Music & Advertising

Welcome to my blog for Marketing 446: Advertising and Promotions! For the past few weeks we have been posting videos on YouTube (check out my posts here. Please overlook the ridiculous thumbnail pictures. Could they be more unflattering?!)

This week our assignment is to talk about music in advertising. We all know how much music helps us to remember a certain time or place in our lives. The same goes for commercials. When you put the two together you create an unforgettable ad campaign!

One of the most memorable advertising campaigns from my childhood (I realize I am showing my age here) was the Pepsi campaign where they used Michael Jackson as the spokesperson and integrated his music from his hit song "Billie Jean" and adapted it to singing about Pepsi. When I heard this ad and saw the commercial I thought it was the greatest thing since sliced bread! When I saw a kid who was around my age, Alfonso Ribeiro, I thought he was the luckiest kid alive.

Since I was a kid who was raised by a single mother, who also happened to be a health nut, there was NO sodas allowed in my house. After I saw the commercial I'm sure I begged and begged for a Pepsi because that's what the "cool kids" were drinking. I can't remember off hand but I'm pretty sure my mom did not buy me a Pepsi, but I'm pretty sure I saved up my allowance for one!

See the video below:

 Music in this particular commercial was extremely effective in delivering it's message. It talked about Pepsi...for a New Generation. I believed that I was of that New Generation and it stuck with me for a long, long time. Pepsi has continued with a variation of this campaign for years now by using singers/musicians like Britney Spears, Beyonce, Faith Hill, Kanye West, Shakira, Ludacris, Tina Turner and many, many more.

If you look at the diagram above you will see the different aspects of using music in advertising. This Pepsi video had it all for me:

• It captured my attention
• It promoted a positive mood
• It definitely increased receptivity of message