innocent infant and the advertiser’s encouraging and

3

caring voice. The advertisement does not have any form of stereotyping at all, and it
communicates to everyone.
Let It Go featuring Maisie Williams is an advertisement that is interesting, especially to
the youth and individuals who drive fuel-efficient vehicles. Besides, the advertisement represents
both the culture of Games of Throne and Frozen, a famous Disney Animation. In these two
cultures, heroism and audacity in youth is linked with radical change particularly Maisie
Williams is famous, brave, and courageous in the Game of Thrones, where she plays the role of
Arya Stark. Additionally, in the ad, the culture of young children is represented who are singing
the popular song Let It Go from Frozen. Audi: Let It Go featuring Maisie Williams • Ads of the
World™ | Part of The Clio Network. The advertisers of Audi employed Maisie Williams owing to
the belief that the youth are the future and that individuals of age are regarded to be adamant
about changing (Bobby, 2016).
Dove, Sky Witness: Empowering Idents is an advertisement that inspires women who
work in different fields by focusing on medicine, law, and crime. The ad aimed to eradicate the
challenges these women face in the work environment by ensuring that they feel confident and
comfortable in their appearance. Dove: Empowering Idents • Ads of the World™ | Part of The
Clio Network. Therefore, Dove and Sky Witness have combined their efforts in the ad to build
the self-confidence of these women, whose appearance greatly impacts their professional lives.
This ad was designed to boost confidence in women and make them feel beautiful regardless of
the color of their skin and hair.

Part II
Social Science Question

4
My suggested social science research question based on examining the four selected
advertisements is; how does the portrayal of women in advertising influence consumers’ choices
when buying products? I used the social science perspective to draw and design the social
science research question. It is important to note that social science enables individuals to
understand the real world about them. Besides, social science allows people to appreciate the
relationship among themselves in society and how they interact. I attempted to probe the
depiction of women in advertisements and how it influences consumers’ choices when buying
products. My research was majorly guided by how most advertisements in modern society depict
women as objects, particularly on their appearance. The outcome of my research shows that that
kind of depiction greatly influences the choices of consumers when purchasing certain products.
Furthermore, I considered how the female gender is stereotyped in contemporary society due to
the messages in the advertisement.
My research has indicated that the images of women in the advertisements are distorted
or manipulated to establish a depiction of the female gender as sex objects. It has been confirmed
that the female gender is continuously depicted as wearing incomplete clothes and half-naked,
while men are nicely portrayed as wearing full clothing. For instance, in Google Body Type
advertisement, Google: Google: Body Type • Ads of the World™ | Part of The Clio Network,
mainly when advertising Vinyl Cover, a woman is represented as almost naked. Therefore, when
consumers continuously see images of women depicted in the advertisements as sexual objects,
this is the mentality that the consumers will have. Sex sells, and most consumers are likely to
purchase products that are advertised with sexy representations. And for women to be seen as
sexy, they need to be seen as sex objects, while men are represented as masculine.
Advertisements that positively represent women have higher chances of contributing positively

5
to the long-term brand relationship (Benson, 2021). Consumers are likely to continuously
purchase the product because women are respectfully represented in the ads.
Consumers usually judge the female gender in society based on what they see in
advertisements by seeing women as things, not human beings. Besides, there have been
increased plastic surgery cases due to the advertisements’ photoshopped photos. Young girls see
these images in advertisements and get obsessed with looking good, which leads to increased
cases of eating disorders and plastic surgery (DiSalvatore, 2021). Older women who fear aging
are also affected because they feel that if they look old, they will become unattractive. The major
Social Science development that influenced my research question was Social Economics, which
reflects the nature of our society. For instance, Marxism and Capitalism form the main economic
systems based on central beliefs concerning the nature of human beings and what is behind their
motivation. This is evident when consumers have different and biased feelings and thoughts on
particular products. Consumers are more likely to buy a product based on the appearance of the
person in the advertisement even without considering how the product is going to help them. For
example, if a consumer sees a beautiful woman in the ad, they are more likely to buy the
advertised product because they also want to look as beautiful as the woman in the
advertisement.

Part III
Reflection

As consumers of different products that various companies offer, it is necessary to have a
set of beliefs, values, and assumptions to enable us not to take full advantage of what a particular
product provides. As consumers, we can do this by not scrutinizing these products through all

