Magazine Ad Analysis Essay Example
A Zyrtec ad for their allergy medicine appears in the September 2019 issue of People Magazine. This ad argues that if you buy Zyrtec’s allergy medicine, you can go about your life without muddling through pesky allergies. This ad shows a man with his girlfriend or significant other on a boat, possibly trying to have a romantic moment. Which could be deduced from the bouquet of flowers, and the beautiful background of the park, with a serene lake. However, the moment is ruined by the man sneezing. This causes him to tumble off the boat as evidenced by the astonished expression the woman has. There is a text at the top in bold orange and white letters which says “When your sneezes rock the boat, you may be muddling through allergies as well as the text on the bottom right-hand corner that says "Muddle No More" with a display of the product. Zyrtec wants the intended audience to feel a need to buy this medication. This is because there is a certain need to buy a reliable allergy medication that helps allergy sufferers. The intended audience is the majority of women and men. This can be evidenced by the fact that some men think that their allergies will go away by themselves which causes disastrous consequences. While women usually act right away especially when they have a muddler in their life such as a husband or boyfriend with allergies.
Core Message of the Ad
This Zyrtec ad argues that if you buy their product, you or someone you care about may no longer have to muddle through pesky allergies. This message is clear in the wording of the text at the top of the page “Muddle no more”. The image of the guy abruptly sneezing which causes him to fall off the boat, reinforces this idea because it is evident that men tend to be muddlers.
There is quite a commotion that is caused by this man falling off the boat as shown by a man that is so surprised in the background he spills his water. As well as the two women who also seemed shocked and almost fall over a boat. Even a passerby stops to see what all the commotion is about.
This indicates that the intended audience may likely be, mainly men and some women. Which is displayed in the text at the bottom of the ad which states “When your sneezes rock the boat, you may be muddling through allergies.” Which makes it apparent that it's mainly targeting the central point of view in this ad which is men. This is because when men usually are sick or have allergies they usually aren't as proactive. Causing them to power through or as the term used in the ad "muddle" through allergies. Additionally, it may include some women who are worried about a significant other in their lives that have allergies.
It appeals to the target audience by the amount of pathos which is hinted in the ad. Which promotes a feeling of emotion. This is because many men can identify with the individual falling off the boat due to not having control over his allergies, and can't help but feel sympathy for him. As he has ruined the romantic moment with his disrupting sneeze which he could have avoided had he taken the given allergy medication. It also appeals to the intended audience by the form of ethos or credibility of the information. Ethos can be shown in this ad because of the fact that the medicine states that it "starts working hard at hour one for 24 hrs".
It is important to always be prepared when facing allergies which is why Zyrtec can most certainly be effective. The likely effectiveness for the target audience is the effect of the guys sneeze in the ad as it not only disrupts his day but others too.
Men were most likely appealed to the ad because they usually are the people who need it the most, even if they won't always admit it. The character impulse was definitely middle because it was illustrated as a necessity for many allergy sufferers especially so that no chaos would ensue due to such a disrupting sneeze.
