Investigation into advertising

Investigation into Advertising.

I am analyzing adverts for Chanel Number 5, for my assignment in advertising. Advertising is a method companies use to get their product noticed, they use various ways to do this such as: TV adverts, Radio adverts, posters in Shopping Centers, Billboards etc.  I am aiming to show how companies successfully market their product to their target audience.

I have sourced my information from a magazine and the Internet, using one print and one TV advert. The product I am analyzing is the fragrance Chanel Number 5. Chanel was founded in 1909 by French fashion designer Gabrielle “Coco” Bonheur Chanel. Alan Wertheimer and Gerard Wertheimer, the grandsons of Pierre Wertheimer an early business partner of Coco Chanel, now own Chanel. Chanel Number 5 was released in May 1921, the chemical formula for the fragrance was compounded by Russian-French Chemist and Perfumer, Ernest Beaux.  Chanel Number 5 contains Ylang-Ylang, Mayrose and Jasmine. "Respectable" women favored the pure essence of a single garden flower (Rose). Sexually provocative perfumes heavy with animal musk or Jasmine were typically associated with prostitutes or courtesans. Chanel felt the time was right for of a scent that would epitomize the modern flapper that would speak to the liberated spirit of the 1920’s.

Chanel Number 5 has been advertised by celebrities such as: Marilyn Monroe, Nicole Kidman and Catherine Denevue. Marilyn Monroe was chosen at the time to advertise Chanel Number 5, as she was seen as a ‘sex symbol’. And Coco Chanel wanted to present the perfume as sexy and desirable. Marilyn Monroe went against how women were expected to behave in that period in time, Coco Chanel wanted to liberate the ‘flappers’ of the 1920’s and Marilyn Monroe was the perfect celebrity to do that. She also was seen to be very classy and sophisticated, she was idolized by millions in the 1920’s. The bottle used today is not the original bottle used when the perfume was first released. Chanel envisioned an over-elaborate, precious crystal fragrance bottle which were in fashion, popularized by Lalique and Baccarat (glass makers). She wanted it to be transparent an ‘invisible bottle’.  The original container had small, delicate rounded shoulders. The design was changed in 1924, the bottles shoulders are square. Making it more robust and capable of being shipped without cracking. Unlike the bottle which has remained the same since it was redesigned, the stopper has gone through numerous modifications. The original stopper was a small glass plug. The octagonal stopper became a brand signature was created in 1924, when the bottle shape was changed. In the 1950’s the stopper became a bevel cut and became larger with a thicker silhouette. In the 1970’s the stopper became more prominent. It was finally changed in 1986 to become harmonious with the scale of the bottle.

Other products created by Coco Chanel consist of: Chanel Number 19, this fragrance was created to celebrate Coco Chanel’s birthday on the 19^th of august in 1971. It was launched a year before she died it is a balsamic green scent, very different opposed to the floral scent of Chanel Number 5. Chanel also created the fragrance Coco Mademoiselle, which is aimed at younger Chanel fans it was released into the collection in 2001. Keira Knightly as Coco Chanel played the advertising model.