Advertisement Coca Cola Commercial Media Essay

Advertisement Coca Cola Commercial Media Essay Coca-Cola has one of the most recognized brands in the world, and that recognition is due in large part to the companys careful marketing and branding efforts. In an Essence magazine, I noticed that the Coca Cola uses warm welcoming colors such as gold, brown, and orange to set the atmosphere. Also symmetry plays an important role in this advertisement. For instance, the props are equally matching on both sides the table around the cake. There is one woman in the center of the group as a focal point; all the other women have their heads tilted toward her. Clothes in this ad even have a pattern. First, the woman to the far right has a pattern shawl; the woman next to her left is wearing a solid color blouse. As we continue to examine each woman clothes, every other woman is wearing either solid color or a pattern shirt. Facial gestures are scripted as well; if we look closer on each side of the table two women give the same face expression with their nose up and month open. Another symmetrical trait is the women hair styles. Therefore the women that match facial expression also match with having long hair styles. The storyline is simple; it takes place at someone house in the kitchen. Friends gather around the table to celebrate a birthday. Skinny African American women are look happy and are laughing having a good time. Then the advertisement states in lower case letters, whos counting? Coca Cola make it real. Coco Cola ad is targeting African American women in their mid twenty to mid thirties and promising them that no one care about the calories, age doesnt matters, and y ou will have a good time because Coca Cola is the real taste of soda. Evidently, the brand being advertised in the ad is unmistakably Coca Cola, and the product being promoted is Coca cola can. The characters in the advertisement give a picture of young African American women, probably in their mid twenties to mid thirties celebrating a birthday party. Undoubtedly, the advertisement is specifically meant for them. According to Goddard, women in such an age group are faced with a couple of decisions to make, which include but are not limited to marriage, career status, and independence (121). Additionally, these women are usually faced with dietary and weight problems, matter that forces them to watch their eating habits more closely. It would seem unusual to see a woman in this age group celebrating some good moments without the company of men. This leads to majority of them being insecure, unhappy, and less confident. Conversely, the ad gives another scenario of the situation that is sure of attracting emotions. The women in the ad are all happy, as e videnced from the facial expressions and the celebration. Interestingly, they seem independent and able to treat themselves without help from any male presence. Pickton Masterson postulate, Coca cola products give a clear impression that it is the ideal drink for the occasion (15). The advertisers make of use hype to illustrate a certain impressions. Hype refers to vague and meaningless statements as such as Coca Cola Making It Real and no one is counting. This makes the whole scenario to sound good. Another attention-seeking hook towards the target market in the advertisement is the use of femininity and culture. The Coca cola ad is all-feminine with complete presence of females. Additionally, the setting of the advertisement is the kitchen, a place commonly associated with the female species. Robinson Warwick argue that gender stereotype is sure to capture the attention of the African American woman who loves to share issues affecting them during social settings such as in friends parties and social settings (50). The Coca cola can fit in properly to such a scenario given that they are all females celebrating a birthday party of one of their own. Culture is applicable in this situation given that the advertisement specifically targets females of African American origin. The feminine scenes of African American women depict the culture being targeted in the ad (niche marketing). Beauty is among the outstanding features of this Coca Cola ad in that images of average African American women are used to glamorize the whole scenario. Robinson Warwick goes further to claim that, Even if their ages can easily be categorized into a particular group, they still manage to give an impression of beautiful and happy African American women having fun (55). Additionally, the impression of beautiful and happy African American women does not necessarily tell anything regarding the Coca Cola product but all the same, the impression is capable of relaying emotional transfers about the product and making someone to feel good through influence and manipulation. According to Pickton Masterson, the technical effects in the advertisement that are key to adding the intended effects to the commercial (20). For instance, the camera angles made sure that all the necessary details in the advertisement had been given the desired perspective. Emphasis was provided by ensuring that the images were taken from a close-up angle. The set and setting was preferably the kitchen to give a feminine impression to the targeted audience. This in turn