Download The focus group study

Stockholm University
School of Business
Master Thesis - VT 1999
Supervisor: Wikland, Boel
(???????!)
- the name of the game in advertising today?
Authors:
Ammitzböll, Jens
Chander, Nitasha
Acknowledgements
We would like to express our gratitude to the following persons:
Our supervisor Boel Wikland, for supporting us throughout the research process.
Birgitta Wadell and Claes Hägg for helping us with our methodology and giving us valuable
advice at the early stage of this work.
Many thanks to Levi´s, Diesel and Benetton, for the invaluable information about their ads.
Finally we also owe a big THANK YOU!! to all the participants in our focus group study, who
were kind enough to share both their time and personal reflections with us. Without their support
there would not have been possible to draw any conclusions at all.
Abstract
In recent years, advertising has developed new types of approaches to reach the younger
segments of the population. As consumers have we reacted upon this, what we perceived as a
totally different type of advertising, not using traditional role models like the good looking and
successful individual.
Post-modern consumption has become an expression in marketing today. In this study we will
connect theories of the post-modern consumption and advertising with the new and different kind
of ads we as consumers have encountered.
Our first research question is:
Is post-modern advertising perceived by the audience in a different way than traditional
advertising, if so what do the people in our focus group think is more positive or more negative
with the post-modern ads?
Our second research question is:
Can the theories we present explain the statements and discussions by the consumers within our
focus groups? Do the participants reason along the lines of the theories?
Our purpose with this study is to find out whether a special type of advertising called postmodern advertising is perceived differently than the traditional type of advertising.
Since there is a jungle of different types of advertising out there, we have chosen to let this thesis
concentrate on the so-called image-loaded advertising in the fashion industry, directed toward
people of 20-30 years of age.
To fulfil our purpose we have chosen a qualitative departure. More precisely we have used a
exploratory focus group study method, which most often is used to get ideas about what, for
example, the audience is thinking of a certain advertising campaign or product. Our focus group
has been limited to contain people within the age group 20-30 years. All recruitment took place in
Stockholm.
Our results are that the participants do perceive the post-modern ads differently from the
traditional ones. To some extent they reason along the theories of the post-modern consumer. We
do not make any absolute statement whether the post-modern ads are more effective or not.
When summarising our conclusions, a matrix is presented which shows the advantages and
drawbacks (as perceived by our focus groups) with the two types of advertising.
Finally we use our focus group findings to give some advice on how companies can use the
knowledge of the post-modern consumer in order to reach these audience with a more effective
advertising.
Keywords:
Advertising, consumption, post-modernity, manipulation, focus-group
Table of contents
1 Introduction __________________________________________ 7
1.1
Reasons for the study ______________________________________________________ 8
1.2
Research questions ________________________________________________________ 8
1.3
Purpose _________________________________________________________________ 9
2 Theory _____________________________________________ 11
2.1
The modern era __________________________________________________________ 13
2.2
Postmodernity ___________________________________________________________ 14
2.3
The post-modern consumer ________________________________________________ 16
2.4
The young post-modern consumer __________________________________________ 18
2.5
Advertising in the modern/post-modern era __________________________________ 19
2.6
Two modes of signification _________________________________________________ 20
2.7
Advertising and its content during the modern era _____________________________ 21
2.8
Advertising and its content during the post-modern era ________________________ 22
3 Methodological approach ______________________________ 23
3.1
Pre-understanding and pre-assumptions _____________________________________ 23
3.2
Methodological perspectives _______________________________________________ 24
3.3
Hermeneutics ____________________________________________________________ 24
3.4
Qualitative method _______________________________________________________ 24
3.5
Different approaches to marketing research __________________________________ 26
3.6
Collection of qualitative data _______________________________________________ 27
3.7
Focus group methodology _________________________________________________ 28
4 The focus group study _________________________________ 33
4.1
The ads _________________________________________________________________ 35
4.2
Discussion ______________________________________________________________ 38
4.2.1
4.2.2
General discussion____________________________________________________________ 38
Discussion of the ads __________________________________________________________ 39
5 Synthesis ___________________________________________ 43
5.1
Part one- answering the research questions ___________________________________ 43
5.2
Part two-summarising the results ___________________________________________ 49
5.3
Part three-reflection on our conclusions ______________________________________ 50
6 Bibliography ________________________________________ 54
Introduction
According to some academics and marketing professionals, a new type of advertising has
emerged. The name of this new phenomenon is post-modern advertising. It addresses the postmodern consumer, who has to some degree turned against modern society and its institutions big multinational companies included.
In its latest campaign, the Italian manufacturer of clothes, Benetton, uses disabled children as
fashion models. The American jeans-giant Levi's used a middle aged bald man (with a strong
interest in miniature ship construction and bigamy) as the front figure in its latest advertising
launch. Diesel, an Italian fashion company, tries to reach its customers by having a corpulent,
India-ethnic Elvis Presley promoting their jeans.
It is obvious that this kind of advertising does not use the symbols, models or language that we as
consumers have become used to. Normally, the companies want their products to be promoted by
beautiful people, often with some authority besides good looks. It is common, for instance, for
celebrities to invest their good name in a product. Basketball super star Michael Jordan has for
instance become synonymous with Nike sports clothes.
The advertising campaigns by Benetton, Levis and Diesel all have a content that is chaotic,
fragmented, and sometimes hard to follow. The ads are full of absurd contradictions and
juxtapositioning of opposites. The focus seems to be on the artistic expression and style of the ad,
rather than on the product itself. In some cases, there is no sign of any products at all.
This kind of approach in advertising corresponds very well with how academics describe the
post-modern consumer and post-modern advertising.
This study will take a closer look at how the theories of the post-modern consumer apply when
consumers are confronted with the new types of ads we have described.
Can the “post-modern advertising “ reach today’s consumers in a different, and perhaps more
effective way? Do the consumers reason along the lines of the theories, or is the post-modern
consumer just a label, used to make the problem of an unpredictable audience more predictable?
Reasons for the study
As consumers, we have reacted on what we perceived as a different type of advertising, not using
traditional role models, i.e. the good looking and successful individual. In the academic literature
on marketing, advertising and consumer behaviour, we found material that claimed that there is a
"post-modern" consumer.
Some academics and marketing researchers, like Fuller and Thygseen or Fuat, Clifford and
Shultz, claim that youth today have a totally new mindset, which can be branded as post-modern.
These young consumers are described as people who perceive the world as fragmented but is
able to accept the kind of chaos that this results in. They are less willing to commit to a single
project or grand design. Their social reality is to a great extent constituted through hype or
simulation. Consumers feel targeted by companies, who they see as symbols of power, and is
currently taking control - going from manipulation to empowerment.(A. Fuat, Clifford J., Shultz
II 1997)
Is this description accurate? Do the audience think along the same line as the experts claim they
do, and, is there really something like the post-modern youth? Are young consumers of today
more receptive toward post-modern advertising than toward traditional advertising?
The problem area can be divided in two. First there is the question if young consumers of today
have a different kind of consumer behaviour. Is there a post-modern kind of consumer, who
reacts against the modern society in different ways? Second, there is the question if the
companies and their advertising agencies are trying to use this. If so, is this message effective on
the audience?
We will try to answer these questions by presenting different researchers theories on
consumption. In addition to this we will use a focus group study, containing consumer of 20-30
years of age in Stockholm to find out if, and to what extent, these theories can explain statements
and discussions within our focus groups.
Research questions
To be able to fulfil the purpose of this study, we would like to state two research questions. Our
impression of what in this study is referred to as post-modern advertising, is that it is something
"new" and different. By this, we mean that it uses a different language, models, layouts and
concepts in the ads. We would like to know if the participants in our focus groups has got the
same impression as we have. What is perceived differently compared to traditional advertising?
The above mentioned is the reason for our first research question.
Is post-modern advertising perceived by the audience in a different way than traditional
advertising, if so what do the people in our focus group think is more positive or more negative
with the post-modern ads?
One thing that occurred to us at an early stage when discussing this type of advertising, was that
it seemed to fit well with the description that some academics has made of consumption in the
post-modern society. The reason for our second and last research question is therefore that we
would like to find out if the theories can help us to shed some light upon our focus group
discussions.
Can the theories we present explain the statements and discussions by the consumers within our
focus groups? Do the participants reason along the lines of the theories?
Purpose
With the help of our research questions presented above we will be able to approach the purpose
of this study. Of course, there are other conditions that needs to be fulfilled to be able to draw
further conclusions.
If the focus group is an applicable method when examining this type of consumers, if we asked
the right questions, and if we were able to analyse the sessions with the help of the theories, we
should be well prepared to draw some conclusions on, if, and why post-modern advertising has
an advantage to the traditional type of advertising.
With all this in mind we hope to be able to fulfil the following purpose.
Our purpose is to find out whether a special type of advertising called post-modern advertising
is perceived differently than the traditional type of advertising.
Type of advertising
In advertising theory, a division between ads that are information-loaded and image-loaded is
made. We will focus on image loaded ads (of both the traditional style and the post-modern
style). Image-loaded and information-loaded ads works differently, which we will explain below.
We do not want to confuse the results by adding the extra variable of image- versus informationloaded ads. That is why we choose just to look at image-loaded ads.
In order to better understand what the differences are and to explain why we choose the image
loaded type. To deepen the understanding of the division between image loaded and information
loaded advertising we will use the explanation used by Branthwaite and Swindells in their article,
episodic/ semanting learning .
Advertising can according to them be categorised along a continuum:
-from information loaded
Content:
Information loaded product oriented-demonstration of attributes and characteristics.
Presents a "new " product idea.
Explicit claim.
Executional style:
Rational, factual, logical.
Pedagogical.
Product usage ( maybe exaggerated, comical)
Speech bias
-to image loaded
Content:
Open, arbitrary.
Fictional, fantastic
Executional style:
Image and mood loaded.
Coolages, disconnected, abstract.
Entertaining, emotive.
Visual, sounds bias.
(Branthwaite, Swindells 1997)
In terms of perceptual processing the image loaded advertising is different from the information
loaded. The image loaded advertising is processed by episodic knowing. This means that the
knowledge of the world is made up by separate and loosely connected events or episodes. It is
autobiographical to everyday learning in life. You learn when things happen to you. It is
passively and automatically registrated without an effort to learn. (Branthwaite, Swindells 1997)
Information loaded advertising uses semantic knowing (which is more like the learning in
school). This kind of knowing is based on active learning and relies heavily on verbal and
intelligent, logical reasoning. It is about knowledge facts and truths. (Branthwaite, Swindells
1997)
When we look at advertising we want to make clear what type of advertising we mean. In this
study we will focus upon image loaded advertising, used in branding of a product or a company.
This type of advertising contrasts with information loaded advertising, that are mainly used in
campaigns that simply aim to describe recent features or discount in order to get the products of
the shelf as fast as possible.
The branding process aims instead to create an awareness of the brand. Consumer familiarity of a
brand breeds positive feelings, so consumers are likely to choose the familiar brand over newer
entrants into the markets. ( Mowen, 1998) Awareness campaigns often tries to create positive
feelings in relation to the brand. The product itself need not to be in focus in branding
advertising, since it is not supposed to explain features etc. about the product.
The reason for excluding the information-loaded type of advertising in this study is that we did
not find any example of such an ad that we could consider to be post-modern. Those ads might
exist. But in this study we will focus on image-loaded adverting, and within this category make a
distinction between traditional and post-modern advertising. Even if it might have been possible
to take the information loaded ads into account, we feel that this would have done more harm
than good, adding little value, but confusing the results.
Product category
All ads discussed in this study comes from the fashion industry. The reason for this is that these
were the ones we first noticed as being special and different from the traditional type of
advertising.
Clothes is a product that everyone has to use. This makes it inevitable that everyone has some
kind of opinion on the products and the advertising. It is therefore easy to address the subject in a
focus group session.
