George B. Harris III SID: 830353266
Analysis Paper
Analysis Paper: An Examination of the Groupon Super Bowl Advertising
George B. Harris III SID:
830-35-3266
COMM 4200 Professor Omar Swartz
George B. Harris III SID: 830353266
Analysis Paper
Analysis Paper: An Examination of the Groupon Super Bowl Advertising
During the 2011 Super Bowl game the company known as Groupon launched an ad campaign.
This
ad campaign was hailed as Groupon’s “coming out”.
The concept of the ad campaign was to
have celebrities like Timothy Hutton, Elizabeth Hurley and Cuba Gooding Jr star in thirty-second television ads in which they appear to be talking about current global issues.
These
include the extinction of the killer whale, the deforestation in Brazil and the plight in Tibet. As the ads progress, the focus of the spot changes from these critical issues to discounts people can receive by using the services provided by Groupon.
This campaign was
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Analysis Paper
determined one of the worst and most socially irresponsible ads presented thus far.
This
series of ads will be the focus of this paper. My intention is to look at two theories; psychological reactance theory and the stimulusorganism-response theory.
After providing a
detailed overview of both, I will be applying these theories to these ads. By this, I intend to show how the misuse or misunderstanding of these theories caused the failure of this ad campaign. Part One:
Introduction of the Theories
Psychological Reactance Theory “Psychological reactance theory was first discussed by psychologist Jack W. Brehm, who predicted that reactions of arousal, resentment, and anger occur when a person or agency threatens to restrict a fee behavior in which we
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Analysis Paper
want to engage� (Swartz, 2009).
In a nutshell,
this theory discusses the fact that we as individuals find it critical to feel as if we are free to think, feel and engage in the things that we choose to.
When we feel as if these
rights are being threatened or taken away, we get pretty upset.
This is the reactance piece
of the theory. An easier way to look at this theory is to observe the actions of your average teenager. Right around the age of thirteen years old, I remember discovering all the things in the world that seemed like they would be fun to try out, but obviously my mother would be opposed to. These are things like drinking alcoholic beverages, engaging in sexual activities at such a young age, and of course the big one smoking.
It just so happened that my mother was
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Analysis Paper
a smoker at the time.
Seeing her smoke, yet
hearing the message that I was not allowed to smoke, somehow rubbed me the wrong way.
So, in
the 11th grade, I began stealing cigarettes from my mother and/or smoking with friends during and after school.
In my opinion, the taking of my
mother’s cigarettes was my way of robbing her of the same freedom I felt she was taking from me. This example is also echoed in The Power of Persuasion; “Telling the child something’s prohibited and he becomes obsessed with nothing else” (Levine, 2003). This can, if used correctly, be a very powerful persuasive tool in advertising.
If the
person crafting the message can give the impression that a freedom is being taken away, but in the same breath give it back to you; AND tie that restoration of freedom to the product
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Analysis Paper
or service they are providing, you would assume that the receiver of the message would have an affinity of sorts for that company or brand. Granted giving a cigarette to a child isn’t a good way to get them to NOT smoke, I was able to find an example that shows my point.
In their
book Theories of Persuasion, Dillard and Pfau also discuss the notion of restoring the freedom that we have perceived being taken away from us. The example they use; a police officer giving the freedom to have a wallet, after having it taken at gunpoint.
In a case like this, the
person who had their wallet stolen would obviously feel a sense of gratitude to the officer who saved their freedom.
Here’s an
interesting question for you; if you were put in this situation, and this kind young officer not only saves your wallet and possessions, but
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Analysis Paper
potentially save your life, would you lend him a dollar if he asked for it?
After thinking about
it, I believe that I would actually feel obligated to do so.
In the application portion
of this paper I will be showing how misuse of this can backfire on you. Stimulus-Organism-Response Theory For the purposes of this paper, I believe that this theory may be the most critical component.
It focuses on how the message
connects to the audience in such a way that it will make them react.
The reaction you’re
obviously hoping for is one that will benefit your product or service.
Each of the sources
used for this paper discuss the need to make a connection between the message and the receiver. This is a basic staple of effective communication.
According to Dr. Swartz, this
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Analysis Paper
theory ties in with Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs. Let me try and put this theory into more common terms.
One of the most basic needs, as
described by Maslow is that of procreation. Without procreation, the human species would cease to exist.
Some might argue that “need” is
the very driving force to everything we do as human beings.
There is currently a product
called AX that is primarily marketed to teenage males.
As we all know, between the ages of 13
years old to 25 years old, sexual interaction is at the forefront of this segment of the populations mind.
In their ad campaigns, AX
uses the notion that using their product will increase your chances of getting a mate.
Not
only increase, but also insure that you will “get lucky”.
Although there is scientific
evidence that pheromones do have a tendency to
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Analysis Paper
increase sexual attraction within a species, it is safe to bet that this company does not employ this science in their product, which for all intents and purposes makes it useless. But where does the attraction come in?
