Final Project: Competitive Analysis

Acura was introduced in 1986 as the luxury car from Honda, a Japanese company. Soon after Toyota and Nissan introduced their luxury cars. Lexus being created by Toyota and Infiniti being created by automaker Nissan. Infiniti officially started selling in 1989, while Lexus was founded the same here. All are from Japan, but Acura was founded in 1986, just a few years before Lexus and Infiniti. This is why we thought “The first, the finest” would be a great slogan for the Acura, since Honda introduced their luxury vehicle prior to these other two competitors. We moved away from this idea because we chose not to shine any kind of light onto our competition, even if it was a nice jab to our initial creation. We thought that creating a friction between the companies in advertisment is unethical and we didn't want that associated with the Acura brand. "When clients and agency professionals are aware of what is unethical and keep to standards of fair practice and social responsibility, then we can have ethical advertising." (12) and we wanted to make sure to have ethical advertising. The NSX model was introduced in 1990 as a mid-engine exotic sports car, a two seater. When created it was a reliable and practical alternative to the exotic European car, say to a Maserati or Porsche.

Both Infiniti and Lexus have more of a basic strategy to advertisements. They are usually magazine advertisement with a silver colored car with a plan black or white background and their logo. The thing about Acura, is that they are much more daring and fun when it comes to advertisements. For example the Acura MDX had an advertisement with the slogan “Made for Mankind.” This advertisement had movement to their advertisement, with the rear end light being displayed and a woman with red hair beneath it, with wind flowing through her hair. Besides it was an image of a woman in dark colors and hues of blue, which played a great contrast to the red.  All we see is her eyes, nose and slight touch of her lips and teeth. The same ad campaign showed a man’s eye facing the front of the car, with only the headlight showing.

These are the kind of advertisements we will go with. It will be much more interactive versus a typical photo op of the car, something the competition does regularly.We watched to use something that was already established by the brand but change the frame a bit. "Changing a frame allows you to explore possibilities, to imagine what a brand or organization could be beyond its current personality or how it is commonly perceived.(34)"

Final Project: Acura NSX 2016 Slogan

Living in Luxury

There were many slogans we bounced from. Acura had a slogan of “precision, crafted, performance” but we wanted to move away from adjectives and into a descriptive phrase.  "We comprehend—we grasp the meaning of the material we have gathered, gaining insights. And we apply, making use of the material in new, more immediate contexts."(14) We discussed “Your Acura” so that the viewer could find possession in purchasing the car, but didn’t think it describes the car too well. We even discussed having it be “1^st and the finest”, more on this in the competitive analysis. We thought about “Luxury you didn’t know you needed” or “Bring Luxury into creation”, but both were lengthy. We enjoyed the use of the word luxury and decided to go with “Living in Luxury.” Now this speaks to a lifestyle.

This slogan will talk to the luxury aspect of craftsmanship of the car. I will also like to link in a luxury brand fashion house to collaborate with to put more emphasis on luxury, perhaps Tom Ford. This fashion brand speaks to a similar demographic that Acura would speak to. Tom Ford and Acura both exude luxury. Tom Ford also has men's and women's merchandise, so it would open up the idea to promote this car to both genders. We can use Tom Ford attire in advertisements and promote the two together. 

The fashion house of Tom Ford has bold and daring advertisements and I think that speaks to the idea of the Acura NSX. The NSX is filled with power and speed and that’s the kind of life the individual that wears Tom Ford is. Fashion in general is more about the fantasy than the reality and wearing Tom Ford driving a Acura NSX means living in luxury. We are selling the emotion and high roller life style in these advertisements. Teaming up with one of the well-respected fashion labels in the industry will give our advertisement a drive that others do not have. We kept digging to find similarities between the two brands. "Most smart creatives do some digging themselves." (15)  

By teaming up for Living in Luxury we can open our advertisement doors and branch into the fashion world advertisement and reach an entire demographic that has not been spoken to in the past. The Acura NSX can be fashionable to either gender. Living in Luxury touches the fantasy many hope to achieve in reality.

EOC week7: choosing a car THE PITCH

For the next few weeks I will be working on an advertising campaign for a car of my choice. Since I recently sold my Nissan 350z I decided to go with the 2016 Nissan 370z. In the next week I will be visiting car dealerships to see this car up close and perhaps some questions that I will be benefit me in the creative process while creating the ad campaign. My ad campaign will need to include certain aspects from slogans, to promotion, of course analysis and a BIG IDEA.
Honestly, I am a bit nervous about this final project to begin, but extremely excited to get the ball rolling. I am hoping the dealership will have the car in the lot, but I will be sure to update you about my visit. The salesman may even say something witty enough that I can use or twist into a slogan. Since the Nissan 370z is a luxury sport scar I will also be scoping out other brand in this same category. After all I do need to know what my competition is in order to provide a strong and knowledgeable advertising campaign.
I am thinking of finding a way to push this car to the female market. As a driver that completely fell in love with my car, I want everyone to feel that kind of love through the ad campaign. I am not quite sure how I will manage that just yet, but I still have some time to think it through. It was only today that I was given the project so I have a lot of contemplating to go. We shall see where I take this.