Furthermore clothes is a product that is visible to everyone. We feel that clothes has an
expressive function. This is due to the fact that the product is publicly displayed ( in most cases)
an therefore makes an impression on other people. Hence it has an impact on the social life and
sends a message of the owners personality.
All products do not have the same values as clothes. For example, it is hard to see how toilet
tissues or motor oil would immediately benefit anyone's social status.
The pre-selected brands we use in this study are: Levi's, Benetton and Diesel. The reason for
choosing these brands is that they are famous for their advertising and often create a lot of
attention when launching a campaign. All of these brands uses both traditional advertising as well
as, what we view as post-modern advertising.
Consumers - age group and geography
In this study we which to examine the younger segment of the market in Stockholm. We choose
to limit the study within the age group 20-30 years of age.
Theory
In order to be able to answer our research questions we need to present theories that deal with
consumer behaviour, post-modern consumption and post-modernism versus modernism.
We have not used the general marketing literature in this theory part. By this we mean authors
like Kotler or Porter. Instead we have chosen to take advantage of the findings of researchers
more dedicated to our area of interest, namely consumer behaviour, post-modern consumption
and post-modernism. The theories we use are created by researchers like Brown, Fuat Clifford
and Schultz, Fuller and Thygsen, Kumar, Fred van Raaij and Mowen.
Post-modernism is a reaction toward what the post-modernists call " the modern society" or, "
modernism. It is therefore necessary to describe the connection between modernism and postmodernism. We do this by first presenting the differences between the modern and post-modern
era. Having done this, it will be possible to understand what drives the post modern consumer.
Furthermore , this will help when trying to describe modern- versus post-modern advertising.
In the matrix below W.Fred van Raaij gives a picture of modernity and post-modernity. In its
original version, the matrix also contained pre-modern conditions. We excluded these from the
matrix. We think that this matrix is a pedagogical way of presenting post-modernism as a
reaction towards modernism. When reading the subsequent paper it might be useful to return to
this matrix in case of any confusion concerning the terminology.
The matrix addresses the modern and the post modern era from five different perspectives (
production, society, time, orientation and culture). In the following discussion, we will put more
focus upon some of the perspectives that we feel are especially relevant to this study.
Production
Modern
Post-modern
circa 1450-1960
circa 1960-present
Industrial revolution
Information revolution
Factory
Office
Mass production
Segmented production
Centralized
Decentralized
Society
Capitalist
Owning class
Time
Orientation
Global
Para-class of
of bourgeoise
cognitariat
Linear
Fast changing
Fragmented
Nationalist
Rationalisation
Global/ Local
Multinational
of business
Exclusive
Culture
Pluralist, eclectic
Inclusive
Bourgeois
Mass-culture
reigning style
Taste culture
Many genres
Matrix 3.1 Characteristics of the modern and post-modern periods (adapted from Jencks, 1987 ) ( W.F. van Raaij
1993) The pre-modern era in the matrix has been left out by the authors of this paper.
The modern era
Since post-modernism is a reaction against what it refers to as modernism, we would like to begin
with a description of how modernism is constituted, according to the post-modernists.
Beginning in the middle ages, Christians began to use the word modernus, from modo in Latin,
meaning: recently, or, just now. Moderni, men of today, became common after the tenth
century. Thus, modernity was according to K. Kumar an invention of the Christian middle ages.
It was a decisive break with the past pagan world. (K. Kumar 1997)
It is evident that much of what we understand as modernity is contained in the Christian
philosophy of history. Christianity tells a story with a beginning ( the creation of and the fall), a
middle ( Christ’s first coming), and an end ( Christ’s second coming) - and it insists on that
necessary order of events.(Kumar 1997) During the modern era, the concept of time was
perceived as linear. Time could be measured on a scale, or time axis.( W. F. van Raaij 1993).
It is usually said that modernity as an epoch started in the seventeenth century. Inspired by
philosophers such as Montaigne, Francis Bacon and Descartes the great quarrel of the ancient and
modern resulted in the victory of the moderns. (K. Kumar 1997)
Some of the front figures of modernity such as Descartes was proud of their freedom of not
having to look back. He says, ...those who study too curiously the actions of antiquity are
ignorant of what is done among ourselves today. (K. Kumar 1997)
And this is really the essence of modernity: faith in ones time, and in the ability to explore nature
by scientific methods made up in the present, since these are charged with all the wisdom
accumulated during the upbringing of mankind. The older, or if you wish modern, mankind gets,
the more sound her judgement will become. (K. Kumar 1997)
To say the least, modernism offered a much brighter look of life than perhaps ever before.
Modernity as generally conceived is open-ended. It admits achievements to create something
totally new, to change technology, society and the conditions of everyday life. The burden of the
past had been abounded and the key to a better life was in the hands of the men of today.
Modernity imbedded hopes for the future of mankind, and promised that if only one made the
effort, through hard work, talent, smartness or even simply good looks - it would be possible to
cash in the rewards: greater understanding of the world, and in the end wealth and enhanced life
quality.
This strong period in the economic and social history of the western world made its citizens able
to take steps to significantly improve there lives. Housing standards and the usage of consumer
goods, such as cars, mobile homes, vacation trips, electrical devices for home use rose strongly.
Starting in the US and UK, the teen-age and youth culture started to evolve. Rock n´ roll and popmusic stands as symbols for the first expressions of the youth culture that would soon make its
way through media and audiences all over the world. For many young people in the west; music,
style and fashion became the primary means of communication both within their own group, and
with society in a wider sense. ( Davis 1992) This culture was a mass-culture. ( W. F. van Raaij
1993)
Postmodernity
By the late 1960s- early 1970.s, however, the modernist vision of ineluctable progress, scientific
achievement and freedom from oppression had begun to pall. The counter-culture movements of
this period, cognisant of modernity's less than illustrious legacy ( death camps, nuclear weapons,
environmental pollution, neo-colonialism an so on), unshered an era of revolt against the
authority, aspirations, assumptions and artefacts of the " establishment.
( Brown 1992).
Postmodernity - or post-modernism which has a slight different meaning ( with a focus on art,
according to K. Kumar) - is a reaction against modernity and towards the logical reasoning by
which the world had made sense to people.
The modern society was based on class. The postmodernists see a para-class of cognitariat. The
factory has become the office and production has become information processing. Today many
people work with information and posses qualities that are not so easy replaceable by the
employer. ( W.F. van Raaij 1993)
The post-modern expression through art or architecture is probably what most people think of
when post-modernism is mentioned. And maybe this is the most illustrative way to present the
idea of post-modernism with its important ingredients such as the juxtapositioning of opposites
and loss of commitment.
Painting and architecture has since the late 1960:s, early 1970:s used forms and expressions that
has been branded as post-modern. The term was first used by Joseph Hudnut in the 1940:s (
Smith 1984) but came into widespread use in the mid 1970:s, it has most commonly been
employed to describe an eclectic style that uses elements of various periods, especially those of
the classical tradition, often with ironic intent. Examples of the post-modern style in architecture
are the AT&T building in N.Y.C., built1978-83 by Johnson and Burge. Robert Stern's Piazza di´
Italia in New Orleans is an other example where antique architecture is mixed with a streamlined
skyscraper. ( Lampugnani 1986) Les pyramides at the Louvre in Paris and the Excalibur Hotel in
Las Vegas are other famous example of post-modern architecture where classical style is mixed
with high-tech looking modern materials.
In the arts, the distinction between high and low culture has been progressively denuded
(opera stars topping the hit parade, museums of the music hall and so on), participation
substituted for contemplation ( street art, body art, the happenings of Christo, wrapping famous
architecture in white fabric) and linear narratives abandoned for montage, flashback,
disorientation and a decentred view of the subject ( the tendency, for example, in contemporary
fiction for the narrator to " step aside" the narrative and address the reader directly. (Brown 1992)
We feel that the following quote by Andre Gortz summarises our previous discussion:
What we are experiencing is not the crises of modernity. We are experiencing the need to
modernise the presuppositions upon which modernity is based. The current crisis is not the crises
of Reason but that of the ...irrational motives of rationalisation as it have been pursued so far. (
Andre Gorz 1989:1)
The post-modern consumer
Above the characteristics of the modern and the post-modern era have been presented. This part
will examine the main characteristics of the consumer, specifically within the post-modern
society. Off course, since consumption play a big part in peoples life, the consumer does not
escape the notion of the post-modern society. She/he changes, to some extent, the pattern of
consumption, thus reflecting the state of the world.
According to Baudrillard the Post-modern era can be distinguished from earlier eras by the
proliferation of communications through mass media, but also by the emergence of the consumer
culture consisting of signs and simulations detached from referents. (A. Fuat and Clifford J.
Shultz II 1997). Firat and Venkatesh offer the following five conditions of post-modern culture:
1. Hyper reality. Constitution of social reality through hype or simulation that is powerfully
signified and represented.
2. Fragmentation. Omnipresence of disjointed and disconnected moments and experiences in life
and sense of self- and the growing acceptance of the dynamism which leads to fragmentation
in markets
3. Reversal of consumption and production. Cultural acknowledgement that value is created not
in production ( as posited by modern thought) but in consumption- and the subsequent growth
of attention and importance given to consumption.
4. Decentring of the subject. Removal of the human being from the central importance she or he
held in modern culture. And the increasing acceptance of the potentials of his/her
objectification.
5. Paradoxical juxtapositions ( of opposites). Cultural propensity to juxtapose anything with
anything else, including oppositional, contradictory and essentially unrelated elements.
(A. Fuat and Clifford J. Shultz II 1997)
According to another researcher on post-modernism, Brown, loss of commitment and pluralism
can be added to the above mentioned post-modern conditions.
(Brown 1993) presents the following three tendencies of the post-modern consumer:
1. Readiness for living a perpetual present. Cultural propensity to experience everything
(including the past and future) in the present, ”here and now”
2. Emphasis on form/style. Growing influence of form and style ( as opposed to content) in
determining meaning and life
3. Greater acceptance of or resignation to a state of disorder and chaos. Cultural
acknowledgement that rather than order, crisis and disequilibria are the common states of
existence- and the subsequent acceptance and appreciation of this conditions.
The researchers Fuat, Clifford and Schultz has made the perhaps most comprehensive
description of the above discussed post-modern conditions. In addition to the already mentioned
conditions, they also present two additional ones.
1. Openness/Tolerance. Acceptance of difference (different styles, ways of being and living)
without prejudice or evaluations of superiority and inferiority.
2. Loss of commitment. Growing cultural unwillingness to commit to any single idea, project or
grand design.
We would like to sum up all the post-modern conditions presented above in the following table.
Since these conditions are mentioned and discussed throughout the paper it will be useful to
return to this table in order to avoid any misinterpretations.
Post-modern conditions
Brief descriptions
Acceptance of disorder / chaos
Cultural acknowledgement that rather than order, crisis
and disequilibria are the common states of existence- and
the subsequent acceptance and appreciation of this
conditions.
Openness/Tolerance
Acceptance of difference (different styles, ways of being
and living) without prejudice or evaluations of superiority
and inferiority.
Hyper reality
Constitution of social reality through hype or simulation
that is powerfully signified and represented.
Perpetual present
Cultural propensity to experience everything (including
the past and future) in the present, ”here and now”
Paradoxical juxtapositions
Cultural propensity to juxtapose anything with anything
else, including oppositional, contradictory and essentially
unrelated elements.
