Critical Thinking & Writing Skills

Advertisement Analysis Assignment

Integrated Programme in Management

Indian Institute of Management Indore

“Men’s Deodorant: Selling Different Brands of

Masculinity?”

By:
Halim Nazar
2019IPM061
 “Men’s Deodorant: Selling Different Brands of Masculinity?”

Companies worldwide operate with the same primary objective, earn more profits, and for this

purpose, they strive to gain more and more customers and ensure that their customer’s brand

loyalty does not wither. Advertisements are instrumental in this regard. In fact, ads are not just

crucial for the companies but for the consumers as well. The purpose of advertising is threefold:

to inform, to persuade, and to remind. Thus, it informs consumers and aids in decision

making. It also provides companies a platform to study their competition and plan accordingly.

Analyzing advertisements is an excellent way to realize the company’s objectives, their target

audience, and their strategy. But the most important benefit is how advertising helps create an

image for the brand and generates brand loyalty among the masses.

So, I decided to approach deodorants after reading an article on Psychology Today that spoke on

how the” Old Spice Guy” was the new “Marlboro Man.” Basically feeding their version of

masculinity to the viewers and making them identify those products as essential for achieving

this peak masculinity. Upon closer analysis, I realized that this was the trend followed by the

leading companies in this segment, such as:

 Old Spice

 Axe

 Dove Men+ Care

 So, this ad analysis would be comparing these different ideas of masculinity and how they’ve

been presented through the ad medium and ultimately analyze how effective these ads have

been in achieving their real purpose, getting us hooked on to their product.

The report will be following the given structure:

 Description of Advertisements

 A brief analysis of the advertisements

 Elimination of third best ad

 Analysis through the rhetorical triangle

 Analysis through Schrank’s model

 Conclusion

Advertisement 1

The video begins with a young man in an indoor basketball court, enjoying a playful banter with

his friend, and going to play basketball. When out of the blue, the iconic Old Spice Guy pops in

to check on his son. He’s on roller blades, playing hockey with woodchips from the floor flying

everywhere. The clearly annoyed son looks at his father and says, “Dad! Not Cool.” To which

the man responds in his characteristic charm, “You know what’s not uncool,” while lifting an

American football that opens up like a fancy gadget from a sci-fi movie, to reveal a pack of “Old

Spice After hours.” He then goes on to claim that Old Spice After hours, “whisks sweat away into

the night, with jazz.” While apparently bending the reality around him, with the opened up

football going out of the frame and reappearing as a basketball that he tosses away and the entire
court turns into a jazz concert, and he starts playing a jazz number. Only to be interrupted by his

son, when the son reveals that he prefers Ultra Smooth as “It does all that, without the jazz.” To

which the old spice guy suggests that they “settle this difference with a game of.” An evidently

embarrassed son cuts off his father mid-sentence, as he’s aware of how it would end, but finally

reveals to us that it was “horse” (game of horse). A pleased old spice guy scores a hoop while

seated on top of his white horse and says, “that’s my boy.”

The ad ends with a hockey stick bringing all of the deodorants to the screen and them presenting

the new old spice slogan “Smell Like Your Own Man, Man.” The full youtube video then

proceeds to let us hear the old spice guy humorously ramble on (This part wasn’t there on TV

ads)

Analysis of Advertisement 1

The original Old Spice Guy, Isaiah Mustafa (former NFL star), returns in this advertisement. Old

Spice has basically woven a plot around Mustafa’s Old Spice Guy character over the past decade

and has now introduced him as a dad and a pretty embarrassing one too. The addition of a TV

son not only furthers the plot but intends to show that it’s OK to have different opinions

(especially with your father) while appealing to an even younger male audience (Old Spice’s

Core Demographic was around 25 to 40 year old men) and introduces a new product line Ultra

Smooth. Although the father-son duo disagree on the product, their loyalty to the brand comes

out as a testament to the high standards of Old Spice

Humor is the overall theme of the commercial. Spontaneous and random events of the

commercial keep the audience entertained and laughing. Enjoyment allows potential customers
to admire and remember the commercial, but even more importantly, to remember the product.

