In addition to the picture of the model, the L’Oreal Paris advertisement also has cartoons of teenage girls around the page, all with different coloured hair to show that there are several colours in the range. At the bottom of the page, under the copy, all the colours in the range are shown in a colour guide which includes the name. They have unusual names like ‘cool blonde’ and ‘pepsi purple’ which would appeal to the imagination of target audience.
The Clinique advertisement’s slogan is ‘Autumn 2004 – close up on lips: modern metallics’. This plays with words as it says ‘close up on lips’ and the image is of close up lips with lipstick on.
In the L’Oreal Paris advertisement the slogan is ’10 lively colours to make your look pulse as often as you want!’ This is different from their usual slogan ‘because you’re worth it’ as they are just talking about the colour pulse hair die, so they wanted a slogan to link in with the product. The slogan is effective because the words ‘lively’ and ‘pulse’ make it sound alive and the words ‘you’ and ‘your’ make it sound like they are talking to you in person. Also, at the end of the slogan is an exclamation mark which makes it seem exciting.
The two advertisements both have copy but in the Clinique one it is much longer because it is aimed at an older target audience who are more interested in the copy content. The Advertisement aimed at the younger target audience has less copy, containing just the most important facts, because the visual impact is more to this age group.
The L’Oreal Paris advertisement states that it ‘washes out in 8 to 10 shampoos’. This is an example of weasel words because they are not giving an exact figure but a range. This helps advertisers avoid making untrue statements about a product, words like ‘probably’ and ‘almost’ which sound like they are not entirely certain.
The Clinique advertisement uses lots of alliteration: firstly, in the slogan where it says ‘modern metallics’. It sounds like it is aimed at 20 year olds as modern sounds fresh and young, while metallics are fashionable at the moment. Secondly, in ‘shimmering shades’; it makes you think ‘alluring’. Thirdly, in ‘soft, sensuous glow’ it makes people feel good about themselves. Alliteration is the use of several words together which begin with the same sound. It is a type of persuasive language, so the advertisers are persuading you to buy the product.
Both advertisements use jargon. For example, the Clinique one says ‘allergy tested’ and ‘100% fragrance free’ underneath the brand name in the bottom left hand corner. In the L’Oreal Paris one it is ‘no ammonia’ and ‘no peroxide’. This makes them sound good. Jargon is the use of scientific and technical words to impress the reader.
The L’Oreal advertisement also highlights important information by using a different coloured text.
Both advertisements show the product, but in the L’Oreal Paris one it is quite small compared to the Clinique one where it takes up most of the page. The Clinique one also has an offer written in the bottom left hand corner saying that if you buy anything from the modern metallics collection you receive ‘3 free deluxe custom fit samples of Clinique’s 3 step skin care system’. It also contains weasel words saying ‘one gift per customer, while stocks last’. This implies that if you want the offer you have to be quick because the offer could run out or if you don’t get your free gift it’s because they have supposedly ‘run out of stock’. This means that people might go and buy the product because you get a free gift with it. This is as though they are bribing you.
In my opinion the advertisement which is most effective is the L’Oreal Paris one, because it is eye catching and cheerful. But then the Clinique one would sell because it has a free gift and special offer which usually makes products sell. However, the L’Oreal Paris advertisement is presented like it is to draw the eye to it and get the readers to buy the product for what it is, not because it has a free gift with it.