Fragmentation
Omnipresence of disjointed and disconnected moments
and experiences in life and sense of self- and the growing
acceptance of the dynamism which leads to fragmentation
in markets
Loss of commitment
Growing cultural unwillingness to commit to any single
idea, project or grand design
Decentring of the subject
Removal of the human being from the central importance
she or he held in modern culture. And the increasing
acceptance of the potentials of his/her objectification
Reversal of consumption and
production
Cultural acknowledgement that value is created not in
production ( as posited by modern thought) but in
consumption- and the subsequent growth of attention and
importance given to consumption
Emphasis on form / style
Growing influence of form and style ( as opposed to
content) in determining meaning and life
Table 2.1
Source: (A. Fuat and Clifford J. Shultz II 1997)
Baudrillard also emphasises that consumption now play a bigger part in defining people’s
identities and consciousness than class. (A. Fuat and Clifford J. Shultz II 1997)
The post-modern era is characterised by its fragmented culture. There is no dominant ideology,
people can choose from old as well as new ideologies, since there is no right or wrong. Since
there is a ideological freedom present a large variety of styles and genres are created. The postmodern consumer can choose among traditions, styles, products and services from the past and
the present. The perception of self and others have been changed by the consumer lifestyle, by
the constant stream of TV images, by the media’s power to seduce us into a ”hyper-reality”.(A.
Fuat and Clifford J. Shultz II 1997)
The young post-modern consumer
In the article, ” Complacency kills - protecting Levi's cool mindshare.” Kirsty Fuller and
Flemming Thygsen point out a few of the values that young people in the west seek today. In the
post-modern society, young consumers see multinational companies replacing the state as the
new sources of authority. They are much aware of the attempts that are made via marketing to
make them behave in certain ways. In response to this, the young consumer has developed an
awareness of her or his presumed role as a consumer. This awareness leads, according to the
authors to a behaviour that is: self confident, empowered and directed towards the new symbols
of power (companies).
The background to the article by Fuller and Thygseen article is a work shop at the jeans giant
Levi's Straus, explicitly aimed at identifying the sprit of our times in order to use this in product
development and advertising. The workshops where held in 1994 and 1996. We will use some of
their findings and later compare them with our own findings in the focus groups.
( Fylller, Thygesen 1998).
It is important to remember that the above mentioned study was ordered by Levi's and that this
might effect the quality of the study. By this we mean that the authors would in some way favour
Levi's in their results On the other hand, it is very hard to see the point of them doing that. It
seams unlikely that Levi's would like to base their marketing strategies on a non-accurate study.
Young consumers today are, according to Fuller and Thygsen, characterised by the following
statements. ( Fylller, Thygesen 1998).
From manipulation to empowerment1. Consumers had been feeling targeted and exploited by
commercialisation. In recent years they have become realistic about the rules of commercial
relationship, becoming participants in brand/ consumer relationships. According to this study, the
young consumer of today care less about companies trying to dictate rules. They make their own
decisions. If this is true the consumers we study will form their own opinions to a great extent.
Assumption of control. The youth of today is developing a strong sense of self-worth. They
expect other people to adapt to them as much as the other way round. They have moved beyond
playing the game to almost dictating the rules of consumption. For example rap kids wearing
baggy Dockers, or Tommy Hillfiger preppy clothes. If this is true, young consumers play with
multiple options. Consequently the young consumers are free to choose Levi's jeans combined
with any other brand or style the like.
From rebellion to subversion. Youth will always have a need to rebel in asserting independence
in the face of institutions of power. Multinationals and mass media are the new symbols of
power. Youths response is to take the strategies and codes of business and subvert them in their
own way. Irony is a favourite subversive tool. Sarcasm and satire has always been a weapon
towards authorities of different kinds. Political satire, which is directed toward the state ( or the
dictator) as a symbol of power, often uses subliminal irony. Irony can also be used to assert
independence towards the new symbols of power, such as large companies like Levi's.
The search for something primal. This is an increasingly extreme expressions of authenticity
indicating a need for something elemental and real, which cannot be softened or compromised.
This can be expressed both in acknowledgement of the darker side of the human soul and in
enjoyment of purer/ elemental experiences. This is a reaction against things too easily packaged
and explained. In the choice between a honest and sincere message, and a perfect message with
no drawbacks, the consumer of today would, according to this study, lean toward the first
because it seams to come " straight from the heart". This means that the consumer nowadays
appreciates those values that have been neglected in the commercialised society.
Advertising in the modern/post-modern era
In this part we will discus and present researchers views on the characteristics of traditional
versus post-modern adverting. This is important because the study focuses upon how these two
different types of advertising is perceived among young consumers. To be able to draw any
conclusions on how the people in our focus groups perceive the ads we must know how to
categorise the ads in the first place. The division between the two categories ( traditional / post1
We do not refer to empowerment in the wider sense that it is often used in social science such as political science
and economics.
modern) will be based upon the theories of how ads interact with the consumer. Since every ad is
unique in its composition, it is impossible to give an absolute one way description of a postmodern or traditional ad. The layout, pictures, stories, images all vary from one ad to another, no
matter if the particular ad is of a traditional or post-modern character. With the help of the below
presented theories and some descriptions of ads and campaigns, of the traditional and the postmodern type, we hope to make the distinction as clear as possible.
Our main reference in this part is Ali Yakhlef´s article, ” Mapping the consumer-subject in
Advertising”. This article focuses upon advertising and its consumer-subject relation during three
eras, namely the pre-modern-, modern-, and finally the post-modern era. We will only explore the
main characteristics of modern and post-modern advertising, since the advertising during these
eras are of interest to our study. In the text following below the terms, modern-, traditional- and
classical advertising is used. To avoid any misinterpretations in this study we have chosen to
define all these terms as traditional advertising, since they all refer to the same phenomena.
Advertising in each of the above mentioned periods deploys a mode of signification which
positions the consumer in a different way ( Yakhlef 1998). Before we go in to the differences
between modern and post-modern advertising we will briefly describe the two modes of
signification within the modern- and post-modern culture.
Two modes of signification
Narrative mode of signification - traditional advertising
The narrative, word-based mode of signification is part of the modern culture. The subject is
pictured as an individual with a conscious mind and a rationalist view of the world. The wordbased communication can be predominantly informative, representative or symbolic.
The aim of the informative communication is to make the consumer-subject to take notice to a
product/service of which it was not aware. The utterances in informative communication is
purely descriptive.
Representative communication cannot, as simple information be characterised as false or true.
This type of communication consists of statements which are representative of what they refer to
in the real world.
The two above mentioned types of communication involves a meaning and a referent in reality.
The symbolic communication also have a meaning, but the used symbols are not referents to
reality. The symbolic communication presupposes a type of consumer who is willing to pay the
price for symbolic accumulation. She or he pays for something that has no referent in reality but
only has a perceived meaning to the consumer.
As a sum up, it can be said that the main distinction drawn between information/representation
and symbols is that while the former points somehow more or less to a reality or a referent, the
later can never refer to reality but only to a subjective meaning, created by the consumer
her/himself.
Figural mode of signification - post-modern advertising
Post-modern culture is predominantly characterised as being figural, picture- or image-based. In
this mode the subject is pictured as an individual who is less cognitive and more in the grip of
perception. The aim of the figural is to impact, impress, overwhelm, etc. It is through the image
that the impressions are conveyed. The consumption is here dependent upon the spectator’s wish
to consume the image.
Advertising and its content during the modern era
Four different approaches to advertising have been identified during the modern era. In the first
stage we find the product-oriented approach, which lasted from 1890 until 1925. The advertising
was here primarily persuasive and secondarily informational. Instead of informing the consumer
about the product the focus of the ads was to represent the function and utility of the product. (
Yaklef 1998).
In 1925 the product-symbol advertising developed. This type of advertising focused on the
psychological benefits of the product for the consumer-subject. A product was during this time
not only represented as something with different function and utility areas, but something that
could actually mean something to the consumer-subject. Not only did the consumer buy a product
and its functionality but also its deeper meaning, which could only be felt having experienced the
product. The advent of symbolic advertising opened up a whole new advertising concept. (
Yaklef 1998).
Ads became less informative and less representative of the properties of the product as such, and
more geared towards inflating the desires of the subject for the product ( Yaklef 1998 ).
Advertising meant to create a desire, within the consumer-subject, that previously did not exist.
The goal was to manipulate as far as possible just to create a desire, that more than naturally
would exist, among consumers. Or as Baudrillard puts it, consumption has less to do with the
consumption of physical objects or the satisfaction of needs, but more with creating lacks and
frustration.( Yaklef 1998).
After being embraced by motivational researchers in the 1950:s, psychoanalytical thought, with
its emphasis on plumbing dreams, fantasies, and symbols to identify the unconscious motives
behind people's actions, had a major impact on marketing. ( Mowen 1998)
According to Freud, the personality is the product of clash of three forces - the ego, id and
superego. Freud states that the ego stands for "reason and good sense while the id stands for
untamed passions". The superego can be understood as the conscience or " voice within" a person
that echoes the morals and values of parents and society. As with the id, only a small portion of
the superego is available to the conscious mind.( Mowen 1998)
Advertisers frequently try to move consumers to fantasise about the consequences of using their
product. When doing this, they try to take advantage of drives of the different parts of the
personality. Different products try to stimulate the drives of, for instance the id, which
hopefully will result in a purchase. Companies like to enhance the self-image of consumers.
American express showed this successfully in their " Do you know me ?" campaign in 1980. This
focused on what was important in peoples self-image. Like one psychologist said, " The great
modern nightmare is discovering that you're unrecognised, a nobody. With that card you can be
surrounded by strangers, but you walk up and say ' Look what I've got in my hand'. American
express used this need to propel itself into leadership in the credit card industry in the 1980:s.(
Mowen 1998)
So, as stated in the Yaklef article "The goal was to manipulate as far as possible just to create a
desire". Traditional advertising tries to make people believe that they lack something that would
make them a happier individual. The product becomes " the key to another world" i.e. the Levi's
commercials illustrating how the Levi's consumer has success in love.
Advertising and its content during the post-modern era
Advertising during the post-modern era is as mentioned above focused upon the figural and
symbolic. There are several motivations of consuming these kind of products, such as the desire
for social prestige, approval, pride, ownership, guilt, anxiety, glamour, status, etc. The advent and
spread of TV sets, movies, technological improvements, posters etc. have helped spread the use
of visual images. The act of consumption is now situated in an artificially social setting, which is
referred to as hyperreal.
The evolution of new technologies has changed the constitution of the consumer-subject. The
role of visual images is to colonise the conscious of the consumer-subject via the unconscious,
and entrap the body and mind by using virtual and hyper real settings. Image- based
communication creates a void, indicating an absence. The image seeks to avoid reality and to
create frustration .( Yakhlef 1998)
It is in the figural mode of signification possible to consume a product or a service without
actually being present. Whereas in the modern era advertising sought to reveal a false reality, the
post-modern era assume no reality. Being able to participate in the act of consumption via TV has
created a new situation for the consumer-subject, which is assumed to play two roles. The first
being more passive and manipulated of the discourse (being the object) and the second being
more critical of the discourse ( being the subject). (Yakhlef 1998)
When looking at ads in poster´s term, the situation is a little bit different. To understand the ad
one must firstly accept the message ( buy the product), and secondly create the meaning of the ad
by making the consumer feel connected with the product and the image it creates. This is a way
to empower the consumer.
Finally if the communicator has achieved to create a frustrated, unstable and shaky receiver
she/he has achieved the goal. The consumer have to be moved by the message. Witnessing the
very splitting of the consumer-subject guarantees that the ad ”works”.
This correspond with feelings of manipulation among the consumers as described by us under the
parts of this paper that concerns the theory of the post-modern consumer. The consumer want to
feel that she or he is in charge and therefore also decides what meaning the product has to her or
him.
Post-modern advertising is shocking for some and liberating for others. Ads show a new-born
baby or a dying Aids patient with the United Colors of Benetton. Many ads show no product at
all but attract attention with a bizarre combination of visuals and impressions. The pastiche of
flashes seems to be basically unrelated to the product or the brand, although the ads may elicit
positive sensations and emotions without any deep meaning. Irony and double meaning may be
observed in art, architecture, music, products, and advertising. ( W.F. van Raaij 1993)
Methodological approach
Pre-understanding and pre-assumptions
First of all, We do not take a post-modern perspective in this study. This means our analysis of
the problem will not be a post-modern one.
