TV Advertisement Evaluation

The brief:

Our brief was to re-market a Unilever brand, either to a new target audience or to a broader audience. Each of us in the group pitched our ideas to chose the best product to use; we brainstormed what we could do for each brand. After a lot of discussion we finally chose a product, which was Magnum. I believe the current target audience is woman from the adverts i have watched. We decided to appeal to men as the majority of the adverts are aimed at woman.

The finished product and feedback:
During class we had a screening of everyone's adverts and each person was to make one positive comment and something the group could improve about their advert. Our tutors gave us feedback on our work which was very useful for our advert. They told us about a few 'useless' shots which we could cut out if we were to re-edit. Due to the feedback, we would make these changes if we had the chance. We also made a questionnaire and posted our videos on Facebook, Twitter and Tumblr. The main things people commented on where:

       Positive:

• The low key lighting used was very effective - only lighted the important objects on the table.
• The shots and camera angles very good.
• Music fitted the theme.

    Constructive:

• Music was good, however could have been lowered to emphasize the voice over. 
• Try to get the voice over to match the shots, as there is a shot of an earpiece when there's no voice over.
• Need a slogan!

We made sure to make our advert appropriate to our audience. We did this by adding a James Bond theme as the majority of men Bond and they also like gadgets, so we thought this was a good theme to base out advert around. Looking at the feedback we got from an online survey, it seems that people were able to identify the target audience with no problem. I also think that we managed to get the message of the Magnum being important across. I feel the impact of work was effective due to some feedback we received - more men would be likely to buy Magnum after this advert.

I believe the technical and aesthetic qualities in our advert were professional. I think we controlled the mise-en-scene very well due to the lighting. We only used two lamps which were placed on the table and each time we set up, we had to look back at the footage we already had to get it perfect. Also, as we used the lamps, the background was extremely dark. I feel the music went really well with the piece and it flowed nicely (no looping) however, i think the sound could have been lowered so the voice over could be clearer. In my opinion, the camera shots we used were extremely effective as we used mostly close ups. However i feel there were some useless close ups of the earpiece as the voice over was not playing during that shot. The choice of props and costumes worked well and enhanced the mise-en-scene.

I think that our advert does sell to the specified audience through the storyline due to the feedback i got; many people could identify the target audience. However, a couple of people from my class did not recognise the target audience, althought i think we made this clear enough. I believe we managed to sell the product because, unlike the other Magnum adverts, this was specifically and only aimed at men. This means men could relate to the advert and feel drawn in as there aren't any Magnum adverts aimed at men.
I feel we were successful on the effectiveness of the persuasion techniques used in the advert. One technique we used was the USP of the Magnum which is it's important in everyday life. We did this by placing the Magnum in a briefcase, which had added foam to make a holder for the Magnum, and the voice over saying "and in the case, the most important item of all..." Another technique used was lifestyle appeal as the actor seems like an important person, and this could show the audience the life they would want to have; to be important and successful.
I feel that we hinted at flattery during our advert, for example if you eat this ice cream that you are a person of refined taste which could also link to lifestyle appeal. This may make men feel that if they eat this they will have a lifestyle like James Bond.
We used AIDA during our advert. The attraction is the mystery behind the advert; mystery of the male and what his mission is. It draws the audience in. The interest is also linked with the mystery of the advert. The desire is to be as important as the male in the advert. If we added a slogan then we would be able to have action of the audience.
If we were to re-edit our advert, i would like to have used a slogan at the end to make the product more memorable and persuade them to buy the Magnum.

The clarity of communication was very good in our advert. We wanted to tell men that Magnum isn't just for women, so we used a bond time set up and used a male actor so the specified target audience could relate to the advert. The location we used and the clothes chosen helped do this.

In my opinion, i think our advert is fit for purpose as it does look pretty professional. However i feel that the voice over could have been different and the dialogue elaborated to make it even more professional. We've
made sure our advert complies with the advertising regulations and looking at the BCAP code, we have made sure there is no other harmful content in the advertisement, however the use of a gun in our advert may not be suitable for viewing at all times.


Personal reflection:
All in all i believe our advert compared very well with our original intentions. Our original intentions of having a male fall back onto a sofa and appear in another relaxing place seemed a little impossible so we developed new ideas. We only took out a few shots which we thought were unnecessary and added a couple of shots including a 'pull focus' shot which the majority of people liked. We managed to get all our pre-production work finished before the deadline which meant we could test out the lighting for out advertisement before we were meant to film. I'm extremely pleased with the final product due to the low key lighting we used, while others used ambient lighting. The feedback we received was mainly positive and we only received a few criticisms which will help us with our advert if we chose to re-edit it.
If i were to undertake this task again, i would make sure we were more organised with our pre-production work as we got mixed up on what we had and hadn't done. For example, we weren't sure whether we had done a shot list or filled out talent releases. If we were to have made a list of what we had to do then tick if off as we go along, then this would have helped a lot in organisation. I also would have liked to be more involved with the camera work, but as i was new to the camera used, i was a little wary. I would also ask the other member from our group to be more involved in the editing as he did not help at all. During filming i helped set up the shots and direct some shots. Ross and I did the majority of the editing, swapping each lesson.