EOC Week 6: Lady Gaga & The Grammys

So Lady Gaga did a tribute to David Bowie for her Grammy's performance and who did it benefit? The performance wasn't as exciting as her own performances, and perhaps that was because I am not as familiar with David Bowie other than his tunes which are super popular. I am fairly younger, so do not attack me for my knowledge or lack there of on David Bowie. It was entertaining and recently Gaga has been in the media, with her award winning place in American Horror Story.
This seems to have most benefited Lady Gaga and her image in mainstream, she hasn't put out any current music and is working on reinventing her image.
We've also seen her singing the National Anthem for the opening of the Super Bowl. Perhaps we can expect to see more of her in the media and maybe we hear some new music. Having Lady Gaga perform could have benefit the Grammy's organization as well. Though she currently does not have much music out, she still has a major following. Having her pay tribute to David Bowie added to her aesthetic.
Though I was not the biggest fan of this particular performance, I am a Lady Gaga supporter. I enjoy how she uses her craft to shed light onto other issues happening, like this and the death of David Bowie. His death impacted many people and help individuals like myself discover his music and movement. I can now see why she was a great fit to do the tribute.
At the end of it all the viewers also benefit from her performance. As a viewer we get to experience and witness her work as an artist. She is quiet interesting to watch and following, She has constantly evolved and I very much enjoy watching her grow and am extremely excited to see what she is going to do next.

MY VOICE

I never enjoy doing an about me, because it’s tedious, but here it goes. I am the kind of person that enjoys analyzing. I do well with managing large groups and being able to get messages across. I am 46% extrovert and 54% introvert according to a personality test I took. I prefer to work alone, but work very well in groups especially in a leadership role. Public speaking is one of my better qualities. I can stand in front of a group and present without hesitation or sweaty palms. I never understood the fright many people have for public speaking, because I have always enjoyed the nervous feeling it provides. Perhaps being a dancer has helped me in being okay with presenting in front of many people; it’s like performing on stage with a large crowd watching your every move. I can manage very well because I pay close attention to details and organization. I know how the small things can add together to create something larger. Bring a major project into small task is what I am best at. Though I am quiet creative I am also very business orientated and determined in accomplishing a goal with all my T’s crossed and I’s dotted. At times I can be comical and I am usually the one breaking the ice in awkward situations. I am East Coast bred, so sometimes my more sarcastic side can shine through. This is the voice I use when writing. I consider myself a writer and will pursue that as a career. I am an always evolving artist.

EOC Week 3: Find a tobacco advertisement & 8 basic steps

·         1. Determine the scenario: What happens in this frame?

·         2. What is the setting? What are the conditions?

·         3. Who are the people or groups?

·         4. What is their point of view around this specific experience?

·         5. What are their goals?

·         6. What are their assumptions? What are their perceptions?

·         7. Are there conflicts? Is there cooperation?

·         8. What are the outcomes?

This woman is in a pose position, as if on a cover of a magazine, she is happy and showing her white teeth through her smile. There is no particular setting other than a colored backdrop. She is dressed very fashionable though you can not see her entire wardrobe, you know she is stylish, perhaps the “It Girl”. This can be supported by the fact that she is the only one in the advertisement, rather than being with a group, so there is no confusion that she is the main focus.

This advertisement provides a point of view that she is in the know with beauty, health and fashion, so she must be in the know about these cigarettes. The goal is to market to this kind of girl or the girl who wishes to be her. In order to be this happy, go lucky, fashionable girl, you must smoke misty cigarettes too!

The perception this provides is that the Misty cigarette girl is hip and in tune with the culture. This causes conflict because as we now know, cigarettes are not healthy and can have a negative impact on your overall look. It can cause wrinkles to the skin, teeth to yellow and other dire effects to the internal body, which is now common knowledge.

In today's society you can barely find a cigarettes ad, which is incredible and I love everything about it. Instead we are seeing anti smoking advertisements. The advertisement are straightforward and blunt, sometimes making the viewer cringe. 

This generation can be the generation that stops smoking all together, with only about 3% of smokers in the generation. When you Google cigarettes advertisements, you are given a bunch of old washed out ads, that in itself says something!

Though we know about the dangers of cigarettes now, there was a time when cigarettes were advertised as good and healthy. That is no longer the case. Even in the 90s, when Misty was popularized, the cool girl wanted to smoke and if she did she appeared to be cool and in control. In the sitcom Sex and the City the main character Carrie Bradshaw smokes and she was the socialite of her time. Though Sex and the City launched in the late 90s, it still had that 90s aura and feel. So we can make the connection between cigarettes and the stylish it girl; the two, at the time went hand in hand.

EOC Week 4: Role of Women in Contemporary Advertisements

There has been a shift in how women are being portrayed in contemporary advertisments. Before they were timid, passive and more than likely seen as housewives, but in todays advertisments she is strong, independent, assertive. There are many more movies with women leading role then in the past. We often saw women in secretary like positions, catering to the bossman, whereas now they are the bosses of major corporations and businesses making the calls. There has been a major shift in the culture with women providing opions and being the voice for brands

For example recently Budweiser launched a commercial against drunk driving during the Superbowl and the person handing the message was Helen Mirren, a woman and well respected and known actress. A beer company whos target audience are males, decided to place an older female character in a pub having a tradition burger and fries meal, telling them to not be imbeciles and drive under the influence. 

Marvel, the comic series, has recently launched a series on Netflix of their character Jessica Jones. Jessica Jones is a very stern and strong character. She runs her own business and doesn't take crap from anyone. Through out the series she fights a mind controller trying to keep him from perpetrating his evil ways into the city. This is a major move for Marvel who focuses on their many male superheroes. 

Women are breaking through in advertisements and in media in general. They are being shown in strong and confident roles.