In this blog post I will look at the messages and values encoded in Cadbury’s recent venture in to viral marketing. I will consider the ways in which campaigns such as Gorilla (2007), Airport (2008) and Eyebrows (2009) subvert the traditional conventions of advertising to engage and sustain the interest of the viewer with fresh take on the Cadbury’s brand identity.
Defintions and explanations
Viral marketing is like a chain letter or email, it is believed that if one message is recieved to one person they will pass it on to another 5 and then the 5 people will pass it on to another 5 each. Viral marketing can be an inexpensive way of promoting a company brand or product, the aim of it is to create a buzz about something.
With developments in technology and the Internet viral marketing has really started to become an effective way of gaining exposure for a relatively low cost for a company. Many people have begun using social networking sites to communicate with friends and family about their interests, work, hobbies and many other facets of life. Companies who can create an advertisement which grabs the interest of the public can use this new phenomenon in social networking to boost their brand image, increase sales or achieve any objective they may have. Marketing techniques are ever changing due to the fact that consumers become fatigued with traditional marketing. Companies are looking for effective ways of marketing their products with a cost/exposure pay off. Viral marketing has become a good way for companies to gain exposure at a low cost this is because the message all depends on the audience and if messages are passed through friends its normally more trusted.
Institution
Cadburys is now a very known and well respected brand.
Just a quick look through Youtube.co.uk will show you that many of Cadbury’s previous adverts were portraying the message our chocolate tastes really good so buy some and eat it. An example of this would be the Cadbury Flake adverts of the 70’s and early 80’s where by someone (usually a very attractive woman) would be filmed enjoying a Flake in a slow and suggestive manner with heavy sexual undertones. The television adverts were product orientated with taste and feeling the main elements of the advert. Some of the adverts have a jingle or even a character that is associated with a particular product for example the – Cadbury Caramel Bunny and the Cadbury Mini Egg Parrot. In 1996 cadburys formed a sponsership deal with coronation street from then other companies have copied this. Form and Conventions
Gorilla playing the drums:
The advert thrives on ambiguity: the first time you see it you can’t work out what the gorilla is doing. Then through the camera work pans out to the gorilla playing the drums when the song really kicks off. The advert does not mention a chocolate bar and it does not even show one. The only thing that has any relevance to Cadbury is the fact that the back drop behind the gorilla is in the famous Cadbury purple, this shows the strength of the brand: the chocolate bar does not ever have to be mentioned (although it is shown briefly at the end of the advert). The filming of this advert is what makes it so successful, there is an ambiguity at the beginning with the close face shots create curiousness. This is then carried through with the realness of the gorilla in such a normal environment.
Airport Vehicles
The vehicles are all different colours with neon lights; the music is at the start of the song, building to fastest point. When it reaches this point the vehicles start to pull off, there is a fire jet from an exhaust and the race begins. It becomes apparent that the smallest vehicle is really battling through the pack of much larger vehicles; the larger vehicles are trying to stop the small one breaking through and the advert ends with the camera rising away from the race with the Cadburys bar coming into shot with the slogan “A glass and a half full of joy” beneath.
Eyebrows
The eyebrows advert starts in a very grey photo shot, brightened only by the young girl who is wearing a very distinctive purple dress. The scene depicts her and her brother being measured up for the dullest family photo ever. The phone rings and the man measuring the two children up is called away. The children look at each other, the boy reaches for his watch and then a computerised version of ‘Don’t Stop The Rock’ by Freestyle Express plays from his watch. The children then start to perform what can only be described as an unnerving jig with their eyebrows. This continues for roughly 45 seconds. During this time a pink balloon is added for effect. At the end of the advert the screen once again turns purple and the Cadbury bar is shown with the slogan “A glass and a half full of joy” beneath.
Representations
Gorilla playing the drums: this advert immediately grabs your attention because theres a gorilla on the screen.
The way in which the advert is shot using close ups of the gorillas face gives the advert an intense power and a feeling of dominance. As the camera pulls away from the gorilla we notice that he is sat behind a set of drums in a very human way. This is not a normal situation, it gives a surreal feeling which is very easy to remember. The use of Phil Collins, Something in the Air Tonight attracts an older audience who remember this song first time round.
Airport Vehicles: the airport is a place where everyone in the population will be familiar with. The next part of the advert shows different airport vehicles in dark hangers being lit up and coming to life. The vehicles are very colourful (orange, lime green, blue, white and yellow) these colours are associated with fun. They look dressed up as if they were ready for a night of fun. The lyrics of the song start with “tonight I’m going to have myself a real good time” the film and the music fit perfectly. The race starts and the smallest vehicle zooms through the pack of larger vehicles who are floundering, this satisfies the British fascination and love for the underdog.
Eyebrows: This advert portrays a very mixed message, looking at a still of the advert shows what seems to be a very middle class white family in a normal situation (having a family photo taken). The music that is used is an 80’s electro pop tune, which is completely out of sync with the rest of the advert. This is then followed by the strange eyebrow dance. The message that this advert is sending is one of expecting the unexpected flipping a normal, sedate situation on its head and creating an entertaining advertisement that people will want to talk about.
Audience
These advertisements are obviously aimed at a youth market; aged from 15 to 25, their target audience is media literate and technology savvy. This age group has grown up with technology: computer games have been an important element of their life. They will be interested in new music, with a curious nature. The adverts thrive on people’s curiosity with people trying to analyse why the advert has been made and what the meaning behind the advert is. Another sign of why these adverts are aimed at this market is the fact that the ‘gorilla playing the drums’ advert was first released during an episode of Big Brother – a program that has a massive youth following. There are many reasons why Cadbury are aiming at this group. This group are young; they have many years of purchasing left in them. If Cadbury can develop a brand loyal customer then they will have this customer for the next 40-50 years if not more. Another reason for aiming this marketing campaign at this group is the fact that they are so prominent in the great social networking revolution on the internet. With young people talking over the internet they are posting links about things that they have seen, promoting funning stories and discussing their feeling towards these things. These adverts have been spread all over the walls of Facebook. This has meant that the word has spread quickly, thus the buzz has started and the viral word is spreading.