serves to generate an emotional impression to the audience that the product being advertised is ideal for their normal environment whereby independence can also be exercised. Accessories are featured mainly in the advert to promote an element of beauty to the Coca Cola product being advertised. The African American women featured in this advert are nice dressed as evidenced from their hairstyle, to stylish and elegant clothes, and jewelry (necklace and earrings). These accessories truly give images of beautiful women, an element that the target audience can easily associate. In the ad, the poses and clothes by the second and fourth persons are similar. Their necks of their clothes are both v-shaped, the color being the only differentiating thing. Moreover, they both wear accessories (earrings and necklace) to complement their beautiful appearance. The first and the last women seem to share some similarity as evidenced from their poses. Finally, the third (middle) woman seems to share the same amusement with the other women thereby completing a happy moments that they seem to be sharing. The Coca Cola product completes the celebrating mood by relaying the intended message of happiness and beauty. The whole advert is sure to persuade the target audience that they can be happy, attractive, and beautiful. The use of color in the advertisement helps in giving life to the situation. The golden color that seems to be illuminated by the lighting of the room completes the delightful moment typical of celebrations such as birthday parties. The candles, the cake, the table, and most of the elements in the background are matched to draw emotional attention. Additionally, the color matches with the golden and/or chocolate complexion of the African American characters in the advert. The scenario looks beautiful to the eyes and is likely to be associated by the targeted audience. The contents of the product are sure to fit in to the situation for it matches with the hair of the characters giving a matching effect to the elements in the advert. Again, beauty and happiness is a sure thing to be associated by the targeted audience. The message promoted in the commercial is simple, beautiful women are always happy. The slogan-Coca Cola make it real gives the message that if happens to the characters in the audience, it can also happen to them. Age is a major factor in the advert given that the target audiences are African American women in their mid twenties to mid thirties. Usually, such women are coupled with identity issues to do with their ages, social status, and independence. They are often mirrored by the society and are expected to have achieved something under their name. Leading on the list is marriage or family responsibilities. Additionally, they can never do anything without their motive being questioned. This includes but not limited to having fun and enjoying themselves. This advert promises to give them reassurance through the do not care attitude that nobody is counting and therefore they should have uncontrolled fun. Instead, they should have it real as it is just as portrayed by those consuming the advertised product. Conversely, advertising has a lot to do with conveying the intended message. This is attained by use of words that are capable of generating straightforward meaning without having to struggle much. Tomlinson emphasizes, Coca cola advert uses a mixture of signs, texts, and gestures to drive the desired meaning to the audience (65). Images of those featured in the Coca cola commercial contains some iconic qualities that the audience can easily associate. Those images belong to normal, average African American women enjoying themselves in a normal setting and it provides resemblance effects to the audience. Symbolic gestures and facial expressions give illusions of some people who are happy and it is clear that they are consuming the advertised product and happy altogether. Finally, the presentation of the Coca Cola advert can be categorized as being simple and compound. It is simple in the sense that most of the intended information is relayed on a neutral background (Tomlinson 71). The target audience is not only easily identified but also the product being advertised. Alternatively, it is characterized as being compound in the sense that it employs realistic pictures of African American women in straightforward situations. For instance, drinking is common during birthday celebrations and therefore Coca cola comes in handy. Additionally, it unusual of people in a celebration party to be sad and thusly, the women in this advert are portrayed as being happy. Strategy is also evident in the Coca cola avert. Firstly, the brand image takes the lead in the advert for the only evident brand in the picture is that of coca cola. The brand is fore grounded so that everyone can see. Goddard asserts, Generic and pre-emptive messages are included to persuade provide the audience with the necessary personalities (122). For instance, the messages whos counting and make it real are included in the advert add meaning to the brand image. The Coca cola commercial is sure to provide the targeted audience with the promise of improving their personalities by connecting concrete features of the product and the driving force.

