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When TV Commercials Wink

2/14/2021

14 Comments

 
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by David Hagenbuch - professor of Marketing at Messiah University -
​author of 
Honorable Influence - founder of Mindful Marketing

As a Seinfeld fan, one of my favorite episodes is when George’s eye catches a piece of flying grapefruit, causing him to confuse everyone with his involuntary winking.  Such hijinks are funny for a television sitcom, but what happens when commercials use conflicting verbal and visual cues, particularly on TV’s biggest stage?
 
Before the recent big game, a friend graciously invited my analysis of the ads—You don’t have to ask twice for my opinion on advertising, especially Super Bowl commercials, so I shared thoughts about one particular ad that seemed strange.
 
Toyota’s “Upstream” commercial featured the adoption story of Jessica Long, a 13-time gold-medal-winning Paralympic swimmer.  Long’s rise to success despite severe adversity was inspiring; however, there was also something unsettling about the ad.
 
Pushing against the positive verbal messages of parental love and athletic achievement was a literal stream of cold, dark water that ran through every scene, including the family’s home and other indoor places.  That’s a disconcerting sight that can cause anguish for anyone, especially those who have experienced floods in their home, school, or work.
 
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The negative visual of flood water worked against the ad’s affirmative verbal messages, significantly diluting the positive affect Toyota likely wanted for its ad, and making it “Simple-Minded Marketing.”  The automaker certainly had good intentions, but I doubt the inadvertently somber spot did much to boost the company’s brand.
 
I remembered this ad partly because of its unpleasant aftertaste but also because I’ve studied such verbal-visual disconnects before.  Several years ago, I did research on the same phenomenon found in pharmaceutical ads, which are probably the worst offenders when it comes to sending mixed commercial messages.
 
When we watch a prescription drug ad, we usually hear a list of the medication’s side effects, which the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) mandates.  However, as a narrator recites those potential negative outcomes, the commercial often shows very pleasant visuals, like the ones seen in this ad for Lipitor.  At about 33 seconds into the spot, a narrator starts to quickly read several serious warnings:
 
 “Lipitor is not for everyone, including people with liver problems and women who are nursing or pregnant or may become pregnant.  You need simple blood tests to check for liver problems.  Tell your doctor if you are taking other medications or if you have muscle pain or weakness.  This may be the sign of a rare or serious side effect.”
 
Ironically, the visual backdrop for these weighty words is a guy and his dog taking a pleasant walk through the woods and later jumping into a lake for some swimming fun.  Yes, we hear the side effects in such ads, but are we really listening to and understanding their gravity, given that very positive visual scenes distract us from those negative verbal messages?
 
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That’s the question I set out to answer through research that began with a group of students in an Advertising Ethics class I was teaching.  In a controlled empirical study that involved commercials for fictitious pharmaceuticals, we found that people do indeed discount drugs’ negative side effects when shown positive “dissonant” visuals at the same time.
 
I presented those findings at the American Marketing Association’s Marketing & Public Policy Conference in Washington, D.C., where a member of the FDA commended the research and asked for a copy of the presentation.  Health Marketing Quarterly later published the study.
 
So, one “Simple-Minded” Super Bowl ad failed to make effective use of reinforcing, or “redundant,” visuals—no big deal.  Actually, several other $5.5 million+ spots made the same mistake in similar ways and in doing so conveniently completed the other three quadrants of the Mindful Matrix:
 
 “Alexa’s Body” - Amazon claimed the steamiest spot in this year’s Super Bowl.  For nearly sixty seconds, a female Amazon employee fantasized about handsome Black Panther star Michael B. Jordan, who replaced the smart speaker in her lustful daydreams, which included Jordan removing his shirt and joining her in a bubble bath for two.
 

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The commercial was uncomfortable to watch in mixed company and may have posed problems for parents, but the real issue was the spot’s repeated sexual objectification of Jordan.  Role-reversal (a woman mentally undressing a man) may have seemed funny, but no one should be reduced to their body parts or have their personhood downgraded to a “vessel.”  Similarly, it’s dangerous to objectify men as doing so suggests that it’s also okay to objectify women.
 
