The 89th Academy Awards was held
on Feb, 26. The most embarrassing thing of Oscar in this year was announcing
wrong winner of the best picture which unavoidably led to heated discussion on
how political Oscar was in this year which might be influenced by Donald Trump’s
‘Muslim travel ban’. If you notice those ads broadcast on the ceremony, you
will find that this year’s Oscar commercials would love to strike a political chord
as Hollywood.
Why those brands were willing to pay up to $2.1
million for a 30-second to express their values rather than their products in a
radical way? One explanation is that they want to make connections with
consumers by evoking consumers’ emotions which will have an influence on
consumers’ decision making in the information search process.
Thus, this article will explain how those
ads affect consumers’ decision making in the information search process from
attitudes and values.
There are four ads chosen to be explained
which include topics from uniting the nation, to championing women.
#1 Cadillac – “Carry”
This one-minute ad began with “We are
nation divided…” with a historical video of 1960 civil rights movement campaign
which intended to resonate with American public.
The ad included footage of Mohammed Ali,
Marilyn Monroe, and Dwight Eisenhower to show how different people have the
power to unite the country.
The narrator used language of “We” such as “We
carry each other forward, no matter who we are and where we come from…” to make
audience more easily to immerse into the context of the ad.
As an American luxury car brand, Cadillac
has witnessed many political campaigns in America. Thus, it’s not surprising
that Cadillac chose this symbol to express their view on immigrant policy
released by Trump. Cadillac tried to convey that it always stays in the same
position of American public and distinguish itself from foreign car brands. It
wants to share the value of uniting the nation to connect with target
customers.
#2 Hyatt – “For a world of understanding”
This ad seems to more directly reflect
Trump’s new policy but conveys value in a gentle way. The ad opened with a
Muslim woman and a traveler to the tune of a song named “
What the World Needs Now Is Love”. The ad
included many different scenarios of people from different cultures
traveling around the world and forming friendships.
Actually, it has been a long time that Hyatt
didn’t buy advertising on primetime TV. The TV commercial is just a part of its
global campaign which aims to change their brand image in the U.S, India and
China. Hyatt chose such as a topic and the moment to launch its ad because it
can arise people’s awareness of understanding. Unlike Cadillac, Hyatt tried to
convey a much more universal value——world commonwealth and human connections.
It’s easier to influence customers’ emotional feelings.
#3 New York Times – “The truth is…”
This ad had a similar beginner as Cadillac’s
saying “The truth is our nation is more divided than ever”. The ad was as
simple as a slide which covered many controversy topics varying from feminist
to Muslims. Since Trump openly criticized media, people pay much attention to
American journalism. As a newspaper of more than 150 years’ history, it's a
good chance to express the New York Times’ value and brand image.
Though it might be risky to run an ad which
seems to directly reply to Trump’s critics, the New York Times tried to
highlight the need for truthful, independent reporting in a chaotic time. The
value also conforms with democracy’s value. Well, it really got a reaction from
Trump.
#4 GE – “Millie Dresselhaus”
The ad used a fun approach of assuming “What
if we treated great female scientists like they were stars?”. It took Mildred
Dresselhaus as the heroine to call for gender equality. The tune of the ad was
light and humorous which would be more effective to raise people’s awareness of
equality.
It’s also not surprising that GE launched an
action named #BalanceTheEquation to call for more women in engineering roles.
Gender equality is always a heated topic to be used in commercials. GE just
chose a right time to show their value when Women’s march was going on.
After analyzing all these four ads in
Oscar, it’s easy to understand why brands pay a lots to express their value and
position rather than their products in such a big event.
1)
Using attitude sequence to
impact consumers’ feelings, perceptions, learning processes and behaviors.
All these four ads follow the attitude
sequence as below:
They try to connect their audience in the realistic
context. They use documentary videos, travel scenarios, news and champion woman
to help you immerse into their ads. They tell you about nation, understanding, truth
and equality. If you care about them, you will have a feeling of belongingness.
You think you share the same attitude and value with the brands. Moreover, those
brands call for actions to express your attitude, like Cadillac #DareGreatly
and GE #BalanceTheEquation. Finally, when consumers think about the topics,
they will recall the brands.
2)
Strike a chord with consumers’
values
As is known to us all, the ads usually remain
neutral to avoid some unnecessary protests from different parties. However, their
strategies have changed. They try to show their values to build emotional
connections with consumers. It seems that striking a chord with political
topics is an effective way which can both attract attentions and intrigue
consumers. Just as Melody Lee, Cadillac's brand marketing director said “Advertising
is intended to be a little bit provocative. It sort of needs to reach out from
your screen and intrigue you -- it's so hard to break through otherwise”.
References:
1.5 brands were deliberately political with
their Oscar ads this year.
2. Some Oscars Ads Might Strike a Political
Chord
3. 颁奖乌龙盖过了怒怼川普？但这仍是最政治化的一届奥斯卡
4. 从超级碗、格莱美到奥斯卡，为什么一大波广告都谈起了政治？
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