Freedom of Press or Danger to Troops? Essay examples -- essays researc

Freedom of Press or Danger to Troops? The news has been an important source of information for as long as it has been around. News during a time of war is sometimes the only way a family member, friend, or general public have any idea what the soldiers are going through. Having this source of information can help rally support for our troops when they need all the support they can get. As reporters are granted more access to military operations the information they are provided, and have to report on, become a great responsibility and they should make sure to only make public what should be made public. Information is increasingly becoming the most important weapon in any militaries arsenal, so we should be more careful as to how that information is obtained and dispersed. With respect to the war in Iraq and other military operations abroad I don’t feel the press should be required to be given as much information or granted as much battlefield access as they have been. I am all for the freedom of the press and being informed as to what is happening to our troops, but to many times has information been distributed that could have had a negative impact on the outcome of an operation. One example is when Geraldo Rivera basically drew out in the sand on live television the position of the troops he was tagging along with. â€Å"Geraldo Rivera, reporting from Iraq for Fox News last week, drew a map in the sand, on camera, that gave away his unit's location† (Poniewozik 1). As he should...

Innovation Essay Essay

Tom Scott and Tom First founded Nantucket Nectars in 1990 as a small side-business on Nantucket’s Straight Wharf. A peach fruit juice drink that Tom First discovered while visiting Spain inspired him and his partner to embark upon the journey of building their juice company. After only six years, the two entrepreneurs built a business that was generating $29,493,000 per year in revenue and $969,000 in EBITDA. With remarkable success came exciting opportunities, as well as challenging decisions. Specifically, Tom and Tom were faced with the dilemma of taking the company down one of three roads including: taking the company public via IPO, selling the business, or continuing to grow and run the business independently. Tantamount to these decisions, the founders had additional questions on their minds – How should the company be valued? How could they ensure price maximization? How would the negotiations be handled? Could they engage potential buyers without existing employees find out? At the end of the day, the decision was more personal than anything. It’s never easy for an Entrepreneur to rationalize â€Å"selling out† after they’ve spent so much time building and developing their baby. Nevertheless, it’s often the best decision. In this paper I will explore the Pros and Cons of selling Nantucket Nectar, along with how to determine an appropriate value for the company. The first option to be explored was remaining independent. One of their concerns was management involvement of any potential strategic partner, or buyer. Tom and Tom wanted to run the company, if possible. If they remained independent then they would still be the autonomous owners of Nantucket Nectars and they wouldn’t have to worry about listening to anybody else telling them how to operate, or grow the company. Also, a benefit of remaining independent was the preservation of the company’s brand which was built upon two entrepreneurs, Tom and Tom. They used their story as part of the branding and the market enjoyed it. Selling out could create some negative public relations. Remaining independent was an opportunity to remain in control of their public image. Independence isn’t entirely positive, though. A negative aspect of remaining independent would be the lack of distribution support – their growth capabilities would be limited. In contract, if they were to sell to a larger organization with robust infrastructure they could enlarge their footprint more rapidly. Another con of remaining independent would limit the founders from entering into new ventures that might be more appealing to their sense of entrepreneurialism. Remaining with Nantucket Nectars, to some, could be stifling. Regardless, it would certainly limit their ability to grow from within. Capital was less readily available to Tom and Tom and the support of a larger scale investor could bring some immediate excitement. Another con of remaining independent is the insulation against catastrophic events, or litigation. As a small, independently owned business there is typically more risk involved from a litigation standpoint. Although companies are insured, the sheer expense of seeking legal counsel has a greater negative impact upon smaller businesses than larger conglomerates like Tropicana, or Pepsi, who have large departments of in house counsels. The second option available to Nantucket Nectar is to sell the business. In reviewing their financial performance (see Exhibit 1), we notice that the business has had several years where they were profitable. Their