Introduction
The AXE Company manufactures and sells men beauty products. In the business, AXE Company faces competition and aim at winning customers. Consequently, it invests in advertising their products thoroughly. It aims at using appropriate methods that capture the interest of the clients (Burges, 1997). Currently, it advertises through sexual appeal. It improvises adverts that create visual polarization on women or men.
Consequently, people develop interest on the advert and understand about the product simultaneously. However, researchers suggest that the concept has two parallel impacts that depend on gender. They argue that men direct their attention to sexual adverts more than women. In fact, they suggest that women avoid looking at the adverts and regard them as inappropriate (Nicosia, 1974). As a result, many adverts that use sexual appeal target the males.
An example of a product that the AXE Company advertises using sexual appeal is the AXE deodorant. AXE deodorant is a product that has been developed for men. When men apply AXE deodorant on their body, they create affection that attracts women. In addition, it raises the confidence of men by fighting bad scent arising from sweat. In this study, we shall evaluate various AXE deodorant adverts that are sexually oriented.
Advert 1
The picture above advertises the effect of AXE deodorant. It seeks to portray the effect of AXE deodorant visually. The strength of the advert is creation of curiosity. It provokes the mind tempting a person to understand what it suggests. However, the advert does not show a clear link between the AXE effect and the cloths.
Consequently, the people might relate the deodorant with washing detergents. This implies that the advert should include the images of human beings helping observers to understand the advert. In addition, the advert should provide a linkage between the clothes and the AXE deodorant effect avoiding diverse perceptions. Therefore, the advert is not suitable for the modern world.
Advert 2
This advert contains sexual words which provokes the mind of the observers. The message targets men and shows a clear sexual incitement. The message portrays a clear sexual provocation. It forms a good link with the product as compared to the first advert. However, the advert does not create an effective visual provocation. Although the advert should induce a visual polarization, an observer will not experience it unless they read the words. Therefore, the presence of images reduces its effectiveness.
Advert 3
This advert is more developed than the previous ones. It comprises an image of a girl who looks disrupted and hunting for hares. They seem to have been attracted to her. In addition, it incorporates a written message that creates a link between the product and creating attraction.
Moreover, the lady has worn inner wears that creates sexual provocation of the opposite sex that taps their attention. Since the advert targets men, the lady’s image is very crucial. However, the advert does not portray the intended relationship. It is difficult for an observer to notice that AXE is used in attracting ladies rather than the hares. In fact, a person who finds AXE for the first time would think that it is used to control animals. Therefore, omission of the opposite sex reduces the impact of the advert.
Advert 4
This advert has the image of a woman and a man. In the previous advert, we suggested that the omission of one gender is tragic. The advert eliminates the weakness by including both sexes. The incorporation of both sexes raises the issue of interaction. Therefore, the manner in which the two genders interact in the advert affects the message. For example, in this advert the relationship portrays harassment rather than attraction.
It, therefore, warns the user about against the side effect rather than advertising the product. In other words, the interaction does not portray a benefit to the user. Although, it is important to warn the users against side effects, it should be the secondary objective rather than the primary aim. In addition, the advert does not take care of the gender stereotypes (Burck, 1995). In most areas, men take charge. In many communities, there is a stereotype that elevates men above women.
The adverts portray a parallel image that undermines the males’ cultural position in the society. Consequently, men might have a negative attitude towards the product especially by those who have never used it. Therefore, the advertiser should ensure that the advert shows the desired interaction.
Advert 5
The above picture can be described as an all-inclusive advert that incorporates most requirements of a sexually oriented advert. Firstly, it has included both the female and male gender. In addition, the interaction between the three people suggests that the women are attracted to the man.
Furthermore, the ladies appear lovely and beautiful capturing the interest of the observers. The message embedded in the advert describes the intention clearly but briefly. Therefore, the advert is a perfect example of a sexually oriented advert that satisfies all requirements.
Moreover, we observe that it is a development of the other five adverts. This implies that advertisement has evolved over time. The company has made a remarkable progress over the years. They have managed to remove the weaknesses of the adverts progressively. Based on the observations we predict that the company will improve the adverts in a bid to meet the necessary requirements. This will ensure that it delivers the right message and satisfy the intentions of the adverts.
Manifest Functions
AXE adverts have various functions in the business. Some of the functions are called manifest functions. The most important manifest function of the AXE adverts is publicizing the deodorant.
Publicizing the deodorant to the community help in capturing consumers and creates a wide market. The adverts help in committing the consumers into action. They use images that provoke the customers making them to use it. The sexually oriented adverts from AXE Company capture the attention of men motivating them to purchase the deodorant.
Motivation induces market stimulation which would result to fast spread of information about the deodorant. Consequently, the stimulation promotes popularity and prosperity of the AXE Company within its neighborhood. In addition, adverts seek to attain and maintain a healthy relationship between the AXE Company and the consumers. The relationship is maintained though appreciating the support of consumers.
Latent Functions
In the AXE Company, latent functions are the unintentional functions. They create a bigger market and sustaining the present consumers by using various strategies. One of the strategies includes creation of need. Their adverts makes people understand what they lack and explain the importance of using the deodorant. For example, showing the discomfort developed by sweat is creation of need. It shows the consumer that they need a solution to the problem.
AXE adverts, also, modify the attitude and perceptions that the community has toward the deodorant. They seek to eliminate the superstitions that exist within the society towards the deodorant. The adverts make the consumers understand the facts about it. As a result, they induce a change in the market increasing consumerism of the deodorant. The modern adverts from the company have become more convincing than the previous ones.
They integrate the modern lifestyle behaviors with the advertisement. They convince the consumers that the deodorant promotes modern lifestyle adopted by most people in the community. Some of the adverts integrate entertainment with advertisement. For example, AXE companies organize for events in collaboration with music celebrities. During the events, celebrities offer entertainment and advertise the product. This strategy is very effective especially when it targets the young generation in the market.
Cultural Context
AXE adverts affect cultural status in various countries. They expose the interest and obligations that the countries have toward their culture. It shows how the countries engage in sexual activities. They show the intensity of sexual ambivalence and teenage sexual perception. For example, the American government banned advertisement of AXE deodorant on sexual basis. Cumulative Messages
There are repeated messages that shape the people’s perception towards sex. These messages are called cumulative messages. AXE adverts may portray a sense of sexual obsession within the community. The feeling raises opinions that portray sex as being dirty. The adverts, also, seem to suggest that appearance is the only way towards obtaining prosperity.
For example, the AXE adverts suggest that women are attracted by appearance only. However, we understand that women evaluate men in diverse ways. In addition, their adverts use young women and men for advertisement. They send a message which portrays sex as a tool for the young people. It, also, display sex as object of pleasure rather than a component of the entire relationship.
Emotional Appeals
The adverts of AXE Company use emotions to prompt people into action. They create emotions using various strategies depending on the adverts’ nature. The strategies include creating a sense of belonging, using love to symbolize affection, creating a need for approval in the community, tapping the principal of association with others, and fear.
Particularly, the adverts take advantage of fearing death, failure and protection. Other emotions that the company uses to manipulate consumers include guilt, lack of control and public sentiments that dominates their markets.
References
Burck, C. (1995). Gender, power and relationships. London: Routledge.
Burges, J. B. (1997). The advertisement. Cambridge: Chadwyck-Healey.
Nicosia, F. M. (1974). Advertising, management and society: a business point of view. New York: McGraw-Hill.