Post-modernism, post-modern advertising and the post-modern consumer is what we are
studying. But we do this with a rationalists perspective. We will consider the multinational
companies, who's advertising material serves as input to the study, not as idealistic groups of
artists, randomly choosing their ways of communication, but rather as profit maximising
companies defined in microeconomic theory.
When companies invest in marketing, according to microeconomic theory, their goal is to benefit
from this investment via higher demand for their products. The companies may want this with
either a short or a long time perspective. Regardless of this, we state that their intention is to
profit from the investment just as they would like to profit from any other investment in capital or
labour.
Due to the preferences of the young post modern consumer, known to some companies, it can
sometimes be optimal to hide marketing efforts. Just because a firm chooses not to advertise in
the same channels, to the same extent or in the same shape, this does not imply that its profit
maximising behaviour has changed.
Further on, we expect companies to use all available information to optimise their marketing
efforts. Anything that is possible in marketing will be done if it serves the organisations long term
objectives.
In short, the consumer might be behaving post-modern. The companies have the preferences of a
profit maximising organisation.
Methodological perspectives
Science can be viewed from different perspectives, depending upon which Scientific school one
refers to. We will in this part of our paper present the two schools that have had the strongest
influence upon the division between qualitative and quantitative methods. Namely positivism and
hermeneutic. The school of the positivism thoughts is based upon the thoughts of natural science,
while the hermeneutic school and its thoughts is based upon historicism.
In this theory part we will not deal with positivism since this perspective is not the base for our
study. Instead we will briefly explain what are the main characteristics of the hermeneutic school.
Hermeneutics
The hermeneutic view is holistic, which means that one thing can not be understood without its
context. A single word will for example give a meaning together with other words in a sentence.
It is ideal not just to understand a single phenomena but to understand and uphold as much as
possible in a specific situation. It is not until the whole context is understood that real
comprehension is reached. ( Lantz 1993)
According to hermeneutic thoughts there is a big difference between explanation and
understanding. A happening can occur and be explained in a similar way, due to same reasons.
But an understanding of the happening differs from one occasion to another, depending upon the
persons involved, and as mentioned earlier also their social background. ( Anderson 1979)
We have decided to let our research have a hermeneutic departure, since it is in our interests to
understand why certain commercials work and other don't, if that should be the case, that is. We
want to understand at least some of the reasons for the participants views on the advertising.
Qualitative method
This part will present the main differences between qualitative and quantitative method , but
since our research is qualitative in nature, the main focus will be put upon qualitative
methodology. Different qualitative methods of data collection will briefly be presented and the
one we intend to use in our research will be more thoroughly explored.
Depending upon the problem area the researcher chooses either a qualitative or a quantitative
approach to research. Generally a quantitative approach seeks knowledge that can measure,
describe and explain phenomena. While a qualitative approach seeks knowledge that can
understand and explore the phenomena. There obviously is a difference between the two
approaches and its search for knowledge. The difference between the two approaches is widely
discussed by different authors and the distinction varies depending upon the researcher and its
discipline. (Starrin & Svensson 1994) has identified the following distinctions made by various
researchers.
1. The first distinction between qualitative versus quantitative methodology lies within the
precision of measuring of data. Data that can give very precise answers is said to be quantitative
while data that gives no definite answers is more quantitative.
2. The second distinction that has been identified between the two disciplines lies within the
degree of subjectivity and objectivity. Qualitative data is characterised by its believes in
subjective perception, while quantitative data is more objective and independent of subjective
experiences.
3. The third distinction has been made in connection with two scientific theories. The qualitative
method has been connected with anti-positivistic or rather hermeneutic thoughts, while the
quantitative method has been connected with positivistic thoughts.
4. The final distinction being identified has been done by dividing qualities with qualitative
characteristic from qualities with quantitative characteristic. Temperature and distance is for
example easy to measure, while beauty is not measurable. Making a distinction of this kind can
be hard since it is not easy to draw the line between what is qualitative and not.
( Starrin & Svensson 1994)
We have now decided which Scientific theory we believe our research fits into, and with which
methodology our research will be proceeded. How do we now get the needed information for our
research? No matter if the research is qualitative or quantitative in nature the information being
searched have to be characterised by the following four concepts. Though the four concept have
different meanings depending if the research is qualitative or quantitative.
1. Applicability, refers to the method used for acquiring the needed information in relation to
the research questions and the disposition of the research.
2. Agreement, refers to the concordance between the intended research and its results.
3. Reliability, refers to the researchers ability to avoid factors that might influence or interrupt
the search for good and reliable information.
4. Carefulness, refers to the importance of being honest and consequent when conducting
research.
( Patel & Tebelius 1987)
Since our research will take a qualitative departure we will below further explore the four
concepts, but only from a qualitative perspective.
The importance within the first concept is to get as wide information as possible about the
problem area of the research. The researcher have to make sure that the chosen situations and
respondents can contribute with relevant information. The respondents will be chosen
systematically and according to predetermined criteria. For example their position in society.
Further on it is also important to make sure that the research problem is important, not only for
the researcher, but also for the people being researched. The respondents have to believe that the
problem is relevant, in order to give honest and meaningful information. In order for the research
to be more applicable it can be good to use various forms of collecting data, like participation
observation, focus groups, interviews etc.
If the researcher is aware of the life conditions of the persons in the research the chance to get
more comprehensive and valid information is higher, as a result the concordance between the
intended research and its results will be higher. Though it is important to emphasise the
objectivity, since important aspects might be forgotten and taken for granted because they seem
so obvious.
One condition for making interpretation possible is that words and actions are the same. But also
that the people being researched are honest about their experiences and feelings. In order for the
researcher to get as reliable information as possible he/she can let the people in the research read
the interpretation, as a check up that the right perceptions have been caught..
Finally the researcher being exact and honest is decisive for a good research. This is specifically
important in the interpretations, since this part is dependent upon the researcher only. The
researcher has to be able to present arguments for the interpretation, present different alternatives,
if there are any, as well as give the reader a clear line of the content of the research and on what
basis the conclusions are made. ( Patel & Tebelius 1987)
In the study we are about to pursue we want to explore the mindset of young consumers. In
marketing research there are a few common ways to gain this knowledge. Depending upon
different factors like for example the market, product type and the aim of the study, one uses the
most appropriate type of research.
Different approaches to marketing research
According to (Kotler, Armstrong, Saunders and Wong 1996), research can be done by one of the
following three types of approaches.
Observational research is a method where you by observing the actions of relevant individuals
try to find the primary data needed for the research. The observational research in that sense that
it can obtain information from people are unwilling to provide, although you should have in mind
that some things are impossible to observe like hidden feelings, motives or private behaviour.
Because of these limitations, researchers often use observations together with other types of data
collection methods.
Experimental research is a method used where causal information is gathered. Experiments
involve selecting matched groups of subjects, giving them different treatment, controlling
unrelated factors and checking for differences in group responses.
Survey research is a broad research technique, which can be done in person, by mail or by
telephone. It is widely used and well-known method acquiring marketing information. Through
communicating with a group of respondents, who have knowledge of the problem at hand. The
information is collected for example through personal interviews and focus groups. The questions
can be structured, using formal lists of questions, and unstructured, when the interview is guided
by the answers of the respondents. (Green et al 1988)
Survey study is usually the main source of primary data and is often used in a research study. The
advantage of this method is its flexibility. It can obtain different kinds of data in different
marketing situations. Questioning if respondents is a necessity if one wants to obtain information
about for example attitudes, opinions or intended behaviour. The biggest problem with survey
research is that it can be hard to find the right people to answer the questions and to get people
return the answers, or when it comes to interviewing people that may be hard to get hold of.
In this study we will use the survey study method. This is because we are confident that people
will be able to talk freely about our research problem and also because what we want to study
something that is very much hidden in the minds of people and will be hard finding out simply
observing them.
Although we will display some pictures and movie clips during the data collection, this should
not be considered as an experimental ingredient of the study, but simply as examples of what we
want the subjects to discuss.
Collection of qualitative data
There are a lot of different qualitative methods available. We will now proceed by presenting
some methods of data collection and then finally present the one that fits our research more
thoroughly.
Qualitative data, needed in a marketing research, can be either secondary, primary or both.
Secondary data consists of information that already exists somewhere. This is the kind of data
researcher starts searching for, usually because this kind of data is easier and cheaper to find than
primary data. When using secondary data it is important to make sure that it is relevant and fits
the needs of the research and also that it is accurate, current and finally impartial, which means
that it should be impartially collected and reported.
In most cases secondary data must be combined with primary data, which is information
collected for the specific research. It is needed in situations where it is hard to obtain information
about how consumers feel about newly introduced products or services. Primary data can either
be qualitative or quantitative, depending upon the purpose of the research. (Kotler 1997)
Since, as earlier mentioned, our research will be proceeded with a qualitative approach we will
only put focus upon the qualitative methods of collecting data. (Hamilton 1991) names three
qualitative methods used in marketing research: Projective techniques, in-depth interviews and
focus groups. We will below present the two first mentioned briefly and the last one, focus
groups, more thoroughly, since we find this method to best fulfil our needs.
Projective techniques let the respondent complete only half-made drawings, lists, sentences etc.
The objective is to reach the hidden emotions and attitudes toward products and services.
Personal in-depth interviews are aimed at encouraging the respondent to associate and talk
more freely about the product or service. The interviewer is passive and asks questions that do
not demand direct answers. There is no questionnaire, but an interview guide including subjects
of interest for the researcher. The interview is tape-recorded and a summary with quotes is
written. The respondent should have a chance to see the summary and confirm that it is correct.
Focus groups The focus group technique is common in marketing research and is often used in a
pre-study to get a grip of the problem area so that one are able to decide on how to purse the
research project. But it can also be quite effective in research areas where the proper approach is
not a large quantitative study and the problem area is especially fitted to the less intimate group
discussion tool. This can be the case when the area of research is a social product that people use
in some way in there relationship with others. For example, fashion clothing is a more social
product than paper towels. It is easy to see how the use of certain clothes may inflict on the social
relationships between people, while it is hard to see, for example, paper towels doing the same
thing. (Green et al 1988)
We are going to use the focus group as our research method in this study. The main reasons
behind this is that we want to do a collection of qualitative data in a manner that catches the
social aspect of consumption.
Focus group methodology
Areas in marketing research that are well suited to the focus group approach are:
When the researcher wishes to identify and understand consumer language as it relates to the
product category in question. What terms do they use? What do they say?
When the researcher wishes to identify the range of consumer concerns. How much variability is
there among consumers in how they view the product and in the considerations which lead them
to accept or reject the product?
When the researcher wishes to identify the complexity of consumer concerns. Are there a few
simple attitudes which govern consumer reaction toward the product, or is the structure complex,
involving many contingencies?
When the researcher wishes to identify specific methodological or logical problems which are
likely to affect either the cost of the subsequent research, or one's own ability to generate
meaningful, actionable findings at all. (Green et al 1988)
Different kinds of focus group studies
There are several different kinds of focus group studies that can be conducted, depending on the
research question that one wants to shed some light on.
Firstly, there is the exploratory focus group. This one is used to get ideas about what, for
example, the audience is thinking of a certain advertising campaign or product. This type of focus
group can be conducted in a neutral environment like in a conference room at the research
company or university. (Aaker, Kumar, Day 1995)
Secondly, there is the clinical focus group. This focus group aims to plot the underlying
psychological drives and motives of the subject. The person leading the group has to be a trained
psychologist or social scientist. Lately, the clinical focus group has seen decreased popularity,
mostly due to the complicated work of analysing the results and to the lack of skilled people to
lead an analyse the sessions. The clinical focus group can be conducted in the same neutral
environment like the exploratory focus group. (Aaker, Kumar, Day 1995)
Thirdly, there is also the experiencing focus group. In this kind of focus group study one wishes
to be with the subjects while they are experiencing a product. For example, the focus group can
be conducted at a shopping mall among consumers in the cafeteria. The point is to penetrate the
emotional framework in which the product is being used. (Aaker, Kumar, Day 1995)
In this study we are going to use the exploratory focus group because we want to further explore
the subjects opinions about the pre-selected advertising, and how they are reasoning when
defending their opinions; what language or examples do the use to illustrate their point of views.