Mustafa is phenomenal in his bare-chested, ripped self. Exuding the confidence and wit

characteristic of the old spice guy. He literally breaks reality more casually than he breathes, and

this, combined with his outrageous and borderline nonsensical statements and actions, makes for

quite the entertaining watch.

Old Spice has worked on their slogan. Building upon the previous ones such as “Smells Like a

Man,” “The Man, your Man Smells Like,” and now, ”Smell Like Your Own Man, Man.” Here

Old Spice again conveys the idea of sticking to one’s own preferences, while also implying that

they have multiple manly smelling options, or in other words, you too can smell like (not

become) a man by using Old Spice.

Advertisement 2

The advertisement starts off with a young man spraying the Axe Mini Ticket (pocket-sized

deodorant, they sell in the regular size as well ) as the voiceover says, “Axe chocolate, aapko

banaye (transforms you into), a sweet man,” literally and figuratively. As he turns into a

Chocolate Man and goes around town, offering pieces of chocolates from his body to women,

either to console or appreciate them. He broke off his chocolate ear and offered it to a girl who

was in tears (symbolizing that he lent his ear to her while she was in distress). He’s a gentleman,

spending quality time and caring for the women, basically coming off as a kind, caring, and

sweet man. There’s nice upbeat music in the background that goes well with the visuals
Analysis of Advertisement 2

Axe has been notorious for its racy and sexually suggestive ads. In fact, the previous Axe

chocolate ad had been removed by the broadcasting ministry as it was deemed too provocative.

But here, the execution is in sharp contrast with the last campaign, where the character was

visibly playful, boisterous, and flirting with women. There aren’t any mobs of young girls

swarming around the man. Instead, we see a gentleman who is caring, respectful, and sweet. The

objective was to convey the caring and sensitive side of the character, and the advertisement gets

the message across well. It is short and well structured, but it’s rather peculiar at the same time

considering that it’s an Axe ad. Axe has paid cognizance to the criticisms it has received and has

moved to a more sensitive approach. Yet, by making this transition, it seems Axe has lost some

of the flair it was known for. The Axe slogan, “Smell Sweet, Stay Ready,” intends to create an

idea that “smelling sweet” is akin to “being sweet” and that by spraying Axe, they’d be ready for

any occasion.

Advertisement 3

“An Irritating itch is hard to ignore,” Dove starts off strong with these words and moves on to

show us visuals of men engaged in some tasks like moving furniture or playing with kids, only to

get hampered by an itch, while the voiceover tells us that it could have been caused by using

powerful antiperspirants. The scene immediately changes, and Dove introduces their new

antiperspirant with “48 hours of sweat protection” and “¼ moisturizer technology” that they

claim was “specially made for men” and is “tough on sweat, not on skin.”
Analysis of Advertisement 3

Dove has gone for a short, informative, yet attractive approach in this ad. They have stuck to the

basics and haven’t done anything over the top. They get the information across very well and

succeed in informing consumers of the dangers of using very strong antiperspirants. Unlike other

ads, they don’t seem to be selling a specific idea of masculinity along with the product. This is

because Dove has another ad campaign running parallel to this one. Where they promote the

entire Dove Men+ Care product line, here they show a man as a human, rather than a he-man as

other ads have done. This idea has been subtly described in this ad as well, as we see men doing

normal productive activities and enjoying the little things in life. The parallel ad campaign,

although used to provide context, will not be considered as these will be judged on their own

merit. The ad is logically perfect, showing instances of itching and how it would be disturbing,

then explaining how, despite using products, such issues could be faced and then showing Dove

as their savior.

