The Culture of Automobile Advertising Techniques
Cathy Shanle
HUM-176
December 23, 2012
Anna Vida

The Culture of Automobile Advertising Techniques
In the current times, advertising agencies uses various techniques to promote their sales of their products. Commercials using common themes target many different types of consumers. Even though economic and social issues may be touched upon, many automobile companies’ advertisers’ targets consumer’s sense of socialism to promote sales of their products.
While these agencies uses various techniques to sell their products, many techniques are geared toward the more influential groups of consumers such as teen drivers. Persuasive techniques as described in our course textbook (Campbell, 2012) would include the “plain-folks pitch” whereas Volkswagen uses the slogan “Drivers Wanted” to lure ordinary people to acquire their vehicles (p.337). Another type of persuasive technique would be to use the “famous person testimonial” technique whereas a famous person that the consumers can relate to or perhaps even look up to would suggest certain products in order to persuade the consumer to be “like” the person in the commercial. An example would be the commercials that Tony Stewart performed in to promote “Armor All” and the Chevrolet Camaro. This commercial suggested that Tony Stewart (famous Nascar driver) used Armor All for his Camaro and was so infatuated with the product that nothing else matter when he was admiring his freshly cleaned Camaro. Even though this commercial was for Armor All products, the automobile company benefited from being present in this commercial.
Another automobile leader, Kia, found that using popular, snappy music and cartoon-like characters would be beneficial to the advertising of their car “Kia Soul”. They used animated hamster characters with “hip” clothing to promote influential preferences of the teen consumer. These teen consumers can relate to the music that was orchestrated, the clothing that each hamster wore and the general atmosphere of the commercial. After much success with the use of these memorable hamsters, the car company decided it would try its hand with the hamster’s success again but this time targeting a more sophisticated group of consumer. These consumers would have grown up and now would listen to opera. With that concept in mind, these hamsters would still portray the youthful moves needed and still was a social hit.
Using these various advertising techniques, the automobile advertisers hope to gain favor with the particular group that is targeted within the commercial that is shown. Timing of these commercials also helps target specific groups of consumers. Economic issues such as safety, gas mileage and ecological impact that the vehicle may have upon the consumer’s world is becoming less important to the average youthful consumer. The automobile companies are targeting the social status that the consumer assumes they will achieve seems to be more important than the real issues of the world. These types of persuasive advertising sells the product it promotes but the real question would be, should it?

References:
Campbell, R., Martin, C.R., & Fabos, B (2012) Media & culture: An introduction to mass communication (8th.) New York, NY: Bedford/St. Martin’s