This Skyy vodka ad was clearly made with a specific demographic in mind, which is rather interesting considering the fact that vodka is a product that can and is consumed by people of all genders, sexualities, races and class. The ad uses white male and female actors. This ad makes some assumptions about the viewer.
First, judging from the settings in this ad, it can be concluded that this ad was clearly made to appeal to males. Looking closer one would see that the man in the ad is comfortably seated while the woman is standing. The man is the only one holding a glass of skyy vodka. The woman is then presented as a reward that is associated with drinking the vodka. Why couldn’t it be the other way round? Why couldn’t the man be presented as a gift to the woman for drinking skyy vodka? The conclusion here is that this ad assumes women to be a subordinate to men; therefore it focuses more its male viewers.
Second, this ad assumes that the viewer here is a heterosexual male who would be enticed by an attractive female. Why couldn’t the ad use two homosexual males or two lesbians? Considering that homosexuality isn’t exactly a strongly accepted thing in the general society, it might give some negative impressions on the drink. For instance, heterosexual males might not want to buy the drink to avoid being seen gay by the people around them. Even homosexual men who have not fully accepted into the society might also not buy the drink to avoid putting a tab on themself. Given the above reasons, the ad uses the norms of the society to avoid creating a negative impression that would induce bad business.
Furthermore, the ad uses white male and female. The ad would still work if the actors here were Black or Hispanic or Asian. In the general society, white people are mainly seen as superior both socially and financially. The producers of the ad probably reasoned that it would make more sense using white people than using minorities whom might not afford the drink.
Finally, looking at background in the ad, outside the window is a beautiful view showing sky scrapers with beautiful lights. This looks like some place that could be found in Manhattan. An apartment or hotel room with such a view cannot be afforded by everyone. The ad assumes the viewers to be persons of higher class in the society.
Overall, this is a good analysis of the ad "Vodka Skyy". First of all, the writer was able to give a detailed breakdown of the ad. The woman in the ad, I feel is a reward to the man, according to the writer. Here, the woman is serving the man some of the drink; which I feel is a reward to the man who is seated comfortably in the ad. This ad is showing a picture of a beautiful woman, about pouring some drinks into a glass cup, held by a man. In my own analysis, the ad uses the feminine characteristics of a woman to sell the product. Its main motive, I believe is to make the public aware of the fact that "sex" sells. On the other hand, the ad shows the superiority of masculinity to femininity. The ad is a clear indication of the sexuality of a woman. Its setting is rich and the atmosphere is one of romance. This ad defines the characteristics of a woman clearly. The writer wrote about the superiority of masculinity to femininity.
ReplyDeleteThe writer talked about the ad making use of white male and female to advertise its product (the drink). I feel here that the ad's intention may not have bee to use while individuals because they are financially capable than people of other races. I feel that people of other colors are also financially capable. So using white individuals is not necessarily an issue in the advertisement. The writer would have pointed out the sexuality of femininity, which is clearly shown on the advertisement, through her sexy clothing, and I feel by using a female to serve the male sitting than, t is simply because femininity is a sexual figure in the public.