We do not wish to conduct any further psychological study on what is behind this, nor do we feel
that it is appropriate to do an experiencing focus group study, since we are not studying the use of
a product that has its " natural environment" . This means that the consumption environment is
not essential in order to answer the research questions.
Strengths and weaknesses
As a method of qualitative data collection, the focus group has been very popular. The alternative
is to use in depth interviews. There is no guide that tells what method to use in each and every
case - it is a subject open to debate. The following comparison aims to explain some of the
differences between the methods so that we will be able to judge on what approach is best
suitable for this study.
Type of study
Group interaction
Group pressure
Respondent competition
Influence
Subject sensitivity
Interviewer fatigue
Amount of info
Stimuli material
Schedule
Focus group
Present. There is a great deal
of interaction between the
different members of the
group. The composition of the
groups, and the moderator,
can be used to stimulate
creative interaction.
Present. Group pressure may
both clarify and confuse the
session.
Competition for talk-time.
Less time to in depth talk.
Need to allocate time to
different respondents.
Contamination by fellow
group members may take
place.
Yes, respondents may no
want to talk about subjects, or
share opinions that may be
embarrassing. It has been
shown that focus group
members have a bias towards
conservative mainstream
opinions that are easy to argue
for.
Not so many sessions to
conduct makes it more likely
that the interviewer stay alert
to the subject and to the
participants.
Ability to obtain large
amounts of information at a
low cost and in a short period
of time.
The ability to use certain
stimuli material such as
drawings, tests etc. is limited
due to the fact that there is
many respondents present at
the same time.
Hard to keep the focus in the
discussing since there are
In depth interview
Not present.
Not present. No challenging
of thinking. Role playing
minimised.
Not present. Time for more
details.
Not present.
Subject a more likely to talk
about sensitive subjects, or
share their true opinions.
Since in depth interviews
often requires many sessions,
the interviewer runs the risk
of conducting the sessions in
a hasty or otherwise
unproductive way.
Costly and time consuming.
Greater ability to use stimuli
of different kind.
Easy to keep the interview on
track.
many people present.
Table 3.1 source: (Aaker, Kumar, Day 1995)
Having evaluated the pro and cons of the two techniques above, we have decided to use the focus
group technique. This is primarily because we want to take advantage of group interaction
present in a focus group, but not in depth interviews. We also want to study whether group
pressure seem to have an impact on the results. Furthermore we would like to avoid interviewer
fatigue and make the collection of information in a short period of time with a few sessions, and
not 15-20 in depth interviews which would have been hard to schedule and recruit to.
When using the focus group method, there are four key factors for success.
1.
2.
3.
4.
Planning the agenda
Recruiting
Moderation
Analysis
The agenda
The agenda is the schedule of the session. Its function is to drive forward the discussion and keep
in on track. The primary question is how to decide what questions should be included in the
agenda. At this stage one has to look at the purpose of the study and design questions that fully
explore the research question. There is necessary that the agenda is productive in this sense so
that you don not end up with data that is in reality not in congruence with the aim of the study.
It is advisable to have both generally questions and questions that goes more into detail. When
presenting the questions to the focus group it is best do begin with the broader questions since the
purpose of these are to put the respondents in the mental framework of the subject that is being
discussed. After this is done it is time to get more in to details. If, after one or two sessions, a
questions does not seem productive one can drop it, or one can add questions in areas that where
not fully covered. The questions should be open in order to allow discussion and follow up
questions. (Aaker, Kumar, Day 1995)
Recruitment
In marketing research and statistics one of the most important aspects is to have a selection that is
conducted in a manner that make statistical theory applicable. In qualitative focus group studies
the selection of the test population is somewhat less complicated this is due to the fact that one do
not intend to make any calculations, but mainly to get an idea of how the respondents are
reasoning. Therefore selection is limited to people who has knowledge about the phenomena in
question,. There are no rule of thumb to how many respondents has to be included in a qualitative
study, like when using quantitative method. Nor is there any need for tests of significance.
(Aaker, Kumar, Day 1995)
What researches instead speak of when using focus groups are recruitment. How to recruit the
participants and get a productive mix in the focus group. When recruiting for a focus group one
has to take into account the following aspects. (Aaker, Kumar, Day 1995)
Contrast and similarity.
It is productive to mix people that are alike and different in the same group. Differences work as
to challenge thinking and arguing in the group. Similarities may clarify the standpoints of group
members, since some may be better at formulating their opinions than others. For example, it can
be productive to mix users and non users of a product to get a devils advocate effect within the
respondents. It is not advisable to mix people of different age, cultural background or social class
to a great extent. This is because differences in experience and verbal skill may harm a
productive discussion.
(Aaker, Kumar, Day 1995)
Moderation
The person leading the session is called the moderator. He or she will pose the questions in a
manner that is as smooth as possible. It is not a good idea to ask formal questions or not to reflect
on what a respondent is saying. It is crucial that the moderator follow up statements and try to
find out what is behind. The moderator should dress neutral and use a normal language with no
jargon of any kind. The moderator must be flexible, able to sense when the group is done with a
question and able to allocate time between participants. It may be productive to make provocative
statements to get the discussion going and it may also be fruitful to work as the devils advocate.
(Aaker, Kumar, Day 1995)
In this study we will be two moderators present to better control the situation and grasp what is
being said.
Analysis
When analysing focus groups there is necessary to understand the importance of context. The
results in the form of quotes from participants is of limited use presented simply as they are.
Qualitative data of this kind needs to be presented in its context, with an explanation and, if
possible, with a link to a theory. In this way the results and the theory is used to enhance each
others value. When immediately linked to theory the quotes make much more sense and the
theory is exemplified. It is further important to include the whole range of opinions in the
analysis. It can be easy to forget what some people said if they where in minority. Focus group
have due the group pressure effect a tendency to favour conservative opinions and to compensate
strong negative opinions on one subject ( product), with more positive on the next.
(Aaker, Kumar, Day 1995).
We will use the findings from the focus group and relate them to the theory of the post-modern
consumer to see how well this picture fits with the results. Since we are using focus groups we
want to apply a technique that binds theory together with quotes and conclusions in an attempt to
shed some light on both the theory and the findings. This is the approach recommended in the
literature of qualitative analysis and we feel that using it will serve our purpose. ( Lantz 1993).
Using our table of comparison between interviews and focus group we decided that we wanted to
conduct a focus group study and not a series of interviews. We are aware of the problem of peer
pressure in the focus group, especially when it comes to image loaded advertising. ( Branthwaite,
Swindells 1997) Despite this we still want to use the focus group since we feel the social
interaction between consumers is a very important variable when opinions of what is cool, and
what is not, in the age-group 20-30 years of age are formed.
The focus group study
The focus group study was conducted on two different occasions, with two groups each time. The
duration of each focus group study was between 1 ½-2 hours. The sessions were conducted in a
home environment and the participants were served glögg and ginger-bread. The glögg was nonalcoholic. Each session lasted for about one and a half hour.
Selecting participants
In this study we have recruited people between 20-30 years of age. that are visiting nightlife spots
in Stockholm inner city. The recruitment was made in different Pubs, Cafés and Gyms in
Stockholm.
We chose these environments to recruit on because it is easy to observe different styles and
attitudes here in a natural manner. We made the recruitment this way because we felt it was a
much more effective way reaching and selecting participants than for example standing in a
mall, trying to stop people to have a chat. In the place we selected, the people we wanted to talk
to is frequently present, easy to get to and often in a talkative and relaxed mode.
Since interrupting between a couple in the middle of a conversation might not be effective, we
only took contact and talked with people in larger groups. This due to the fact that people seem
more open when sitting in groups.
Having taken contact with people we started up by talking about advertising in general and then,
if we still thought that there was an interest present, further deepened and narrowed our
conversation to concern our subject and goal with the recruitment.
How did we obtain contrast and similarity?
Each group was divided as far as possible. Some participants did not want to join without their
friends. Since the recruitment took place among bigger groups some of the participants knew
each other. The gender issue was considered, we tried to make a mix between males and females
as far as possible. The focus was put upon mixing people to some degree, but not to obtain
maximal contrasts within the groups ( which is not recommended when using the focus group
technique) . Off course it is not possible to judge from people's appearance what " personality"
they constitute. What we did was try do was to get an as good mix as possible, based on our
impression of the participants, and in this process we were guided by observable things like sex,
age and clothes.
The groups during the session were:
8/12- two groups
Johan Wibom, 26, student, group1
Ulrik Jansson, 27, student, group1
Jennie Nilsson, 22, , student, group1
Per Edlund, 30, Controller, group1
Helena Cronberg, 23, student, sales person, group2
Tommy Swing 25, student, technician, group 2
Rickard Lindmark,25, carpenter, student, group 2
15/12- two groups
Håkan Arvidsson 27, student, teacher, group 1
Thomas Nyman 26, production engineer, group 1
Fredrik, Hansen 25, Small business co-owner, group 1
Anders Näslund, 28, engineer, technical consultant, group 1
Sofie Lindegren, 23, administrative assistant, group 2
Sofia Landelius, 21, student., group 2
Sara Hernandez, 21,inside sales rep., group 2
Anna Mattsson 21, waitress, group 2
Agenda
We have chosen to include a few main topics in the agenda. In some cases we do not put all of
them to the group; the question may already have been covered earlier in the discussion. Since
video clips, posters and magazines will be used a lot as stimuli, we will try to get people to speak
about theses. The questions in this agenda will be followed up by subsequent questioning by the
moderator.
General questioning:
How do you view advertising? ( As fun, informative, boring, authoritative, provocative)
What is important to make you like or trust an advertising campaign?
Questioning related to the adds:
What do you think about these ads?
How do you relate to the persons in these ads? - Are they role models? Funny? Trustworthy?
Rebels? Confusing?
Are there qualities about them that you would like to have yourself?
How do you feel when you see these ads?
How do you think the advertising agency behind this would like you to view the ads?
How does the ads relate to the products in your opinion?
What do you think the producer would like you to think of the product after seeing these ads?
Why is this important to them, do you think?
The ads
After having opened with a more general discussion, described later, we showed different types
of advertising. Now, we started to discuss the second part of the agenda. This part was more
structured. We showed pre-selected ads and then followed up with a discussion on each ad. The
second part of the agenda was repeated for each and every ad. The questions in the agenda were
not put in a specific order, the focus was to cover all questions in a natural manner.
Having watched a lot of different types of advertising we decided to let the following brands be
part of our study. The reason for this is that the chosen brands are well known, and with a high
profile in today's marketing. In this case, all brands have a history of using both, what we
perceive as, modern and post-modern advertising. During the focus group sessions we showed
ads by Bennetton, Levi's and Diesel.
First we started by showing advertising that we perceived as classical, or modern advertising.
This advertising uses common themes as described in the theory part; modern versus postmodern advertising. After this we showed the adverting which we perceived as post-modern, also
described in the theory part.
Traditional advertising
Levi's
The classical commercials of Levi's very often contained a jeans wearing man, who
characteristically is rebellious, mysterious and good looking. The commercials often ends with
some kind of success with women.
