Advertising is so intuitive. It is not about who can create a commercial short with the biggest explosion or the most vividly interesting color scheme or the most intelligent-sounding individuals. The true key to advertising a product as to “knock sales out of the ball park” is to understand what people want, firstly. Secondly, it is imperative to understand how people want to receive their desires. The Malcom Gladwell article makes blatantly clear the truth that men and women look at things differently; even the clothes that they wear. The main theme in the article is the observation that Levi’s Dockers were one of the most successful products in the history of clothing retail because the individuals who advertised it understood men and the way that they process information, mainly. In the 1980′s it was majorly unheard of for a grown man to show any in his fashion sense/choices. not wanting to appear weak, men didnt spend time considering which purchases would be most aesthetically pleasing or which combinations of clothes would be most admired. With the introduction of Dockers, men could look presentable without appearing to have made any effort to do so. I would conjecture to say that almost all men, at one time or another, considered what type of clothes would make them look most dashing, but some false sense of masculinity kept that area of conversation from being addressed between males. The advertisers for Levi understood this and so they created a series of advertisement that seemed to whisper in the ear of the American male, “Hey, I know that you can’t talk about your clothes, but i have something new that will make you the king of your domain; don’t worry, I promise it’s good.”
Today, Diesel understands, as well, that they need to advertise to a specific group of people to earn the most profit. Diesel, unlike Levi, is advertising to a crowd that accepts the importance of interesting personal fashion. They offer jeans, accessories, and are even teaming up with Fiat to make a Diesel-style automobile.
Diesel advertises, in many ways, to a very specific group dynamic. They use very provocative advertisements to attract the rebellious youth of America. They use a somewhat dry et creative sense of humor to advertise their denim. One example is their “Global Warming Ready” campaign.
The two different types of advertising took two different approaches. However, they both knew how to do one thing: sell to their intended audience.
After reading the essays I was interested in the fact that males and females respond differently to all types of advertising. You gave a great example of advertising for men in the Levi ads, but I’m curious as to what your take is on the Diesel ads. Are they geared more towards men or women?