Trenden Everett

10/31/15
6
Commercial Analysis Essay

Commercial Analysis Essay

Old aspects of any apparatus are not meant for modern society. While some individuals
may consider this fact simple, the implementation of older aspects of apparatuses still exists in
society, usually occurring when companys try to use internet trends to appeal to teenagers after
the trend has fallen. A fair example of an apparatus that has to stay modern is a commercial. If
old aspects of a commercial were utilized in contemporary society, or if the commercial utilized
old trends, the commercial would fail to garner new customers. Old Spice is a household name
that has been involved in commercial culture for many years, and Old Spice has drastically
changed the aspects of its commercials since its original debut. By analyzing the target audience,
historical context, composition, and rhetorical appeals of two Old Spice commercials, one an
early iteration and the other a modern iteration, one can see that the modern Old Spice
commercial is better suited for modern society.
Before continuing, one should have a clear understanding of the composition of both
commercials. The older of the two commercials is from the 1960s. It starts off as a large number
of the products packaging slides to the front of the screen. When the product stops, a mildvoiced narrator begins talking about the product, and as he is speaking, the products bottle is
pushed, causing the shaving cream in the bottle to burst out. Next, a razor blade pushes through
the cream, the text HELPS TAKE FRICTION OUT OF SHAVING appears on the screen, and
the text stays there as a man whose identity cannot be determined appears on the screen applying

the shaving cream. The man shaves, and then the screen changes to that of the product and its
price.
The more current Old Spice starts off with a plain room, and then Terry Crews flies
upward onto the screen. Old Spices product explodes into his hand, and Crews declares how the
product is newer than a fresh pair of socks, who in turn, say that the product is newer than a
jersey. The jersey makes the same comment about a mouse, the mouse makes the same comment
about an opened present from Crews stepmother, and Crews quips about everything talking. The
unopened gift makes the same comment of newness about a waffle iron, the waffle iron does the
same about the solar panels, and the solar panels declare themselves the newest thing, to which a
baby voice disagrees. A buff baby is shown on screen, Crews yells happily about having a son,
and then everything in the house is absorbed into the product. Finally, the screen changes to that
of shaving cream with the Old Spice logo at the bottom right, Crews appears, asking a question,
a razor comes and shaves Crews away revealing the product, and the product turns around,
revealing the text DOWN-LOAD THIS TO YOUR FACE. All of this occurs in thirty-two
seconds.
Obviously, the two ads differ greatly in content; however, this is not the most important
aspect to note. What is most important is how this disparity in composition relates to modern
society. Most blatant is the difference in color between the commercials. Old Spices older
commercial was in black and white, with no color to be seen, whereas the modern Old Spice
commercial was in full color. People have been enjoying color in television since 1951, so a
black and white commercial has a definite disadvantage against a colored commercial.
Disparities in the commercials arent the only factor; people themselves factor into the
effectiveness of commercials, too. According to several studies, the human attention span has

fallen from twelve seconds in 2000 to eight seconds in 2013, one second lower than that of a
goldfish. If one were to ask oneself which commercial is better for modern society between the
slow-moving commercial with the mild-voiced narrator, and the fast-paced, asinine commercial
with the bald, buff man who yells, one would undoubtedly choose the latter of the two
commercials.
Another reason the contemporary Old Spice is more suited for todays society, is because
its rhetorical appeals are better accustomed to the time period. During the 1960s, there were no
household media centers such as computers or tablets, nor were there cellphones. Due to this,
scams would either have to be televised or in person, and widespread studies or experiments took
copious amounts of time. Any brand name company seeking to gain customers via commercials
would be aware of this fact. If one recalls the older, aforementioned Old Spice commercial, its
main points involve a man shaving while a narrator commends the shaving creams abilities. No
special ploys are involved; the commercial simply illustrates the shaving creams good points to
seem credible, an ethos appeal. Without studies to provide proof to the audience for a logos
appeal, and with pathos appeals seeming like scams, the only appeal Old Spice could make was
an ethos appeal.
Modern Old Spice is restricted in a similar manner. Today, homes are filled with
computers and tablets, and most individuals have cellphones, meaning scams are typically found
on the internet and on cell phones through spam calls. Additionally, television spots for
commercials cost much more than they once had, further decreasing the amount of commercial
scams found on television. Television programs with such a setup instill commercial credibility
in the minds of viewers, meaning that commercials focused on proving their credibility, such as
the 1960s Old Spice commercial, are less effective. Another point is that, because there are now

more producers of similar products, conducting studies of ones product leaves it vulnerable to
being shown as a less effective brand when compared to another; therefore, logos appeals are not
a viable option, either. Only pathos appeals are left as an option for commercials, and the current
Old Spice uses just that. A buff, bald man yelling, followed by talking household objects and a
buff baby, finished off by everything being sucked into the Old Spice bottle is a setup determined
to appeal to the emotion known as mirth, making it a more affective commercial than its older
counterpart.
The older Old Spice and the contemporary Old Spice differ in their target audience
despite both their target audiences including men. Diversion occurs when one includes race; Old
Spice was only for white men in the past, but now encompass men of all races. In every original
Old Spice commercial, even the one being discussed, the man being shown in the advertisement
is white. Old Spice commercials date back as far as 1957, meaning that the aforementioned Old
Spice commercial had been created before the Civil Rights Act and that Old Spice had begun
creating commercials before the Civil Rights Act. Old Spice was aware of the racist morals of
America during that time, and as such knew that the majority of America would not have
appreciated nonwhite actors. In actuality, Old Spice could have potentially been racist itself, and
avoided nonwhite actors regardless. In either scenario, Old Spices previous actions would never
be accepted in modern society.
Contemporary Old Spice could not be farther from its first iterations. Although only one
of these commercials is aforementioned, the best received and most well-known Old Spice
commercials involve Terry Crews and Isaiah Mustafah, two black men. Recently, the two actors
have been combined and the universes of both Old Spice commercials have coincided, resulting
in some of the most popularity the Old Spice commercials have seen in months. Such an

occurrence is an inverse of the past. Old Spice understands that American society is now much
more encouraging of nonwhite actors, especially black actors, and naturally included black actors
for their riskiest commercials. Now one cannot say the brand Old Spice without thinking of the
iconic faces of Crews and Mustafah.
Old Spices old implementations of commercials are not as apposite for contemporary
society as Old Spices more current implementations. Just looking at composition, the earlier Old
Spice commercial lacks color and striking content, things the younger Old Spice commercials
contain. The earlier Old Spice commercial was made in a time with cheap commercial spot
prices and without computers, tablets, or cellphones. Proving its worth was the goal of that Old
Spice commercial, an ethos appeal, which, in a society the exact opposite of the one during the
commercials creation, is less effective than the pathos appeal made by the contemporary Old
Spice. Finally, and ethically, most important, the racist historical context and basis for target
audience of the 1960s Old Spice commercial automatically makes it less effective than that of the
current Old Spice in every regard. Old aspects of apparatuses cannot function well in modern
times, as the Old Spice comparison has proven. Hopefully, in time, individuals realize the
pointlessness of using the old during the time of the new, and create content, commercial or
otherwise, that is effective.