One of the commercials we showed took place on the stock market, where the focus is first put
upon a well-dressed sophisticated beautiful woman, suddenly the attention is headed toward an
outsider. A stranger, a man, is entering with a Harley Davidsson bike. The man is simply dressed,
wears a pair of Levi's with a T- shirt, is very good looking, dangerous, and rebellious, driving
right into the office. He just wants one thing, his woman. Since she is not properly dressed for the
ride he reaches her a pair of Levi's, which she puts on. The commercial ends with the pair driving
off from the stock market, dressed in jeans.
This commercial has many of the standard attributes of the traditional advertising that was
developed during the modern era. It shows a successful individual ( male) who with the help of a
pair of Levi's ( or actually two pair; one that he wears himself, and another one that he hands to
the beautiful women the second before she takes a seat behind him on the HD and they drive
away). It is easy to see the parallel to the example with the American express card holder,
described in the theory of traditional advertising; the person in that example becomes someone by
displaying his card, it gives him stronger self confidence. In the Levi's commercial the
corresponding message is that with this product, your body will look better and this will earn you
women. In the Credit Card example it was instead your financial situation that was to look better.
Both good looks and lots of money are certainly things that would strengthen any mans selfconcept. And this is what marketing strategies have been advised to try to do since the theories of
motivational research became popular in the fifties.
The second Levi's commercial shown took place in a hot desert. The main character is again a
good locking man who comes down a stare, opens the refrigerator, takes out of Levi's, puts them
one and finally drives off on a motorcycle. During the whole commercial the man is observed by
a sexy locking women.
Here the message is exactly the same as in the earlier ad. Except for one thing - the man never
picks up the women. But this doesn't change anything in the message, because judging from her
facial expression, he could have, if he'd just bothered to.
Diesel
Diesel have been using classical as well as post-modern advertising throughout the years. We
have shown two advertising campaigns from Diesel, the first one being more classical in
character while the other one is more post-modern in nature. The classical one shows a beautiful
very sexy female model in jeans. Everything in the picture is beautiful and perfect. The first
attention is though not headed toward the jeans, but toward the upper part of the female body.
This part is more or less naked, only covered with a sexy bra. ( See appendix picture 1.)
This ad is simply the usual way of displaying the product on a beautiful model that will make it
look good. The goal is to make the spectator think that she will resemble her if buying the
product. Some of them will, others will not. At least, it is easy to see that this product has all the
necessary features to make someone look good - because the model does. And of course, good
looks to a women mean just as much to self-confidence and attractiveness to the opposite sex as it
does to any man.
Post-modern advertising
Levi's
The main character in the first shown Levi's commercial is a baby boy. The boy is playing with
wooden square figures, which he is trying to put in the right place of a box. When the little boy
realises that the mission is impossible he begins to smash the figures into the box with the help of
a hammer. This commercial ends with the satisfied boy leaving.
We see this commercial as a typical example of a post-modern ad since it has the following
characteristics, which are typical of the post-modern ads. The mode of signification is primarily
figural and the emphasis is on style. There is no sign of any product. Instead, the focus is upon a
lonely boy in a big room with no furniture. The impression is rather depressing, since it seams
like the little boy has been left there on his own, without any company. The only thing he has can
do is to play with some kind of wooden puzzle. The audience is supposed to be overwhelmed by
the picture of the little boy, taking things into his own hands and simply smashing the toy and
destroying it. This kind of demonstrative behaviour correspond with several of the conditions that
are supposed to appeal to the so- called post-modern consumer. The boy is " dictating the rules",
or, is taking the leap " from manipulation to empowerment". The fact that the main character is a
baby might correspond to " the search for something primal", a baby is the most basic and primal
thing one can think of. He has not yet been manipulated or misled by the forces of
commercialism, or whatever negatively perceived aspect of modern society you may choose to
criticise.
The main character in the second commercial is a middle aged man. He is an old fashion, well
dressed man in a grey-black suit. In broad outlines, the man gives the audience a short summary
of his life and his different belongings. He for example introduces his seven wives, his old boat,
and also shows us the content of his refrigerator - a few bottles. He speaks with a monotonous
voice and talks straight into the camera as if he was doing a formal presentation. The film is in
black and white, in the background there is a monotonous music loop playing over and over
again.
This commercial has a lot in common with the baby-commercial discussed above. Firstly there is
no sign of any Levi's product. The clothes that the man wears is pale looking and has nothing in
common with the products that Levi's offer. Secondly, the emphasis is on style and to create
some kind of bizarre mood, using black and white photography and somewhat irritating music
that repeat itself over and over again in an unusual way.
The man makes several strange statements. Like the one about having several wives, which
contrasts sharply with the overall impression of the man and with some of the other things he say.
In terms of the theory of the post-modern consumer, we believe these are attempts by Levi's to
use the fascination for " paradoxical juxtaposition of opposites" to make some kind of positive
impression on the audience. Furthermore the impression is quite chaotic and fragmented. There is
no main theme that the audience can follow, there is no clear end or beginning. In fact there is no
story at all in the traditional way. This might appeal to someone who is able to accept or
appreciate chaos and disorder, a post-modern condition.
Diesel
This commercial takes place in India, which makes it exotic. Here the focus is upon the brand and
its product- the jeans, but something is unusual. The main character is not a beautiful top-model,
but a fat unknown Elvis-characteristic Indian. The Indian Elvis look alike model is quite
corpulent, has an outgoing attitude, is dancing with beautiful ladies and speaks pigeon English. (
Se appendix, picture 2)
Also this commercial has a lot of focus upon style. The colours are very bright and the clothes
that the models wear are of a very glamorous style, almost resembling Liberace, or Elvis choice
of stage-clothes in his later days. The paradoxical juxtaposition of opposites is the main theme.
The unusual combination of beautiful - ugly, western - oriental, fifties - present time is each and
everyone a paradoxical juxtaposition of two opposites.
Benetton
From Benetton we decided to show pictures only from an advertising campaign named "the
Sunflowers", since we feel that the Sunflower campaign is a totally new way of using models in
advertising. What makes it so fascinating is that Benetton uses a mix between healthy and
disabled children as fashion models for their clothes throughout the campaign. Since Benetton is
widely known as both a brand and as using odd advertising campaigns we wanted to see how
people actually perceive these ads.
There is a mix with both healthy and disabled models throughout the sunflower campaign. The
key attention is though kept on the disabled children. On some pictures, whole families, with a
disabled child have been brought together to participate as models. As a sum up, all the pictures
are characterised by joy and happiness. ( Se appendix, picture 3.)
We believe that Benetton wants to appeal to " the search for something primal" by using these
kids as models. They are quite beautiful in their purity, and the impression is of something pure
and primal in these young people's harts. The joy is sincere and the smiles are not false. We also
think that Benetton might want to position themselves as a brand that is "open and tolerant",
thereby profiting from this post-modern condition.
Discussion
Following our focus group methodology we have chosen to divide the discussion in to parts. The
first part being more general while the other focuses on the ads described above.
General discussion
To be able to start of the session in a smooth manner and to introduce the subject we opened up
with a general discussion on advertising. In this part of the discussion the participants spoke
about what ingredients they think make a commercial effective. With effective we mean a
commercial that appeals to the participants of the study. This is important to emphasise since this
the participant were keen to make statements on how others perceived advertising.
Discussion of the ads
This part will present the results from our focus group studies, held in Stockholm, 1998-12-08
and 1998-12-15. On each occasion we had two sessions, one and an half hour each. The questions
was headed toward the respondents in a smooth manner. We tried to open a discussion rather than
questioning. The importance for us was only to cover all the main areas of interest for our
research.
To create a casual and open atmosphere, the participants were served ginger breads and nonalcoholic glögg, while sitting down in a home environment. We started all sessions with a
discussion of advertising in general. This was done in order to get some immediate opinions
about advertising as a phenomena. Also, this was our way to set the framework for the rest of the
session.
In the article by Fuller and Thygsen presented in the theory part some headings are used to
describe the mindset of youth in the nineties; a mindset characterised by the authors as postmodern. Following the recommendations by Lantz, on how to conduct a focus group study and
make a qualitative analysis of it, we choose to comment and analyse on the quotes in the text
below. When we are doing this we use The Fuller and Thygsen article as a basis for our
comments and analysis. We do this because their theory is the one in this paper that is less
general and explicitly aimed at the young fashion consumer. This makes it a convenient interface
to the real people in our focus groups.
We will use the headings from the Fuller Thygsen article to structure this presentation of the
focus group discussion on the ads.
From manipulation to empowerment.
In the general discussion people felt very annoyed by certain TV and radio commercials. I think
of Shampoo commercials that really boor you to death, says Anna. Advertising for dipers was
also perceived as being very boring and irritating.
They steal your time, says Thomas. Although I get annoyed, I sit there and watch like a fool. After
a long working day, I simply do not have the energy to switch channel or turn the TV off.
Still the participants think that these type of commercials work, despite their annoying character.
When I buy this kind of products, I often end up with a brand which commercials I really dislike,
says Helena. These are the brands that comes to mind when I am in the store.
She is very influenced by the image of the brand: even if it was exactly the same product I would
never by a present for my boyfriend at a low class store.
Obviously, the commercials work. People buy the product even though they know that the
message in the spots are false or exaggerated. They experience a dissonance between their
attitudes toward the commercials and the actual purchase. This was a notion expressed by all but
one participant, Ulrik, who had a different view and did not purchase heavily advertised
products.
Among the advertisements presented to the groups some of them generated more feelings of
manipulation than others. Levi's and Diesel commercials with beautiful models had an obvious
message, everyone thought. It was not hard to see that the advertising agency wanted everyone to
look at the good-locking model, and then seek identification. It is like the classic fairytale, except
the prince drives a Harley instead of a horse, says Sara about a Levis commercial where a man,
dressed in jeans and a T-shirt, rides into an office and picks up a businesswomen, who then
changes clothes to jeans and escapes the boredom of the up-tight office environment.
When consuming these kinds of commercials showing beautiful people, success, and rebellious
themes, the impressions from the participants in the study is mixed. Often they like to watch them
since it and gives a deliberate feeling. On the other hand the world is not a fairytale, and some of
these ads run the risk of being seen as ridiculous. The participants believes that the music and
photo are very important ingredients in these kind of commercials. Mostly due to the fact that the
theme is very simple.
Levi's commercial with a transvestite is seen as playful and funny. The character uses his/ her
sex appeal to flirt with a taxi driver, who then gets surprised when he discovers that he is actually
flirting with a man. The changing of sex is viewed as unexpected and suppressing. The
transvestite is seen as cool, but in a new way. If the guy with the Harley had macho-coolness, this
guy has integrity-coolness, says Anna.
A TV commercial by Diesel starring a fat, Elvis-chic, Indian man was very appreciated by the
participants. It was viewed as funny, different and intelligent. You get o positive feeling toward
the brand because Diesel have the courage to be a little playful and not so serious, says Anders.
People in our groups perceived the message as it is alright to be a little different, its no longer
necessary to be beautiful and successful.
The Sunflower campaign by Benetton displays mentally disabled kids as fashion models. Of
course, this is highly unusual in the fashion industry, which normally uses good looking people as
models.
They want to create attention at the cost of people who really are working with these issues, says
Sofia. Benetton ´s record of provocative campaigns, using people dying with AIDS, refugees, or
dead soldiers in Bosnia, makes one doubt Benettons real motives with the Sunflower campaign.
Despite this scepticism toward Benetton, people in the group saw the pictures of the disabled kids
as being beautiful, heart-warming and as giving dignity and respect to the kids by using them as
fashion models. People knew that they were being manipulated in an sense, but the positive
feelings toward the pictures took the overhand and the impression was because of this positive.
Like Sara said, All commercials aim at selling. So, you will never escape feeling manipulated. At
least, in this case it leads to something good.
Assumption of control
This finding from the Fuller and Thygsen article we had some difficulties to explore, since the
focus groups were discussing the commercials, and not so much their own consumption. Still, a
too high amount of seriousness in the advertisements, and lack of humour, in commercials was
seen as manipulative. The group members felt targeted by brands that was to keen to tell them
how good they were.