The ad involved dissonant visuals in that images of a sexy superstar have nothing to do with voice commands about ‘the number of tablespoons in a cup’ or ‘turning on the sprinklers.’  The pairing of an A-list celebrity with Alexa probably has helped keep Amazon’s smart speaker top-of-mind, but all the gratuitous sexual innuendo made the ad “Single-Minded Marketing.”
 
“Happy” - In its “Ultra” light beer ad, Michelob employed an entire lineup of past and present all-star athletes.  For instance, there were still shots and/or video clips of Serena Williams, Mia Hamm, Anthony Davis, Usain Bolt, Billy Jean King, Arnold Palmer, Wilt Chamberlain, Jimmy Butler, Peyton Manning, and more.
 
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I wonder whether Michelob got permission from all these athletes, or their estates, to associate their images with its brand, but assuming it did, there’s still another problem that directly involves dissonant visuals:  People don’t ascend to those kinds of athletic heights by downing much beer.  There’s little to suggest that alcohol enhances athletic performance; in fact, alcohol has exactly the opposite effect:  It reduces aerobic efficiency, impairs motor skills, decreases strength, disrupts sleep, and slows recovery.
 
Michelob’s suggestion that happiness helps athletes win may have some truth to it, but there’s clearly much more to athletic achievement, namely physical and mental discipline both of which alcohol easily impairs.  For that reason, it was irresponsible of Michelob to show images of athletes in uniform, on their courts, fields, etc., along with alcohol-friendly soundbites such as, “fueling the run toward greatness” and “something more vital.”
 
How ironic and tragic it was that Kansas City Chief’s outside linebacker coach Brit Reid, son of head coach Andy Reid, caused a multi-vehicle accident days before Super Bowl, apparently due to alcohol impairment.  The accident caused him to miss the game and left a young girl fighting for her life.  Alcohol and athletics definitely don’t mix, and it’s doubtful that such precarious positioning will give Michelob’s brand much boost, which makes the beermaker’s ad “Mindless Marketing.”
 
“Get Back to Nature” - After the three commercials just described, it’s easy to be suspicious of all Super Bowl spots, believing that most played with consumers’ minds and sacrificed social mores.  Thankfully however, the preceding ads were exceptions.  Most of the commercials employed redundant, not dissonant, visuals that appropriately reinforced their verbal messages.
 
One of the best examples of such visual-verbal consistency was Bass Pro Shops and Cabela’s 60-second spot that featured clips of ordinary people planning for and enjoying beautiful places in the great outdoors while hiking, fishing, camping, and more.
 

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Sprinkled into some scenes was gear that one could probably purchase from the outfitter, but none of the product placement was overdone; rather, all subtly and artfully supported the simple call to experience nature.  Consequently, viewers were likely both to remember the firm’s ‘enjoy the outdoors’ value proposition and to believe its closing promise, “We’re there for you.” 
 
Bass Pro Shops and Cabela’s commercial wasn’t the only advertiser to hit a home run in terms of verbal-visual consistency that was both effective and ethical.  A couple of other best-practices ads belonged to Huggies for “Welcome to the World, Baby” and to Indeed for “The Rising.”
 
A wink is the epitome of a dissonant visual—it slyly states, “Don’t believe what I’m saying.”  Advertisers shouldn’t ‘wink’ with their ads, i.e., use dissonant visuals that contradict their spots’ verbal messages.  Instead, commercials should enlist strategically-chosen redundant visuals that reinforce the right verbal messages.  In Super Bowl ads and in other communication, that consistency makes for “Mindful Marketing.”


