Burger King – Pennsylvania, Oregon, Aviano
Burger King’s “Pennsylvania, Oregon, Aviano” Advertisement depicts 3 different Burger King locations on fire. Burger King is taking advantage of their reputation of being the fast-food chain that burns down the most locations and creating a humorous advertisement around them. Dark humor is an acquired taste, so this advertisement was very hit or miss.
Product/Service: Burger King’s Flame Broiled Whoppers
What was the appeal/objective of the ad: To remind customers that Burger King always has flame-broiled burgers, no matter the cost. Burger King utilized some dark humor in this ad by showing pictures of actual Burger King locations that have burnt down with fires that started in the kitchen.
Target Market: Fast Food eaters. This is a case of “my product is better than the other guys”
Action: To buy food at Burger King
Value Proposition: For people wanting a similar experience to grilled hamburgers on the go, they can conveniently get that flame-broiled taste with Burger King’s Whoppers.
McDonald’s – McMobile
This series of advertisements show hyper realistic pictures of 3 iconic McDonald’s menu items through a phone screen; the Quarter Pounder, McMuffin and a McCafé drink.
Product/Service: McDonald’s Mobile Application
What was the appeal/objective of the ad: To show how easy it is to get your McDonalds order with the mobile app and encourage customers to utilize the mobile app.
Target Market: McDonald’s customers in Quebec, Canada
Action: For users to use the McDonald’s app
Value Proposition: The added convenience of ordering through the app, with no lines.
Schusev State Museum of Architecture – Discover the Full Story
This advertisement campaign shows 3 iconic buildings in Moscow; Saint Basil’s Cathedral, Bolshoi Theatre and the Lomonosov Moscow State University. Underneath these landmarks are unknown wonders that are still left to discover, showing that what we can see is just the tip of the iceberg.
Product/Service: The Schusev State Museum of Architecture
What was the appeal/objective of the ad: To encourage people to visit the Schusev State Museum of Architecture
Target Market: Citizens of Moscow
Action: To encourage the people of Moscow to discover the hidden stories and knowledge about the 3 iconic Moscow buildings and more at the Schusev State Museum of Architecture.
Value Proposition: People would learn that behind the known façade of each building hides a story and the knowledge of it is just the tip of the iceberg (Communication Arts).
Whiskas – Big Cat, Small Cat
This campaign shows images of small housecats hunting Zebras in the wild, chasing after Gazelles, attacking an Elephant, and cuddling with a lion. At the bottom right of each image is the saying “Feeding your cat’s instincts” along with the Whiskas brand logo.
Product/Service: Whiskas brand cat food (UK Only)
What was the appeal/objective of the ad:
Target Market: Cat owners in the United Kingdom
Action: Buy Whiskas cat food
Value Proposition: To feed into cat’s natural instincts, no matter how big or small and give them quality food backed by the WALTHAM® Centre for Pet Nutrition (Little Black Book Online).
Alkolinjen – Escape the Bottle, Not Reality
This Advertisement contains 2 similar ads, one with a man trapped inside of a bottle with a young child looking in and leaning up against the glass and the other shows a woman trapped inside of a bottle with a young woman looking in at her. In both images, the man and woman in the bottle are looking away or off in the distance as if they aren’t fully present or aware of the people looking at them. Each bottle has a label that reads “Escape the bottle, not reality Call 80 200 500 for anonymous help”.
Product/Service: Alkolinjen
What was the appeal/objective of the ad: To let viewers know that there is help available for those struggling with alcohol abuse and to advertise Alkolinjen’s organization/services.
Target Market: Anyone struggling with alcoholism or those close to someone struggling with alcohol.
Action: To call for help versus “drowning in the bottle”
Value Proposition: This organization is dedicated to helping all who struggle with alcohol abuse and love those that struggle with it. They offer a variety of services and making advertisements helps get the word out there that this organization exists so that they can help as many people as possible. Advertisements like this also help normalize that it is okay to get help, versus dealing with it on your own.
Additional Resources:
Bbdo, Amv. “Whiskas Launches ‘Big Cat Little Cat’ Campaign: LBBOnline.” Little Black Book Online, Little Black Book, 7 Dec. 2018, nam11.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.lbbonline.com%2Fnews%2Fwhiskas-launches-big-cat-little-cat-campaign&data=05%7C02%7Cmsjones12%40catamount.wcu.edu%7Cd8351f28811946473d8008dc58b9b484%7Cc5b35b5a16d544148ee17bde70543f1b%7C0%7C0%7C638482801845223137%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=wsm1Gpt%2FXV3rhNFeM%2B4WtrAaRZUZQpkNsdZ%2FphTU2LM%3D&reserved=0.
“Schusev State Museum of Architecture.” Communication Arts, http://www.commarts.com/project/15519/schusev-state-museum-of-architecture#:~:text=%E2%80%9CDiscover%20the%20Full%20Story%20is,tenth%20of%20their%20total%20volume. Accessed 10 Apr. 2024.
Explore Entrepreneurship & Innovation 
Meaghan,
Thanks for posting this week! I love the simplicity and timeless nature of magazine ads as they always take me back to my childhood, where I couldn’t wait to get the newest edition of my favorite magazine. You chose some really interesting examples this week, one of which I want to highlight, which is the “Escape the Bottle” ad. We can feel the emotion exuded from this piece and frankly, we have all likely been impacted by someone who faced alcoholism or addition. The inclusion of a child into the scene tears at the emotional heart strings of all parents. Sadly, this is a very real problem that millions of us face daily and even sadder, there are countless children left behind. While not the most glamorous message, it is one that needs to be told and with campaigns of this nature, ROI is measured very conservatively. Should this campaign help only ONE single person, we must designate it a success. In this regard, it goes to show the difference between profit and social messages within society and how we choose to market them differently. I really appreciate you deviating from the norm here and showing an example that we can all empathize with!
Cheers,
Zane Breeding
LikeLike
You are absolutely right on how important ads like this are, and even if it is just one person that it helps, that is one less person struggling in this epidemic.
After doing these advertising analysis, I have noticed the difference in for-profit marketing and non-profit marketing. I personally think I have experienced more of an impact to the non-profit marketing simply due to them pulling on that emotion factor more or having that emotional tie to something/someone I care about.
Thank you so much for you comment!
LikeLike
Meghan,
These ads all have a deeper meaning than what is illustrated and it is truly intriguing. These ads had the readers attention more so than commercials or social media which makes me believe that their story telling ads are much easier for one to comprehend or read into more later. These ads continue a story line that has already begun which I love.
Great choices and although these ads were much more complex in nature, the overall message is the same, buy our products, you’ll love it!
LikeLike
Thank you Ivan for commenting!
I really think ads like these goes to show a picture is worth a thousand words. While some of the content is heavier than others in the ads I chose, it is a good example of how much thought/planning can go into creating an ad to have an impact on viewers.
The root of any advertisement can boil down “buy me” if you try hard enough. It’s almost like the saying how everything is three degrees away from Kevin Bacon.
LikeLike
Meaghan,
I commented on your previous post about Burger King’s “Flame-Grilled” advertisement. Something I failed to acknowledge that you noted; however, is the fact that this form of advertisement is dark humor, which can be hit or miss among consumers. This is important to note, as there is risk presented when publishing advertisements, such as this because they are essentially making light and banter about something that could have harmed or even killed people.
The risk in this situation has seemingly paid-off, or at least not harmed the company, as Burger King is ranked very high on the Effie Index ranking list. Burger King has an Effie Index rank of third in the Restaurants & Foodservice category with a score of 326. Effie Index ranks represent the most comprehensive global rankings of marketing effectiveness.
LikeLike