We live in a world that is greatly affected by advertising. This can range from simple lifestyle choices to complex life theories. What we find interesting though is the length that advertisers go to make their commercials catch the attention of people. Even though this product is pretty small in meaning, the ad has a huge image surrounded by it. Axe body spray is a very popular thing in a young man’s life. We thought it would be a great idea to show what the ads are really telling people through this one commercial.
This commercial is definitely directed towards men. It tells men that if they use this spray, women will come to them in the masses. This is naturally assumed that men are encouraged especially at a younger age to go out and get experience with the other sex. This ad encourages this ideology using beautiful women as a plus to using their product. This is interesting because this reveals a double standard with how we view men and women in having experience with the opposite gender. If this were a commercial for a women’s perfume, we might see it approached in a more subtle matter. Maybe only one man would be in the shot, and we might assume that it would be more intimate. A woman would not be shown with billions of men running for her because women are held to a different standard. In all honesty, if a woman was shown like the man in this commercial, we would assume that she was a slut.
Another social trend that we noticed is the over-sexualization of a product. We have to remember that this commercial is about a body spray. In this setting however, we connect this simple spray to a sexual feeling or drive which may make us more likely to buy the product. This is a tactic that is very common and used by Axe very well. They make it very clear that this product is intended for attraction of the opposite sex. All the women in this ad are barely clothed and there is a reason for this. This continues what may be a very apparent trait that sex sells in this country.
Men and women of this country respond to things that they can relate to when it comes to advertising. This ad does this by showing an average man in the commercial. The man is not super buff like Arnold Schwarzenegger or extremely charming like Channing Tatum. This allows for other men to connect to the character and imagine what it would be like to be in his shoes. The women are all in bikinis and the man’s life is great. What does this prove for the women in this commercial? This really only depicts women as sexual objects to a man. The women in the commercial seem to be driven by a primal desire to be around this great smelling man. These women don’t necessarily get to make their own decisions. This might give men the wrong idea that men might be able to manipulate women which might turn out worse for them in the end.
With this ad being directed to young men, it is very easy for some people to be easily swayed by ideas on TV. This ad shows a young man with tons of beautiful women and it sets a very high bar for what men expect women to be like. Men enjoy thinking that all women look great in bikinis and that they will rush towards men at a whim. However this goes back to the fact that the man in the video was a pretty average looking man. This again represents a double standard for men and women that has a certain expectation for women and not for men.
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