Comparison

The third ad by Dove is arguably the most informative of the bunch. It’s also the shortest. Dove

has gone for a more generic approach with their ad, while the others have been quite outlandish,

and this makes their ads more memorable and, in return, their products as well. Although there is

a charm in Dove’s simplicity, it is just not as eye-catching as both the others. Axe has taken a

complete U-turn from their usual strategy and brought back their 2010s hit, the chocolate man,

but as a gentleman and not a “chick-magnet.” While Old Spice has continued on with the Old

Spice Guy’s story by bringing the character a son and has shown the potential to get more

creative content. Ultimately, Old Spice and Axe seem to be selling a lifestyle and their brand of
masculinity with their product, while Dove has only focused on the deodorant, and for these

reasons, Dove has been eliminated from further analysis.

Final Analysis

 Rhetorical Triangle

The ads mostly appeal to pathos, with both giving different notions of masculinity and

desirability that they have packaged with their product.

Axe shows a caring, kind, and sweet (chocolate) man, who appreciates and consoles

ladies and is adored by them. An upbeat song adds to the emotional appeal in the

advertisement

Old Spice shows us the fun yet quirky relationship between a dad and his son. “The apple

doesn’t fall far from the tree,” as is evident from their preference for Old Spice (albeit

different products). In the ad, Old Spice shows us their epitome of manliness, the old

spice guy but still encourages us to be our own man. Also, there is a certain nostalgia

associated with Isaiah Mustafa coming back as the old spice guy.

Axe has appealed to reason and logic by bringing up the ethos of chocolate as something

delicious and sweet throughout the ad and thus claiming the users would smell chocolaty

sweet.

Isaiah Mustafa being a former NFL superstar, has his own credibility, but his extensive

ad presence over the last decade as the Old Spice Guy lends his character an ethos of his

own. They have lightly touched on logos by mentioning that their deodorant, being an

antiperspirant, would make the user comfortable by keeping sweat away.

 Both Ads make a very persuasive argument but fail to provide much clarity regarding

their product and thus fall low on informativeness.

 Schrank’s Method

Old Spice ad

Vague claim: they claim that it “whisks sweat away with jazz,” this does not make much

sense and thus can’t be disproved. Instead of Jazz, they could have said that it’s soothing

or comforting, and that would have made more sense.

Water is wet claim: Old Spice’s tagline for the ad, “Smell Like Your Own Man, Man,”

is apparent and redundant as a man would smell like himself.

Testimonial: These statements above can also be seen as testimony from Isaiah

Mustafa(Old Spice Guy), retired NFL star, regarding the quality of Old Spice products.

Axe Ad

We’re different and Unique claim: “Axe Chocolate Aapko banaye (makes you), a

sweet man,” in the ad, Axe claims to make a person sweet, and this is a very unique

claim, but it doesn’t really show the quality of the deodorant and how pleasant the

fragrance is.

Unfinished claim: “Smell sweet, stay ready.” Ready for what? The ad doesn’t give us

any closure. Also, “smelling sweet” doesn’t necessarily mean smelling nice, and thus it is

a weasel claim as well.

Conclusion

After considerable contemplation, I’ve decided that ad 1, the old spice ad is better than the Axe

ad. Despite its shortcomings, the excellent use of humor and exaggeration makes the ad
unforgettable, and we unknowingly associate it with positive traits. Their heavy Pathos approach

seems to have rewarded favorably. Also, showing the awkward father-son bond was smart, as it

is quite relatable as well.

The Axe ad was a very fresh concept, a sweet-as-chocolate man, charming ladies and caring for

them, makes one feel good. But, the advertisement by itself feels a bit lacking in the

entertainment department and hence narrowly loses out to Old Spice

Reference

https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/rethinking-men/201010/the-marlboro-man-and-

the-old-spice-guy

https://youtu.be/UoiFt6Hr0cE Old Spice After Hours vs. Ultra Smooth

https://youtu.be/5MbTb2YLrKQ Axe Chocolate

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XWevE_XIzPI Dove Men+ Care