EBTIDA was strong over the past two years (1995 & 1996), thus making them more marketable. From a seller’s perspective, this might be n favorable time to sell. Also, a benefit of selling is the immediate influx of cash that would be available as a result of the buyout. Tom and Tom would have financial independence which, for an entrepreneur, can be the greatest state of being. This would afford them both an opportunity to regroup, reenergize, and focus on new business ventures. Many entrepreneurs enjoy the early â€Å"start-up† phases of the business cycle. Of course, selling a business has its drawbacks, as well. First, the buyer often requires that the management team from the acquisition target stay on board for a specific period of time and achieve certain key performance indicators before receiving the entire payout. Often, there is a lump sum delivered up front, and then incremental payouts upon achieving KPI’s. This could be frustrating to Tom and Tom, as they would relinquish all of their independent decision-making powers and have to take the back seat as employees. Typically, this is not a comfortable position for entrepreneurs to take. Also, Tom and Tom built up a loyal and talented staff of employees at Nantucket Nectar. Acquisitions are typically driven by synergies and, as a result, certain employees could be terminated in pursuit of cost savings. Finally, Tom and Tom would have to deal with the fact that their company culture would be at risk. Often, the buyers culture engulfs that of the company being acquired. The third option available to Tom and Tom is taking the company public, or an IPO (Initial Public Offering). The most obvious advantage of going public is that Nantucket Nectar would have an immediate influx of capital available due to the sale of its stock. With excess capital available, they could purchase assets for distribution and manufacturing, invest in advertising and marketing, and continue to fuel the expansion of the business. Going public also creates a type of currency in the form of its stock that Nantucket Nectar can use to make acquisitions. In addition, they will likely have access to capital markets for future financing needs. As is typically the case, Nantucket Nectar’s debt-to-equity ratio will improve after the IPO, allowing them to obtain more favorable loan terms from lenders. Another benefit of going public is that Tom and Tom may be able to retain a certain degree of control. If they opted to sell common stock to venture capitalists to raise money rather than doing an IPO, the purchasers would probably require some decision-making authority. As entrepreneurs, Tom and Tom would have a hard time relinquishing decision making authority. 1 Initial public offerings have negative aspects, as well. First, going public is not inexpensive. Multiple areas of expertise are required to execute the process, including lawyers, accountants, and consultants. This could get expensive for Nantucket Nectar. Another disadvantage of going public is that public companies operate under close scrutiny. The prospectus reveals substantial information about the company including transactions with management, executive compensation and prior violations of securities laws. This may be information the company would prefer to keep private. In my opinion, the most difficult thing for Tom and Tom to deal with would be the decision-making process. From the case study, we see that they are informal, salt-of-the-earth individuals. Taking the company public would mean that they would have to become more formal and less flexible due to the shareholders. They would no longer have complete control of the company. They would have to share in the decision making process2 VALUATION As an adviser to Nantucket Nectar, there are several approaches that can be taken toward determining the worth of the business. Ultimately, the value of the business is whatever a buyer is willing to pay for it. From a negotiating standpoint, Tom and Tom need to determine what they believe is the value in order to set an expectation upon engaging in negotiations. Multiple companies are expressing interest due to the boom in the New Age beverage market and Nantucket Nectar’s competitive advantages. The first thing to understand when determining the value of a business is their brand equity. Nantucket Nectar has a lot of value in the brand they’ve created and the value drivers, as determined by Tom and Tom, are listed in Exhibit 2. Nantucket Nectar created a fun and memorable story – the â€Å"juice guys† are unforgettable. The value drivers go beyond financial figures found on the P&L, balance sheet and cash flow statement. They are the intangible assets that management has built on their own – also referred to as Goodwill. Goodwill is seen as an intangible asset on the balance sheet because it is not a physical asset like buildings or equipment. Goodwill typically reflects the value of intangible assets such as a strong brand name (ie Nantucket Nectars), good customer relations, good employee relations and any patents or proprietary technology. 