If
you apply AX body spray campaign logic to the Stimulus-Organism-Response equation, it would look something like this: Stimulus(AX) + Organism(Target)= Response(Sex) Because of the basic need to procreate, the target market associates the use of this product with their likelihood to be successful in their endeavors.
This connection with the organism on
a basic human level makes this product extremely successful. At the risk of making this theory sounds like a cheap parlor trick, this is a theory that
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Analysis Paper
I find employed very frequently; often as the straw that will break the camels back.
Another
good example of this theory in practice is political conventions, speeches and addresses. The candidate or politician will often appeal to things like country and God to try and make their message and, for that matter, their brand relevant and important to the voter.
In order
to help maintain support for our current war on terror, you see a resurgence of 9/11 imagery and/or references.
This serves to “remind� the
country why we are doing what we are doing and to bring them back to center on the issue.
Part Two:
Theory Application
Psychological Reactance Theory
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Analysis Paper
As stated before, the Groupon Super Bowl ad campaign used a twist strategy.
That is, they
took you in one direction to begin with and then suddenly shift gears to take you in a new direction; that of their product.
For these
ads, they chose to use relevant global social issues to grab the views attention.
Coupled
with the use of famous faces, you are immediately drawn in to something that should be important to anyone who considers themselves a socially conscious human being.
Once the
position of global awareness has been established, you are diverted to services that loosely tie these issues to Groupon’s product and in some cases, make fun of the issues at hand. In my opinion, this shows a poor understanding of the psychological reactance
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Analysis Paper
By this I mean, the advertisers who
created this campaign may have seen this as a witty use of world issues to market a product but in fact, caused a negative psychological reaction from virtually everyone who viewed the ad.
While this does not directly apply to a
freedom, it does speak to the choice that the viewer made to view the ad because of what they may have perceived to be an important message. As a consumer, when I viewed the ad, I found myself shocked by the use of these issues to market their product.
I also felt a sense of
betrayal for Groupon’s misuse of my choice to care about something that was important to more than just my segment of the world. I believe a more appropriate use of this theory for this campaign would have been to simply reverse the order in which they
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Analysis Paper
If Groupon had presented
samples of their discounts and at the end announced they were going to donate a certain percentage of their profit to help with relief for these loosely related topics, it would have had a different ending for the campaign.
In
this situation, the freedom or choice that is taken away is the right to have a balanced world.
Many people feel that world issues are
too big for them; what can they do? Groupon could have used this feeling of helplessness to provide a means for people to contribute to the world scene while also creating a demand for use of their services. Stimulus-Organism-Response Theory As we discussed earlier, this theory is comprised of three key pieces; the stimulus, the organism and the response.
When used in
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Analysis Paper
advertising, the desired response is always the known variable.
You want the consumer to choose
your product over your competitors.
In the case
of this Groupon campaign, they did just the opposite; they made the consumer stray away from their product.
The current financial status of
the United States makes services like Groupon very appealing for the average person.
You
receive notification of daily deals in your local area.
Local businesses also benefit
because they have the ability to attract clientele that they may not normally reach. With this ad campaign, Groupon had the right idea of what this theory could do for them, but they didn’t factor in the response they would get from the consumer once the true nature of the ad was revealed.
I believe the general
consensus regarding this “switch-a-roo� was more
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Analysis Paper
of a “HOW DARE THEY!�
Once the comic nature of
the ad was known, several key components of the message were lost; credibility of the spokesperson and credibility and ethics of the company.
Again, this campaign would have been
better served by focusing on our social consciousness.
Get people to use your service
because they see a tie between your product and alleviating a global problem. Conclusion In this analysis paper, I have discussed the Psychological Response Theory and the StimulusOrganism-Response Theory.
I have demonstrated
an understanding of these theories and their function in the field of persuasion and communication.
Further, I have used the 2011
Super Bowl advertisement presented by Groupon to
George B. Harris III SID: 830353266
Analysis Paper
show what can happen if an organization fails to correctly calculate how the elements of their campaigns play out when these two key persuasion theories are applied to them. If Groupon had done a better analysis of their market and the importance of these global social issues, their ad campaigns would probably look dramatically different.
Also the response
to this campaign would have been very different. Their failure to take the appropriate measures during the planning process, caused them bad press and millions of dollars in advertising.
George B. Harris III SID: 830353266
Analysis Paper
References DeFleur, M.L., & Ball-Rokeach, S. (1982). Theories of mass communication, 4th edition . New York, NY: Longman Inc. Swartz, O. (2009). Persuasion as a critical activity. Dubuque, IA: Kendall Hunt. Andersen, K.E. (1971). Persuasion: theory and practice. Boston, MA: Allyn and Bacon Gordon, G. N. (1971). Persuasion: the theory and practice of manipulative communication . Don Mills, Canada: Saunders of Toronto, Ltd. Roloff, M. E., & Miller, G.R. (1980). Persuasion: new directions in theory and research . Beverly Hills, CA: Sage Publications, Inc. Levine , R. (2003). The power of persuasion: how we're bought and sold . Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley
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and Sons. Dillard, J.P., & Pfau, M. (2002). The persuasion handbook: developments in theory and practice. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications, Inc.