iMARGHENation

One approach for potential customers to use and consume products or even persuade the public to take part in an activity or movement is through advertisements. Companies and organizations ended up having to take advantage of the Covid-19 pandemic as a result of its emergence in order to stay relevant and reach its consumers who were impacted. Because of the severity of the pandemic and the increasing quantity of public concerns about it, organizations and companies need to be careful with how they advertise their products and services. To accomplish that, they have to figure out the most suitable tone and message that will resonate with and not offend their audience. Now, there are two advertisements aired during the pandemic that I would like to introduce even if we most of the time skip these ads.

"A MESSAGE FROM THE FUTURE" - Jollibee

There are advertisements that we often see and the first thing that comes to our mind is to skip it because personally I do that with a reason that the first seconds of it are boring. However, there are also advertisements which are visually captivating and are able to appeal to our curiosity. These kinds of advertisements mostly come with a storyline or a drama-type of commercial. ‘A Message from the Future’ by Jollibee Studios is that type of ad which has a storyline that revolves around a family and reflects the realistic situation that their audience is experiencing at the current moment. The ad started with the voice of a child, stating a phrase that questions what it was back then during the pandemic. It is about a family's situation during the pandemic, such as losing something or maybe someone, and overcoming obstacles during a highly challenging change that affects everyone's lives. 

In the COVID-19 research of National Institutes of Health (2020), stated that even for those who did not get infected with the virus, COVID-19 still holds an impact on our daily life and health that is why the family in the ad resonates with the audience. Out of all those struggles, the family get their strengths from each other that touch the heart of the audiences. Most of the audience of Jollibee, a fast-food chain originated from the Philippines, are the Filipino public that are known for their family-oriented culture. They are advertising the tagline of Jollibee, “Joy of Family” as their fast food brings family together which is the main reason, they mostly focused their ads with the storyline of families in an emotionally appealing way. And in terms of consuming the advertised product, specifically the foods in a fast-food chain, is not necessarily good for the family or individuals if eaten continuously. Fast food is unhealthy as it contains an insane amount of trans-fat that will negatively affect our body when consumed unnecessarily (Stender et al., 2007). Additionally, in forms of media manipulation in this specific advertisement, it utilizes the emotional appeal to the audience or pathos in terms of fear that resonate with the people or targeted audience. As it aired in the midst of the pandemic, they took advantage of it and made a commercial out of the situation that will promote their products and connect with their tagline and the motto they are known for, Joy in togetherness of a family.

References:

Jollibee Studios (2021, May 15). A Message from the Future. [Video File]. Youtube. https://youtu.be/e-N8K0xRaeY

Stender, S., Dyerberg, J., & Astrup, A. (2007). Fast Food: Unfriendly and unhealthy. International Journal of Obesity, 31(6), 887–890. https://doi.org/10.1038/sj.ijo.0803616 

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (n.d.). COVID-19: The ripple effects. National Institutes of Health. https://covid19.nih.gov/news-and-stories/covid19-ripple-effects

"TOGETHER, TOWARDS A NEW NORMAL" - TraceTogether

This second advertisement is from the government of Singapore, as they promote their country adopting the new normal and encourage an action we should take into consideration for our health. The advertisement showcases a lively and catchy jingle that will linger into the audience’s ears. In that way, the audience will be reminded of the action they are promoting as well as bringing positive light to their country for the good handling of the COVID-19 pandemic. They are promoting the contact tracing app of their country which is “TraceTogether”, singing “Let’s test, let’s trace, let’s vaccinate” in a catchy repetitive way. Given the commercial, the app was successful in doing its job as the country took good control and highly effective management of the pandemic (Aaral et al., 2021). Singapore is one of the countries that managed the pandemic well and that was one of the reasons this ad was made. The targeted audience for this ad may be international individuals wanting to visit the country for assurance that they are visiting a safe and organized country and its citizens will not have to worry about the crisis in a very crucial way. The tracing app being commercialized was very helpful not just for its audience but for the whole country as it benefits all those who are able to have it. It was a necessary move for their government to handle the pandemic well. In terms of media manipulation, it did not showcase any as the sources proved the commercial highly effective and for beneficial economic effects of the country. Without being manipulated, the ad managed to capture the audience’s attention by singing their motive and message they wanted to convey in a lively and catchy way. Which is why this shows a good example of a commercial that greatly affects the country and its economy in a positive light.

References:

Araral, E., Thong, G., Ooi, S. P. L., & Muluan, W. A. (2021, June 28). How Singapore managed the COVID-19 pandemic. Lkyspp.nus.edu.sg. https://lkyspp.nus.edu.sg/gia/article/how-singapore-is-handling-the-pandemic