Not all people in the groups agree on the importance of image contra their own judgement (
assumption of control) Helena says that the brand is really important to her choice. She would
never buy clothes from a store that had an image as low-class, even if choosing from two
identical shirts. On the other hand, Per, says he does not buy clothes based upon image, because
he has read tests in consumer magazines were Diesel for instance, who he believes has a cool
image, fail in the aspect of denim quality. The participants tend to mix to a great extent designer
clothes with more cheap wear. But our impression is that this is not done as an explicit statement,
but rather is a consequence of ups and downs in peoples budget constraints. Helena, Per and
Ulrik are the only ones that formulate a "shopping strategy" where Helena favour High-image
clothes as being better quality, better looking etc, and Per and Ulrik does not favour these brands
and see this as the " smart or non-manipulated-purchase".
From rebellion to subversion
The appreciation of humour in the advertising is one of the strongest findings of the focus groups.
Advertising that has a to serious message, about good- looks or success, often are perceived as
tiresome and often not trustworthy. Humour disarms the commercials. The ads play with their
own brand or image. This make them more fun to watch and a little different so that they are
easier to remember. The Diesel commercial with India-Elvis is one that many remember. They
think that Diesel is cool because they dare to use this not-goodlocking guy in a commercial. He
is cool because he does his own thing, says Jenny. This gives Diesel credibility.
It seams that humour and self-irony can be used by the advertiser to avoid that the consumer uses
this weapon toward an image as they perceive as not trustworthy or manipulative. Mostly,
according to the participants, the big companies has a serious image, and the courage to break
with this style is awarded with greater appreciation and less scepticism from the consumers.
It is good if it is not so obvious what is going to happen in the film. Like in the early Levi
commercials the story is pretty obvious, Sara says, it is more challenging to the mind if you get
surprised rather than bored.
Humour and self irony seems to be an effective way to reduce scepticism among the audience.
Also, there is no obvious need for identification to make a commercial effective. Our focus
group members do not identify with nor want to be like the transvestite or the India-Elvis. But
they still get a positive impression of the brand. If there is any identification involved, it is
identification with the message or mood in the film rather than the more traditional and easy to
see identification with the actors in the commercials.
The search for something primal
Apart from opinions on Benettons record as a provocative advertiser the impression of the
Sunflower ads we showed to the focus groups was very positive. The ads showed the disabled
kids as part of the big picture, rather than just as a group that need special attention and cost
money. The participants felt the warmth in their harts when they saw these kids just as fashion
models. The perceived message was that everyone has a unique value, no matter how they are
equipped for life at birth.
The participants saw it as positive that the disabled children were the front figures in a natural
way. They otherwise are often placed in the shadow. This advertising was perceived as a brave
attempt, due to the fact that Benetton did not focus upon the theme of beauty and success, but on
something else - the true value of each and every individual. Benetton shows that mental or
physical health does not change a persons ability to be beautiful, beauty comes from within.
Synthesis
The synthesis will contain three parts. This division is made in order to clarify the results and
make the understanding of the paper easier. Firstly, we will try to answer our research questions.
Secondly, we will summarise the results. Thirdly, we will make some reflections on the results.
Part one- answering the research questions
In this part of the thesis we will try to integrate our findings in the focus groups with the research
questions and answer them. The discussion will be divided in two parts, where each part focuses
upon one question at a time.
Is post-modern advertising perceived by the audience in a different way than traditional
advertising, if so what do the people in our focus group think is more positive or more negative
with the post-modern ads?
It is clear that the consumers in our focus groups perceive post-modern advertising differently
than modern advertising. We will try to answer the question by dividing the question in two parts,
one concerning the thoughts of post-modern advertising, and the other about modern advertising.
The discussion within the two types of advertising will below be done with the help of some
themes, which surfaced during the discussion, and which the participants thought of when
discussing their perception of post-modern as well as modern advertising campaigns.
One thing that clearly surfaced was that the post-modern ads seemed to gain greater credibility
than the modern advertising. This was done by using different types of techniques that will be
discussed below.
The articles we used in our theory clearly argues that there has been a significant shift in the
consumer's mind, especially the younger ones, towards a much more critical attitude towards
advertising. The post-modern consumer do not want to be manipulated. He or she wants to be in
control and make the decisions. In addition to this, consumption of today has a hyper-real
component; which means a lot when purchasing a good. The consumer add value to the product
that has no real justification outside his or her own mind i.e. it is hyper real.
Advertising that is taking all this into account is said to gain credibility among young consumers.
How true was this within our focus groups?
When analysing the focus group it was clear that some of the ads we selected as post-modern had
taken the step from manipulation to empowerment, as discussed above. Also, some of the ads
seamed to appeal to the search for something primal among the focus group members.
Above all , two things in the ads we presented as post-modern seamed to give credibility to the
message. This we believe is because the audience is empowered and is experiencing something
primal in the ads.
Firstly, the use of humour seamed to give credibility to the ads. The courage to risk their image
buy using the not-good locking, but funny India-Elvis in the Diesel ad was seen as cool because
Diesel did not try to manipulate the audience by some fairytale that was impossible to believe. By
using humour, both in this ad and in the Levi's ad with the transvestite, the brand risk something
by letting real outsiders promote their product. This gives some power of judgement to the
audience. The company is not seen as a symbol of power, but as a player on an equal level, who
has the integrity and credibility to use self irony.
In fact, by using self irony and humour in the ads, the companies we selected avoided ALL the
criticism of the ad being manipulative or containing models, or a story, that seamed too perfect to
be believed.
Secondly, the concept of integrity, seemed closely linked with credibility in our study. The
transvestite's confident act in the taxi is seen as a demonstration of integrity. Despite the reaction
from society, represented by the taxi driver, he/ she makes no attempt to hide his/ her way of life.
The integrity cool is replacing the macho cool. Even though the focus group members did not
identify with the transvestite as a physical person, they did mentally. The dancing India-Elvis
also posses integrity since he acts out in a non shy way although he is not the most fit dancer. The
message is clearly, you can do what you want. Do not care what people think. This message
seamed to be very positively perceived by the group members.
Finally, the Bennetton ads with disabled kids caused mixed feelings among the groups. While
some simply viewed it as provocative advertising, others saw it as a sincere attempt to use
outsiders in society as fashion models and thereby giving them the dignity the so often lack.
Taking this view, the Bennetton ad uses something primal to gain credibility - the equal value of
each and every person.
It is important to withhold that the themes that surfaced during the discussion were perceived as
being both positive and negative, consequently the themes will be divided under these headings.
The perception of post-modern advertising
Positive
funny; the fun part of commercials is well exploited in the post-modern era, the participants in
our focus groups saw this as the main and most important ingredient in a commercial. According
to our participants humour is seen as a good way to get peoples attention because everything feels
so down to earth. Since the message is received in a common situation, from a person with some
fun characteristics, everything feels more honest and straight.
Playful; the post-modern commercials are a mix of everything, the creators do not follow any
thumbs of rules nor do they fear the forbidden. The only weapon needed is a great fantasy. The
participants loved the way Diesel uses a Indian Elvis in their commercial, and the way Benetton
uses disabled children in their commercials. The people in our focus groups believed that it was
easier to be receptive toward a message when not so perfect, but ordinary people with some
special characteristics are used in commercials. This due to the fact that they thought it was easier
to identify one self with the persons in the commercials. Also the message is felt as more honest
and personal.
Negative
unconnected; the commercials are very often hard to grasp sense they do not always focus on the
product being commercialised. The commercials are sometimes perceived as being strange and
confusing, which makes them far too unconnected with the product and the commercial.
Confusing; in the sense that one have to think to be able to understand the message of the
commercial. Sometimes the message is not manageable at all. In some commercials we showed ,
for example the commercials of Levís with the old man and his possessions, the message do not
have any thing to do with the product. This is not very appreciated by our participants, it is
perceived as confusing in a negative sense. A commercial being confusing in the beginning can
though be positive, as long as the message in the end is perceived. As a sum up the participants
want to be moved by the commercial, but by a normal portion of oddity, so that the message still
reaches the observer.
The perception of modern advertising
Positive
straight; The modern advertising is perceived as being more straight in the sense that it puts the
product in focus. Further on the participants believes that the message is easier to understand, due
to the fact that it is more connected with the product being commercialised. Since the focus is put
upon the product the risk of getting confused of what is being commercialised is less. The
participants in our focus groups also believes that the message is more trustworthy when the
focus is put upon the product.
Easy concept; Having a easy understandable concept in a commercial is by our participants felt
as both positive and negative. It is positive in the sense that one seldom get confused, the
message is often clear. The negative part about having a easy concept is that the message in the
end can be boring, annoying and pathetic. The participants felt that the optimal solution is when a
commercial uses a message that has a normal portion of oddity so that the concept do not get lost.
Though it is important that the commercial is not too basic and easy.
Negative
Boring; A commercial with a too simple and obvious message is by the participants felt as
pathetic. The theme are most often the same and very predictive. The atmosphere is also far too
perfect. All these elements in the one and same commercial is perceived as something or
someone trying to make a fool of oneself. The participants believe that if these elements are to be
part of a commercial it should be done in a more natural, and not so glamorous way. According
to our focus groups a commercial should be informative in a intelligent way, everything do not
have to be so obvious that one feels stupid.
Stereotypical; The participants in our focus groups felt that modern advertising more often uses
stereotypical roles in their advertisement. The female character is for example always a
housewife - doing the dishes, cleaning taking care of the children etc. The male character is
always illustrated as a businessman. Since these roles are not a reality the participants felt that
these kind of commercial very often gets pathetic and exaggerated.
Can the theories we present explain the statements and discussions by the consumers within
our focus groups? Do the participants reason along the lines of the theories?
The theories we use claim the young consumer of today have a "post-modern mindset". If the
theories are an accurate description of the consumers, we expect the focus group participants to
favour the post-modern ads over the modern ads. Furthermore the theories should help us explain
why they favour the post-modern ads.
We have tried to analyse the post-modern conditions to see if the theories can explain some of the
reasoning and statements within the focus groups. Do the participants in the focus groups reason
along the same lines the academics claim they do?
The headings below are taken from the table by Fuat, Clifford and Shultz in the theory part. Since
not all of the post-modern conditions in this table did apply to our focus groups, we have chosen
to base our analysis upon the relevant ones presented below.
Disorder and chaos
In the focus groups, the acceptance of disorder and chaos in the advertising was not high. The
Levi's commercial featuring the middle aged man with seven wives, odd interests and monotone
music was perceived in a heavily negative way. It showed that the reason for the negative
feelings was the chaotic and non-comprehensive content. The lack of meaning and logic made
everyone annoyed and irritated.
Some of the participants felt that Levi's was trying to create an image that was cool in a chaotic
and unpredictable way. Since this was far too obvious, the effect was not the intended
excitement, but simply a feeling of manipulation and boredom.
We believe that a large part of the negative feelings towards the Levi commercial in question was
due to the fact that the disorder and chaos felt constructed and not natural.
In the Diesel commercial staring an Indian Elvis, the situation is quite chaotic. The main
character is performing a sexual aggressive dance, while surronded by beautiful women. The
music is loud and there is no real story. Also, the message of the commercial was very much
open to debate in the focus groups.
This ad is perceived in a much more positive way. Freedom and coolness is what comes to mind
when the focus groups watch this commercial. The chaos and disorder feels natural and
believable. Moreover it is served in the portions of the right size. The combination between the
fat Elvis and the beautiful women creates a and funny atmosphere, which in turn gives the
participants a positive impression of the brand. In contrast to the Levi's commercial, discussed
above, this commercial did not give a artificial impression. On the contrary, most participants
liked and believed the chaotic mix of glamour, retro, ethno, music and beauty.
