The “Fiat Blue Pill” Ad: An Analysis.
It is well known that the ads aired during the Super bowl have become an icon not just for their high quality, but how for how creative they are. The viewers also know that these companies are spending millions in these ads. But the common question is: are these ads successful? In this paper, I will analyze and discuss how effective one of these ads was and the appeals used to catch the viewer attention.
For many years, the Super Bowl Sunday has been the best excuse families and friends use to gather together in front of the TV like no other time during the year. Companies use this on their advantage. Companies make their best ads to air them on this day, these commercials are unique, no other time during the year would you see ads like these. Knowing that many people are going to be watching TV at that time makes them believe that it is the perfect time to sell their products. These companies use emotions to appeal to their audience. According to the list of appeals used by marketers, discussed in Jib Fowles book Advertising and Popular Culture , The “Fiat Blue Pill” ad, uses the “ need for sex and attention” as a way to get the viewer attention. The ad is humorous, while it tells the viewer the benefits of buying the product just by implying them.
At the beginning of The “Fiat- Blue Pill” ad we see a middle age woman lying on a bed with the fingers asking her husband to join her. She then raises the sheets covering her legs. When her husband, an old man, sees her, he smiles. Then he goes back to the restroom. He gets a bottle that has just one blue pill left. The man tries to take his last blue pill. When he tries to get the pill into his mouth, it falls through the window. The man screams “NOOOO” and he looks through the window to see where the pill went. Apparently he is in the second floor. He sees how the pill goes down the roof. The viewer is then taken on a trip through a city in Italy following the pill. We see a big building with a bell on top, which is obviously a church. Finally, we see a small red car in a gas station and the pill some how gets in gas tank. The owner gets surprised when he sees the car, Fiat 500 slowly getting bigger. After this a voice says “The old new Fiat 500X” Then you see one young woman walking by staring at the car and saying “uuh” then another woman who is biking sees the car and has the same reaction as the previous woman. After this, we see a woman older than the two previous women and she also stares at the car, then she says “grr” Lastly, we see the car moving and a man’s voice says “ Bigger, more powerful, and ready for action” The man driving the car looks proud and happy. Then we see the couple from the beginning and the man is sleeping while his wife looks mad.
Fiat uses “Need for Sex” as a way to keep their viewer’s attention. One never expects this ad to be a car advertisement as it starts with a couple that looks ready to have sex. At this point, one may think that the ad is about a man with erectile dysfunction who uses a blue pill to satisfy his wife. Then, we see how the pill travels through a European city until it gets inside a car, which gets bigger. It is there where one realizes that the ad is advertising a car, which is a newer version of one the company’s cars. The ad is trying to persuade the viewer that that the car is sexy and that it would make the driver look as sexy as the guy driving the car in the ad. The bright red color of the car makes it look sexy and the fact that it is Italian. We usually see European cities, language, and the whole culture in general as something sexy. Most people feel attracted to European cities, where things look old, but classy, where everything looks fancy. Everything just fits in; the place feels like home. The ad gives people the sensation that the car will make them look classy while they feel confortable. The ad also tells the viewer that he would look sexy in front of women and women would be happy with them. In the ad we see women who look satisfied with the bigger car. The ad tells the viewer that the car gets people excited when they see it.
The Fiat ad also uses the “need for attention” to capture the viewer. The viewer follows the blue pill’s way when it falls from the old man’s hand. The viewer is taken to different places until the pill gets inside a car, which is at a gas station. Finally, the car gets bigger as the pill gets inside and it is obvious for the viewer that the car gets bigger as a result of having the pill inside. This can also be seen as an erection. Also, what the narrator says at the end, “Bigger, more powerful, and ready for action.” comparing the new car Fiat 500x with the reaction a men using Viagra would have. The commercial also tells that it satisfies women, as they look happy when they see the car. The ad tells the male viewers that what happened to that old guy with his wife would not happen to them if they drive this car. It tells the male costumers, that their wives would be satisfied, happy and not mad like the old man’s wife.
Fiat used Viagra as a way of telling that their new car was bigger. The ad was entertaining as Fiat uses the “ Need for sex” as a way to catch the customer’s’ attention. When I saw the old man about to take the blue pill, I thought the commercial was about Viagra. It is obvious that the target audience is young people as it makes fun of old people by using erectile dysfunction as a way to advertise the car. This ad is also not intended for children as they would not understand the reason why the car gets bigger.
The ad was successful as it funny and entertaining as no one expects this to be a car ad. The uncertainty and curiosity caused by the ad and helps to keep the audience watching what would happen. Fiat is telling its costumers that by driving this car they would get people attention, that they would be look at when they drive this car. It also tells that this product can make the owners proud and sexy.
Fowles, Jib. Advertising and Popular Culture . I ed. Vol. 5. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
The – Fiat Blue Pill – Ad: An Analysis – taniacruzuwp23portfolio
