Metaphors In Advertising

Described as ‘powerful and effective’ (McNamara, no date) metaphors are used in everyday day life and constantly used in advertising. Joseph (no date) believes the use of metaphors in advertising helps to enhance aspects of the product or brand through the use of a written or visual metaphor. 

Published in February 2011, Tropicana’s advertising campaign (shown from the image above) communicates that they are ‘your daily ray of sunshine’. This written metaphor is supported by the visuals of the advert of bright yellows and vibrant greens. These colours not only echo the brand colours but also support the metaphor that Tropicana will make you feel happier and more positive.  By using what is assumed to be a sunrise, Tropicana is telling the audience that their orange juice should be associated with the morning. Encyclopaedia Britannica (no date) describes the parts of a metaphor as a tenor and vehicle; the tenor as subject and the vehicle as the item used to describe it. Applied here, Tropicana would the tenor and ‘ray of sunshine’ would be the vehicle used to help promote an image of Tropicana.

Jeong (2008) has found that visual metaphorical advertising has increased over time, perhaps indicating a growth in popularity due to a high success rate. This is perhaps, Jeong (2008) thinks, because metaphorical adverts, either written or visual, can assist the target market in persuading them about the product. This would seem to be because the audience looks at the advert longer to understand it. When applied to the Heinz advert, as seen below, the customer might take longer looking at the advert to take in that sliced tomatoes are in the shape of the ketchup bottle. This is a visual metaphor to represent that Heinz ketchup is made from just tomatoes. Teamed with the slogan of the key word ‘grows’, this advert creates a view that Heinz ketchup is healthy because it is from just tomatoes. Marquis (2007) sums up this advert when he describes the message communicated as ‘this stuff is natural and it's good’. In this case the tenor would appear to be ketchup or Heinz itself as a brand, and the vehicle are the sliced tomatoes.

Both of these adverts use bold attractive colours to draw the audience is. These colours are the colours of the brand, a strong red for Heinz and the positive yellows and green for Tropicana. Both are communicating messages about their brand identity and unique selling point (USP) to the audience.  How these adverts differ is the metaphor type used; Heinz is a strong visual metaphor whereas the Tropicana is a written one; that their orange juice is a daily dose of sunshine. In terms of which metaphor is more powerful, it could be argued that the Heinz advert would be because it is more visual, which is mentally processed at a higher speed than words according to Scherer (2014), so is perhaps more engaging.

In conclusion, it would appear that using metaphors in advertising is a strong technique to use, engaging the audience and helping to create a stronger, more dramatic brand image.

A Design for ASOS using a metaphor to express their USP (vast amount of fashion clothing available):

                                                                                                                                            

References

AOTW (2011) Tropicana: Your Daily Ray of Sunshine, Monday  [online] available from: http://adsoftheworld.com/media/print/tropicana_your_daily_ray_of_sunshine_monday[accessed 18/03/2015]

Coloribus (2007) Heinz Tomato Ketchup: "SLICED BOTTLE" Print Ad by McCann London [online] available from: http://www.coloribus.com/adsarchive/prints/heinz-tomato-ketchup-sliced-bottle-9629805/ [accessed 18/03/2015]

Encyclopaedia Britannica (no date) Tenor and vehicle [online] available from:  http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/587448/tenor-and-vehicle [accessed 18/03/2015]

Jeong, S (2008) Visual Metaphor in Advertising: Is the Persuasive Effect Attributable to Visual Argumentation or Metaphorical Rhetoric?, Journal of Marketing Communications  [online] 14, 1: 59–73 available from: http://web.b.ebscohost.com.proxy.worc.ac.uk/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?sid=41a07ca7-ef01-45f9-a64b-28c5f2d3720b%40sessionmgr111&vid=1&hid=123[accessed 18/03/2015]

Joseph, C (no date) Examples of Metaphors in Advertising [online] available from: http://smallbusiness.chron.com/examples-metaphors-advertising-10422.html [accessed 18/03/2015]

Marquis, S (2007) Billboards are sticking around - with or without glue [online] available from: http://www.theguardian.com/media/2007/oct/29/advertising.mondaymediasection[accessed 18/03/2015]

McNamara  (no date) Symbolic: Metaphors & Similes [online] available from: http://www.adcracker.com/techniques/Symbolic_Advertising_Techniques_Metaphor_Simile.htm [accessed 18/03/2015]

Scherer, J (2014) 10 Reasons Visual Content will Dominate 2014 [online] available from: http://blog.wishpond.com/post/70300587846/10-reasons-visual-content-will-dominate-2014 [accessed 18/03/2015]

The French Bedroom Company (no date) Delphine Distressed Shabby Chic Armoire [online] http://www.frenchbedroomcompany.co.uk/store/storage/armoires-wardrobes/product/delphine-distressed-painted-shabby-chic-armoire [accessed 18/03/2015]