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14 Comments
Zachary Mayro
2/15/2021 10:26:12 pm

It really is amazing that companies can promote things like alcohol and tie it to high level athletes. I think that not only are commercials like that are misleading, but also can be dangerous to society at times. It promotes drinking to people who want to be athletes and who look up to the world's biggest athletes and gives the message that consuming alcohol will help you achieve your dreams of becoming an athlete or be like the athlete. While this advertisement definitely is not good, I wonder what kind of impact it made on those who saw it. I wonder if the company who made that ad knew what they were doing and still created the ad. Also, those Super Bowl ads were not cheap, so companies have to be sure that the commercial they make is definitely something that will have a positive impact on the company. Do companies know that sometimes they put out conflicting messages or messages that shine a negative light on the company?

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Christian Yeager link
2/16/2021 04:51:18 pm

I really found this article very fascinating to read. I had never thought before of how a visual message a commercial is giving off could be contradicting the verbal message, whether that be intentionally or non-intentionally. I did not watch most of the Superbowl so I didn't have the chance to see most of the commercials that you mentioned. However, I think it's very fascinating and educational the way that the commercials were broken down and how easily it was to understand the message you were conveying. One thing that I truly had never thought of before was what you pointed out about the commercials that are trying to sell a medicine. Usually when they get to a list of side effects the drug may have they show much happier scenes, rather than scenes that reflect the tone of what is being said. Whether intentional or not this is something I will always think about when watching commercials like that. I wonder if the companies that make the Super Bowl ads analyze them in depth the way that you just did? Maybe not, considering the way that the commercials came across. You would think with all the money companies are forking out for these ads to play across screens all of the United States they'd think a little more about how the commercial would come across or test it out an a select group of people. It does not seem this is the case though. I like how you ended the article on a positive note, with an example that did show mindful marketing. I found this article very interesting, and will carry with me what you said next time I tune in to watch TV.

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John Sumner
2/16/2021 10:57:56 pm

I thought the same thing about Toyota's ad. I thought something was coming from the water or a dark turn was coming for the entirety of the commercial. When nothing ended up happening, I was confused by the scenery and surrounding that were in the entire commercial. I wish she would've been surrounded by light blue shining water, because the story they were trying to tell was one of triumph and victory. The water, however, portrays a mood of a looming monster, or a message of defeat.

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AJ Smith
2/16/2021 11:44:37 pm

The Toyota advertisement stuck out to me as well. I actually had to re-watch the ad to fully understand the message that they were going for. I remember seeing this ad during the game. Because I was in a crowded (but still socially distant) room, I couldn't hear everything the soft spoken narrator was saying. For this reason, i originally got an eerie feel from the dark commercial that was flooded in pool water. I think that this might show that for a Super Bowl ad especially, it may be better to go the route of bigger, more colorful, and more attention grabbing. This way the tonality of your commercial cannot be mistaken if a person does not hear every word.

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Belosan Jekale
2/17/2021 12:43:54 am

This article was very interesting to read. It brought up great points about ads getting their points across. The one ad that really stuck out to me was the Alexa's Body ad. Throughout the years, advertisement companies have sexualized products to give a false fantasy to its consumers. In this particular ad, Alexa's "body" or vessel was compared to Michael B Jordan's body. It did get Alexa's main purpose across that it could dim the light, tell you how many table spoons are in the cut, turning on the sprinkler etc but it failed to give a realistic look and gave off the impression that sexualizing a person is okay.

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Leengee Pierre link
2/17/2021 10:40:36 am

Based on the article, I found it interesting that " Ultra" light beer ads use athlete to persuade the costumers to buy from them, which I think is cool. But I feel like using an athlete to be in this type of commercial is not the way to get a percentage of people to buy their drink. As the blog said beer reduces an athlete's performance which cause them to not drink beer, which I think is the opposite of what the ads is showing us. I definitely agree that happiness is not a way to win nor drinking beer, but the effort of the athlete. At some point I feel like this ad is not being honest nor using the right theme to persuade the audience and I think this blog definitely give you a way of understanding what Michelob did wrong.