3 These intangible assets can be the most important valuation drivers to consider when placing a value upon a business. I used several methods to determine the value of Nantucket Nectar. First, I utilized the Market Approach. The Market Approach is a multi-step process. In the initial step, we compute the average Price-Earnings (P-E) Ratio for as many similar businesses as possible. Then, you multiply the average P-E Ratio by next year’s forecasted earnings. I used 26. 9x (see Exhibit 3) as the P-E Ratio and multiplied it times $2,234 (see Exhibit 4), which is Nantucket’s forecasted earnings for 1997. The value equals $60,094,600. This would be a good starting point for Tom and Tom to being their negotiations. The second method I used is the Capitalized Earnings Method which is the Net Earnings divided by the Rate of Return. However, I used the forecasted earnings for the upcoming year, $2,234,000. I used a discount rate of 12% based upon the rates utilized in the Discounted Future Earnings model (see Exhibit 5). If we divide $2,234,000 by 12% it gives us a value of $18,616,667. More than likely, this is the number that an investment bank would place upon the business, as a starting point for negotiations. I also calculated the book value of Nantucket Nectar, and then integrated â€Å"goodwill† for the value drivers in Exhibit 2. The book value is $12,747,000, however I don’t believe the goodwill is correctly accounted for. This need to be reevaluated. Nantucket Nectar would be selling their business, on a large part, due to their intangible brand value. This could justify a 2x or 3x multiple times book value, to arrive at an adjusted book value rate. My recommendation to Tom and Tom would be to sell their business and use the Market Rate approach towards determining the value. I think this is a fair way to view the business because it helps to frame the perspective in a similar light to other companies who have follow a similar course within the same business segment. I would not advocate an IPO due to the scrutiny the shareholders will place upon the business. I believe selling the business presents an ideal scenario because they could negotiation the level of involvement they want in the future while, at the same time, they would have enough cash to pursue other entrepreneurial ventures. Exhibit 2 – Value Drivers (determined by founders) Great product: great tasting, all natural product Ability to exploit small, rapidly changing market opportunities Current Management Team A more appealing story than any other juice beverage company (great material for a company with a large marketing budget and more distribution power) Value of the brand: quirky, eccentric and memorable A stabilizing cost structure Geographic expansion capabilities: current sales base and future sales base Access to the 18-34 market Management’s knowledge of and experience with the single-serve business: ability to add value to large player rolling out new single serve products Last good access to single-serve distribution in the New Age beverage market Guerrilla marketing skills Best vehicle for juice companies to expand into juice cocktail category without risking their own brand equity

Dr. King s Speech - 913 Words

In 1963, Dr. Martin Luther King Junior delivered a speech on civil rights in the midst of segregated America. Dr. King begins by recounting the historical events surrounding the enslavement of African Americans, which effectively paves the way for his discussion on current events. He states that the African American is still ‘not free’ because of the unequal rights/status given to them. Dr. King instructs the followers of the movement to proceed peacefully. He also contends with those oppose to the movement by letting them know that until equal rights are given, the movement will continue. Dr. King’s speech is a persuasive one geared towards fanning the flame of passion in those already aligned with the movement and attempting to entice those who are not. It is during the time that civil rights are being called into question that Dr. King chooses to speak on the issues of the moment. He often calls the lack of civil rights both injustice and a lack of freedom. The overall purpose is clear: equality for everyone. The topic is not only appropriate for his audience, but inclusive for almost all audience members. His speech sparks fire within the black community by recounting all the transgressions against them: â€Å"†¦the Negro is the victim of the unspeakable horrors of police brutality† (King). He does not forget to include the white individuals who support the movement by mentioning them in his speech as well. There is an addition of historical events and BiblesShow MoreRelatedDr. King s Speech986 Words   |  4 PagesOn August 28, 1963, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. the great Civil Rights activist, delivered one of the most powerful, influential, and famous speeches, I Have a Dream, to thousands of citizens at the Washington D.C. Lincoln Memorial. Dr. King s memorable speech occurred in a dire moment of the Civil Rights movement. 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