Classic perfume advert
You do not immediately realise that this is an advert for washing up liquid, as first impressions suggest that it is for some kind of toiletry. It is not until the third shot, where the camera cuts to a close up of the product briefly that you find out what it is for. The beginning of the advert uses the typical rich colours used for a perfume advert, and the image of luxury when the woman fall back on to the flower is quite stereotypical of what you expect from a classic perfume advert.
The dialogue of the voice over also leads you to believe that this is a perfume advert, as it says, “Indulge yourself in a refreshing floral fragrance that you can only get…” and then it does not say the name of the product until we see the close up on the bottle. This part of the advert also helps it appeal to slightly older women, as this is the type of perfume advert that you usually see for more mature fragrances rather than younger perfumes like Calvin Klein or Tommy Girl.
By using a parody of a perfume commercial in the advertisement, it increases the effectiveness of the advert. Once you have seen this advert, every time you see a perfume advert that is similar, you will think of the washing up liquid. Fairy are using piggy back advertising to promote their product and get the most out of the advert possible without having to show it too many times, and therefore spend too much money. The fact that the product is emphasised most at the beginning of the advert, right after the woman falling back into the flower, and while the pink and red colour scheme is still being used makes the link between the perfume advert and the washing up liquid stronger in your mind.
At the end of the advert we hear the slogan, “a fresh approach to washing up” and also see in it superimposed along the bottom of the screen for the last two shots. The voice we hear for this, as well as the rest of the voice over during the advert is Amanda Burton. She is a popular TV character, who always plays the role of strong woman in dramas, like Silent Witness. Her voice is quite distinctive and she is a role model for many people, so by having her associated with the product it helps to make it more popular. She is also thought of as being quite attractive to many men who like the ‘strong’ woman. Associating her with the product also makes the product appeal to more men, who are a new group in Fairy’s target audience. Another advantage to using a TV character as the voice over is the same as using a parody of a perfume advert. When you hear Amanda Burton’s voice or see her in programs you will think of the Fairy advert as you relate her voice to it.
The slogan is quite effective as it is short and memorable. You would know immediately what it is for even if you didn’t hear it as part of the advert, as it contains the purpose of the product it advertises within it. This means it is better than some of the other popular slogans around today, such as Nike for example, “Just Do It”. This slogan does not seem to relate to the product in anyway, so it would be difficult to remember what it was for if it had not been around for so long.
This advert has clearly been aimed at a different target audience to the old Fairy adverts that preceded it. This advert is aimed more at younger people that may be single rather than part of a family, as all the characters we see are alone, rather than in the old adverts where we typically saw a woman with a young child. Also the characters we see are much younger than before, so they represent the generation Fairy are trying to appeal to more. This advert is also being aimed more at men now as well as women, as we now see a man featured when previously there has not been.
The advert is trying to target quite a wide range of people, so it would most probably be shown on prime time television in the evenings, in the breaks of soap operas at dinnertime when a lot of people will be watching. It would also probably be shown later on between about eight and nine o’ clock when there are quite a lot of TV dramas and other popular programmes with large audiences. This would help make sure as many people in the target audience as possible see the advert. It would be unlikely to be shown in the early afternoon, between about three and four o’ clock when the children’s programmes are on, as not many people interested in the product would be watching. Also a lot of people in the target audience would still be at work at this time so it would not be worth showing it then.