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Sarah Stubbe
2/17/2021 12:21:46 pm

I genuinely enjoyed reading this article. It put into words a phenomena I had never been able to put my finger on; namely with pharmaceutical commercials (as mentioned) and their mixed messages of warning and elation. Growing up, my family used to always make a point to laugh at the incredible warnings being rapidly listed and exposed in fine print while the characters in the commercial dance, laugh, smile, etc. However, I do question whether or not the pharmaceutical drugs would ever make it off of the shelf should the side effects be presented to the full extend of severity. For this reason, from a marketing standpoint, I do believe (in this instance) the disconnect is necessary for the product; perhaps even to the point of over-compensation due to the alarming nature of what is being discussed (side effects).
On another note, I found the analysis of the Alexa/Michael B. Jordan commercial to be fascinating. Although I personally find Jordan to be incredibly attractive, something about the commercial did not sit right with me- likely the oversexualization of the actor for the product's convenience.

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Madelyn Blake
2/18/2021 03:18:23 pm

"Alexa Body" was an utterly disturbing, and honestly infuriating advertisement. I greatly appreciate that Mr. Hagenbuch pointed out that it was objectifying because it most definitely was. The ad made me, an immature teenager, uncomfortable, so I can't imagine how it made even more conservative people than me feel. Disgusting on Amazon's part.

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Taylor Gibson
2/22/2021 02:11:32 pm

I found this article incredibly interesting and agreed with many of the points made by Dr. Hagenbuch. I was fascinated to realize that during the listing of harmful side effects for medicine, the commercials usually play clips that portray happiness. After reflecting on my own personal experiences with these types of commercials, I certainly agree that by playing positive clips, it distracts the viewer from thoroughly listening to the side effects. It is amazing to realize the marketing techniques that are used in many everyday ads that I view daily!

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Rosalie Spurlin
2/22/2021 07:06:07 pm

I agree with the "Alexa Body" commercial to be inappropriate and highly uncomfortable. I understand if Amazon Alexa is marketing towards a specific group of individuals; however, I personally do not think this specific group of individuals was necessarily in the crowd for the Super Bowl. I also find the idea of personifying a simple electronic to be disturbing; Amazon is trying to push our society closer to being comfortable with artificial intelligence. I find sexualizing an inanimate object, or even Michael B Jordan, to be unethical.

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Kayla Smith
2/22/2021 09:05:58 pm

I thought this article was interesting and had some very good points. I thought it was extra interesting in regard to medicine commercials. I had never really paid attention to what played in the background while the side effects are being listed. I always paid attention to the side effects because I found that, a lot of times, some of the effects are ironic compared to what the medication is meant to treat. Looking back, I realize how true it is for almost every commercial about medicine. There is always someone in the background smiling or doing some fun activity.

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Cece McCrory
2/22/2021 11:10:16 pm

I found this article really interesting. I liked the insight into many different super bowl ads that did not hit the mark. I never really thought about the medicine ads listing all the harmful side affects while showing happy positive images before. That was something I had always seen in those commercials and have come to expect it. Reading this I now realize how bad it is that they do that, in almost every commercial I see! The commercial with Michael B Jordan really struck me too. As a woman, if roles were reversed I would not be happy with a man openly objectifying a woman on public television on one of the most watched sports games every year. If I wouldn't want that sort of thing happening to a woman it definitely shouldn't happen to a male. The description of that commercial did not sit well with me at all.

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Courtney Dunlop
2/23/2021 09:49:50 am

This article posed some interesting ideas about the conflicting messages that advertisements sometimes send to viewers. The company whose commercial stood out to me in this regard is Michelob, who used pictures of high-level athletes as they talked about drinking beer. This is a very misleading message to send because they did not get to the top of their sport by drinking beer, and the commercial used words that seemed to claim that. This type of messaging can be very dangerous because it is promoting drinking - and essentially is coming from the athletes our society idolizes.

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Jarod Bingaman
2/23/2021 10:28:24 am

This article shows how many companies only think about profits and profits only. Any way they can get an edge over a competitor, the corporation will do it at al costs. Some of the ads didn't even make sense with what the company does. Dr. Hagenbuch said it perfectly when he said that high level athletes probably didn't get to the top because of drinking Michelob Ultra.

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