6
these forms. I examined these advertisements empirically and factually to the best of my ability.
Nevertheless, it is our nature as consumers to always have feelings and different thoughts in
certain circumstances. For instance, I use Apple products because of what they may offer and
quality but not because Apple products are popular globally. My research question is; how does
advertising influence consumer motivation and purchasing power? I analyzed these
advertisements and my beliefs, assumptions, and values made me understand that when as
consumers have bias feelings and thoughts on particular products, it will be significantly helpful
to companies that are advertising and particularly when those particular advertisements are
endowing what the companies stand for in their daily business.
Behind the Mac, a climate change promise from Apple is an advertisement established
for Apple to communicate the company’s commitment to curb its carbon footprint. The company
aims to become carbon-free by 2030 (Lee, 2018). I analyzed the advertisements and discovered
that companies play with consumers’ fears while others appeal to the needs and desires of
consumers when advertising to make them purchase their products. I have often purchased
several products based on the appealing appearance of the people in the advertisements instead
of considering how the products would help me. For instance, if a consumer sees a handsome
man advertising a particular brand of men’s hand and body lotion, it makes them feel they also
want to use the lotion so that they look handsome as well. Advertisements cultivate consumers’
desire and make them want to buy a particular product while minimizing any doubts they may
have about the product. Besides, advertisers play with consumers’ fear to make them purchase
certain products by making them scared of what could happen to them without the product.
Humans fear death, aging, and emotional rejection. However, I examined the advertisements and

7
learnt that one can outsmart the advertisers by simply learning to be aware of their techniques
and recognize how they succeed in manipulating you (Livingstone, 2021).
As I was analyzing the four advertisements, I had to appreciate the need to study and
understand the force behind the motivation of a consumer of a particular product and certain
perception of themselves that motivates them to purchase specific products or be a victim of
certain advertising strategies. It is important to note that our self-image as humans is established
on how we view and perceive ourselves. Max Weber postulated that humans behave based on
their interpretation of the meaning of their environment. Humans often associate meanings to
symbols; after that, they behave according to their subjective and personal interpretation and
understanding of these symbols. Besides, Max Weber argued that how humans perceive
themselves highly depends on their interactions with others. I can confidently conclude that our
self-image is likely to change positively if we don’t consider societal expectations. I can imagine
that humans are social beings and that their interaction with society is regarded as highly
evaluative.
It is essential to deeply study and understand human behavior. But we must acknowledge
certain ideas. We have to define if humans can interpret and understand behaviors and social
reality. We are obliged to understand the motivation behind the behaviors of humans in certain
ways. Therefore, social science comes in to positively change how humans perceive and interact
with each other in a society where people hold different opinions, thoughts, and feelings. It is
important to note that humans are shaped based on their social circumstances. The functionalist
Marxist approach states that society is distinct into different classes, including the capitalists and
the working class, where the capitalists feel more privileged than the working class. As a result,
their roles are greatly influenced by this social distinction in society. The conflict approach

8
concentrates on the negative and conflicting aspects of society. It discourages the status quo in
society and promotes social change. I acknowledge the fact that there are likely to be social
conflicts between any groups where the possibility of inequality, biasness, and different opinions
exist. They include economic, political, religious, racial, and gender conflicts. I appreciated the
fact that unequal groups need to have conflicting views, thoughts, and feelings. This leads to
competition among them, forming a solid foundation for a dynamic society. Social science,
especially through conflict approach, has made me fully understand that capitalists apply
humanitarian behaviors, democracy, and civil rights to manipulate the masses and maintain the
status quo. It is important to note that social science enables us to understand the world around us
and events around the world. It allows us to increase our confidence that our voices are being
heard. Besides, social science greatly influences how we perceive ourselves and different
opinions of others for a better society.

9

References
Apple. (N.D). Behind the Mac, A climate change promise from Apple.
https://www.adsoftheworld.com/campaigns/behind-the-mac-eed9d692-00b7-4a96-8446-
0e16c9c5a2a4
Audi. (N.D). Let It Go featuring Maisie Williams. https://www.adsoftheworld.com/campaigns/let-it-go-
featuring-maisie-williams
Benson. S. (2021). How does the portrayal of women in advertising affect brand perception and
behavior? https://thebehavioursagency.com/women-in-advertising/
Bobby. D. (2016). The youth of today is the future of tomorrow. https://gulfnews.com/opinion/op-
eds/the-youth-of-today-is-the-future-of-tomorrow-1.1698078
DiSalvatore. E. (2010). Portrayal of Women in Advertising.
https://ellendisalvatore.weebly.com/uploads/1/1/9/9/11996502/research_paper-
_revised_women_in_adv.pdf
Domanski. H. (2018). Apple’s environmental initiatives: just how green is the big fruit of tech?
https://www.techradar.com/news/apples-environmental-initiatives-just-how-green-is-the-big-
fruit-of-tech
Dove. Sky Witness. (N.D).Empowering Idents.
https://www.adsoftheworld.com/campaigns/empowering-idents
Jain. S. (N.D). Body Type. https://www.adsoftheworld.com/campaigns/body-type
Lee. B. H. (2018). # Me Too movement; it is time that we all act and participate in
transformation. Psychiatry investigation, 15(5), 433-433.
https://www.psychiatryinvestigation.org/upload/pdf/pi-2018-04-30.pdf

10
Livingstone. A. (2021). How Does Advertising Affect Your Purchases? – 6 Tricks to Watch For.
https://www.moneycrashers.com/how-does-advertising-influence-peoples-purchases/