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Sophia Marconcini
English 100 B
Ad Analysis Essay
Jodi Simmons
February 9, 2015
Clear Skin Is Always In
When we are first born we enter the world with smooth, flawless, glowing skin. As we
get older and puberty hits, some of us will no longer have that perfect complexion but rather red
bumps growing rapidly all over our cheeks, nose, chin, and forehead. This is the beginning of
many people’s insecurities. Some are blessed to not experience these gross infections on their
faces, but most are cursed with it. These infections can vary in severity; very few small bumps
here and there, small to medium bumps that cover more surface areas around the face, or massive
bumps leaving holes and red scars commonly seen around the cheeks. This is the part in life
where we look for products to help our acne disappear, leaving us looking confident in our own
skin. Some people spend hundreds of dollars purchasing products to help control their acne, but
Proactiv has been, and still is today, the rave since it was first established over 20 years ago.
Advertisements today manipulate the audience by using famous celebrities, such as Justin
Bieber, to sell their product by influencing young teenagers to believe their complexion is not
appealing to society.
The first ad shows a picture of Justin Bieber, a worldwide teenage pop star, with a big
bold text next to him saying “Justin Bieber’s secret to success” in purple catching the intended
audiences’ eyes to what will be their success once they try this product. Also the apostrophe in
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“Bieber’s” is a purple heart, which is usually a feminine symbol. This ad persuades both young
females and males. Young females around the ages of 13-25 are targeted by informing them on
what products Justin uses to maintain his perfectly clear and smooth skin, making him looking
jaw droppingly gorgeous. The fallacy in this ad is using a famous teenage male to persuade other
males to buy this product, that way they can look like Justin Bieber, when really this ad
persuades females since Justin Bieber is known for having dominantly female fans than male
fans.
The next ad shows the three major components of the Proactiv bottles used when
applying the product on your face; step one: cleanse, step two: tone, and step three: repair, with a
black background emphasizing the three bottles with large white font with the famous question
“GOT ACNE?” above the bottle. Underneath is a smaller white font size with the text “Just ask
your boyfriend what to do. Oh, that’s right, you don’t have a boyfriend.” This ad, along with the
Justin Bieber ad, is directed towards women in the sense that “don’t have a boyfriend” is in pink
coloring genderalizing the ad towards women. Some may take this ad offensively, especially the
perspectives of homosexual males because of the pink writing. Pink, being a feminine color used
to genderalize us at birth, discriminates against homosexual males because they’re purposely
assuming that women are ones with boyfriends, when in reality, males can have boyfriends too
making this ad a fallacy.
As I broke down each ad to determine which rhetorical strategy was being used, Pathos,
Ethos, and Logos were noticeable in creating these two advertisements. Ethos is a matter of trust
the audience feels and also accuracy of the information provided. Since Justin Bieber is on the
cover of the first ad smiling, whether or not you know him, his posture, young face, and
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gleaming smile gives us a sense of innocence towards his character. If you know who he was, or
are a huge fan, you would immediately feel a connection towards the ad whether or not you had
acne because you would know about his good reputation and age appropriate music, which was
at its peak during this time the advertisement was created. Many idolize Justin Bieber, and
having him represent Proactiv places a good image on the product. Having Justin Bieber as the
face of Proactiv in this particular ad shows the audience that the quality is high- end that a
famous celebrity uses it.
Pathos is about being persuasive by triggering people’s emotions. In the “Got Acne?” ad,
they triggers young girls’ emotions by taking their insecurity and throwing it in our face by
telling us that the reason why we are single is because we don’t have clear skin which is why we
don’t have a boyfriend, and if you don’t purchase this product you might as well be forever alone
and ugly. Not only would single females with acne be affected by this ad, but also females who
don’t have boyfriends but have clear skin because it will make them start to think that maybe
they’re single because their skin isn’t beautiful in other peoples eyes and by using this product,
you will have a boyfriend like Justin Bieber. Fans of his would be the easiest people to convince
to buy this product because they want to be close to him and by purchasing what he purchases,
they could feel or be more like him. Some females are obsessed with him and would do
anything to follow his footsteps. Maybe by using this product Justin Bieber would notice them
and become their potential boyfriend, giving females hope and motivation to use this acne
solution. Females spend a lot of money on products to keep their complexion flawless and crystal
clear because we try to look attractive and beautiful for men.
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Logos is logic. In other words it is used to inject reason using cause and effect and facts.
Justin Bieber’s ad is persuading the audience that if we purchase this item, there’s also a chance
that we can win a refining mask which you use to place on top of break out areas and with fast
results the blemish will disappear. Also, there’s a chance of winning oil wipes used to blot on
oily areas on the surface of ones face, ejecting the oils and leaving you’re face les oily which is
good for our skin because the oils cause breakouts. The second ad cause and effect occurs. By
purchasing this product, you will get a boyfriend like Justin Bieber, and you will be beautiful.
What girl would turn that down?
In conclusion, using Justin Bieber to help sell their product is genius because of the
millions of girls who look up to him or try to be just like him. Using a scare tactic to persuade
people to use this product or they will be single forever is another impressive yet offensive way
to motivate people to have a better, confident future and it all begins once you use Proactiv.
Nobody wants to be single, and everyone dreams of having a handsome boyfriend with clear
skin. The “Got Acne?” ad can be taken more as a reality check for some people to realize that
they need to do something about their acne and start living their life. It may be offensive to some
people, but sometimes the truth hurts. A lot of time and effort is placed on these along with
money. The advertising industry is a strong industry that spends billions of dollars to try
everything they can to persuade people to purchase products using many different forms of
persuasions as expressed in the paragraphs above. If you have bough the product, their goal has
been successful. People are sometimes more gullible when looking at ads thinking that if they
purchase this item, then they are going to look like the model in the ad or the words used to get
us to buy the product will come true for us, when in reality, depending on who the audience is,
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not every product works for everyone, especially acne solutions. For instance, I tried Proactiv
and it did not help my face clear up. Instead I broke out even more and had to go on an oral
contraception to help decrease and control my acne.