Openness/Tolerance
Most of the participants in the focus groups were open and tolerant to new type of figures in
advertising. Although the traditional characters with good looks, rebellious style, and success
with women still work very well, since people easily can and want to identify with these
characters. Due to this the classical commercials of Levi's was easily comprehended and also
perceived in a positive way. These commercials really focuses upon success and rebellious living.
People in our focus groups are open toward advertising that uses a normal portion of oddity, a
manageable message, and also special characters. As long as everything feels natural and not
overworked with, it can be tolerated. People in the focus groups were also open and receptive
toward unpredicted happenings and playful advertising. The Levi's commercial with a
transvestite in the taxi as the main character created a lot of laughter. The sudden sex change in
the commercial made people like it a lot. Levi's here plays with the brand in a self confident,
natural and surprising way. The message is direct and easily comprehended. There were no
negative feelings towards the character because of sexual orientation. No one of the male
participants believed they would be considered a transvestite or homosexual if they used the
product. The identification in this case was not with the physical character but with the spirit of
rebellion and self confidence.
The Benetton sunflower campaign was met with some suspicion. As discussed before Benettons
record of provocative advertising polluted the current campaign since some participants felt that
the children were being used in a pure speculative way by Benetton.
The idea of using disabled models stood out as an exception to the participants. They did not
perceive the handicapped models as equals, or as there sister or brother. Participants who liked
the ads saw it as a statement for disabled children more than cool or trustworthy advertising.
Hyperreality
It is obvious that the participants do neither believe in the characters nor the stories in the
commercials. Despite this people tend to extend the impressions from the movies to everyday
life. The fairytale-like commercials, where the characters demonstrate unbelievable good looks,
self confident/ rebellious behaviour, glamorous style and an exceptional magnetism on the
opposite sex, seem to appeal mentally to the participants.
Sometimes, advertising where these values are manifested are thought of as rather false or
manipulative. Despite this people choose the product since they like the image of the brand.
Some participants said that if they had to choose between two brands of a similar product, the
brand with the highest profile and best perceived image would be chosen. No matter if the quality
of the low profile brand is as good, or even better than the high profile brand, do some of the
participants chose the high profile brand because they feel good consuming it.
The image of the brand is what is being consumed. No matter actual qualities of the product, and
sometimes even the design of the product, the consumer chose a brand that she or he perceives
have some extra value. This value is nothing but hyper real since it has no other justification than
what has been added through advertising. It shows that the participants often favour products that
has not better quality, but according to them, better perceived image among their peers. The socalled hyper-reality values can of course also be seen as means to obtaining social status.
Paradoxical juxtapositions
In the commercials showed to the focus groups, the most important ingredient in order to make a
positive impression was humour. The kind of humour used was that of the kind where an unusual
character takes surprising and unexpected actions. This creates a tension that is often released
through laughter.
For instance: the transvestite in the taxi cab was seen as very funny. In this specific commercial,
the fun part was the surprise and the paradoxical personality of the passenger in the taxi. It starts
out like a normal commercial, but suddenly everything changes. The cab driver, and the
audience, is challenged to question their immediate reaction toward the transvestite. The
transvestite is first viewed as a female sex-object. Then everything changes and the character is
recognised as being a male. This contradiction resulted in laughter and excitement. The
juxtaposition of opposites was in this case seen as an intelligent way to promote the brand as
being for people with self-confidence and integrity.
Diesel also plays with juxtaposition of opposites when mixing ethno, retro, glamour, ugly and
beautiful in the same commercial. Elvis, who is the symbol of the USA in the fifties and western
culture, is being mixed with an ethnic Indian. This is an obvious juxtaposition of two opposites.
The result is that the film is perceived as intelligent and funny by the audience. The impression of
the brand due to this commercial is that it is a brand for self confident and fun people who are
ready to go out and get what life offers, no matter what others may think.
What conclusions can we draw the reasoning above?
The ads that we presented as containing post-modern ingredients were positively perceived and
seen as more credible. But this does not mean that the focus group members was not receptive
towards the more traditional ads. The Levi's classical ads was very appreciated and even though
the group members did not believe in the stories used they liked to watch beautiful people having
success with the opposite sex, or simply look good. Almost everyone claimed they could buy the
product in these kind of ads, even though they were aware of the fact the company was trying to
manipulate them.
The traditional advertising has according to the participants a strong advantage due to the fact
that the product is highlighted. It is easy for the consumer to imagine how the product would look
when used. The identification factor, despite the criticism on a fairytale-like environment, was
still very present among our groups.
It is hard to claim that the post modern mindset, as described in our theory, is overall determining
on how an ad is perceived. Within our groups all people liked some of the post-modern ads, as
well as some of the classical ones.
Part two-summarising the results
In this final part of the synthesis we will summarise our findings and draw some conclusions.
Since a lot of different dimensions have surfaced when answering the research questions we will,
in order to clarify, present the conclusions with the help of the following box.



Trustworthy
Funny
Empowering


Unconnected
Confusing


Straight
Easy concept



Boring
Stereotypical
Manipulative
+
-
Post-modern advertising
Traditional advertising
Fig 6.1 This figure summarises the advantages and drawbacks with the two different types of advertising as
perceived by our focus groups.
The figure shows our main findings in this study. The +/- stands for positive and negative
expressions among the focus group participants. The post modern advertising/ traditional
adverting refers to the type of ads shown.
As seen in the figure above and concluded in our research questions, there is no clear picture in
this study to say whether post-modern advertising is perceived as more trustworthy or cool. It
seems as if it considered a bit more trustworthy and funny. But this is a truth with many
dimensions.
The post-modern ads has higher credibility seen from a branding perspective where the company
name gain respect since it is not seen as symbol of power that is trying to manipulate the
consumer. On the other hand, people perceived the post-modern ads as confusing and
unconnected which made the understanding of the actual product harder. This damages
credibility since the company is sometimes suspected of hiding product quality behind a cool
image.
Humour and a playful attitude in the ads was important to reduce the feeling of manipulation. It
seems like this is the most powerful tool the brands can use to avoid being seen as symbols of
power. But it has to be done in a natural way and not to obvious. People do not want to be told
when to laugh.
The post-modern ads are funny to watch and provocative to the mind. This makes the ad easier to
remember, since the individual has to engage deeper than if the message was more like in the
classical ads, which we already have seen so many of.
The disadvantages in would likely be that the post-modern ads confront the audience with an
often very unconnected and confusing message. It is not always so easy to understand what
product the ad concerns. The product itself is very often loosely connected with the message in
the ad. Our focus groups showed that many people who liked the post-modern ads also liked the
classical ones. Mainly because of the easy concept and visibility of the product.
It seems like the classical-/ modern kind of advertising has such a strong advantage in the
comprehension stage, that it will continue to compete successfully with the post-modern kind.
Even when it comes to advertising towards younger people.
Part three-reflection on our conclusions
Having summarised our results we would like to end our study with some reflection on our
conclusions. The purpose of this study is to find out whether a special type of advertising called
post-modern advertising is perceived differently than the traditional type of advertising.
In this part we want to take a final look at the results and se how the results might add to our
knowledge of how young " fashion" consumers are perceiving the messages of the so called postmodern adds, and what kind of an impact these ads have on the consumers. According to our
results we can not state that the message of the so called post-modern ads are more impressive,
and in the case of purchase decisions, more effective than traditional advertising.
With a reference to our focus group studies we feel that we can make a statement of which ones
of the post-modern conditions, presented in the theory, were supported and which ones were not
supported.
The focus groups showed that hyperreality do exist in the mind of the consumer. This is obvious
to us, both when it comes to traditional advertising and to the kind that tries to address the typical
post-modern consumer. The image of the brand is more important than quality or features of the
product. Paying for the image means paying for the hyper real feeling, which is realised through
the product.
The consumer buys into a hyper reality when judging a brand simply by its image. For example,
some of our participants felt that when choosing between two identical products in every aspect,
except for the label on it, they would favour the more expensive one, simply because the liked the
name on it. We can only interpret this as a willingness to buy into something that is hyper real. In
order words the value is created within the mind of the consumer.
The focus groups also showed that people will try to use different ways and means to reduce a
feeling of manipulation and empower themselves as consumers.
Finally the focus groups showed that paradoxical juxtapositioning of opposites was seen as
exiting, new, intelligent and funny.
The focus groups also showed that Chaos seemed to irritate the audience in most cases and was
not perceived as being positive.
Openness and tolerance was not as present as expected. People had difficulties in accepting
very radical and provocative messages.
We can see that even though some of the post-modern conditions were not supported by our
focus groups it is still possible to make some exciting reflections on how companies can use our
findings.
We can se that the so called post-modern ads becomes trustworthy and entertaining as long as the
message is understandable. By using the post-modern, not so obvious forms of communication,
the companies risk that the message is not observed because of confusion. On the other hand,
they gain the great advantage of empowering the consumer by making her or him believe that he
or she is in charge of the purchase decision. This type of advertising is obviously seen as less
manipulative by the consumers who gain some empowerment since the companies seem to be on
the same level as the consumer, not only dictating the rules.
When the message is not understandable, the post-modern ads becomes irritating and confusing.
We can state that humour and irony do have a positive impact on how the message is perceived.
Traditional ads were sometimes perceived as manipulative, when they were interpreted as a saga,
to idealistic and harmonic in its message. This did not mean that these ads were seen as totally
uninteresting or boring, but only as less fun and a bit to manipulative. We can see that willingness
to escape manipulation is an important factor for accepting the message of an ad.
Having conducted this study, we feel that the most powerful ingredient in the post-modern theory
is the concept of empowerment. The post-modern theorists, like Fuat, Clifford and Shultz, that
we refer to in this study, claim that the willingness to escape manipulation through
empowerment is one of the most important characteristics of the post-modern consumer.
W.F. van Raaij, another researcher included in this study, claims that the social classes are not
present in the post-modern society. Here society is a para-class of cognitariat. Anyone can
challenge the symbols of power.
In the modern/ industrial society, the symbols of power was the nation state. Now the symbols of
power are the multinational corporations that operates in the global economy. ( Kumar 1997)
The figure below tries to illustrate how the symbols of power in society has changed
from being the nation state in the modern era, to becoming the large corporation in the postmodern era. Therefore the manipulation in the post-modern society comes from the large
corporations and not from the nation state, as in the modern era.
The Nation state
The corporation
The modern era
The post-modern era
Humour / Irony
Fig. 8.1 shows how humour is used as a weapon to escape manipulation by the citizen/ consumer.
Humour and irony has always been one of the most popular weapon against the symbols of
power. Kings, dictators and other rulers of the nation states have always been subject to satire and
sarcasm from the people they govern.
The weapon of humour is nowadays directed toward the new symbols of power - the
multinational corporations. This is an attempt by the consumer to escape manipulation and
empower him- or herself, by not buying into the messages dictated by the symbols of power.
We think that companies like Diesel try to avoid this by using humour and self irony in their
advertising, simply to avoid being seen as a manipulative symbol of power. If the advertising is
obviously already self ironic this reduces the sense of being manipulated, instead the consumers
feels they have been given the opportunity of a free choice. By being self ironic, the company
risk something by lowering their guard, thereby empowering the consumer and gaining their
confidence in the market.
Thus, companies can gain credibility by having the courage to risk some of the power they posses
toward the consumer. This can be done by being ironic about themselves as symbols of power.
It can also be done by communicating in an open an honest way, no matter the short time effects
on sales. The consumer expect the companies to produce a false fairytale. If the company instead
is being honest, it might not be such a great story, but at least it is more likely to be believed by
the audience.
Consumers today feel targeted by advertising, and information all in all. This means companies
have an option to limit their advertising, at least through mass media, in order to give the
consumer a feeling of freedom of choice. Still, the companies can use different and more
subliminal forms of advertising, like providing celebrities with their products, providing
sponsorships for clubs and parties.
.
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