fijj: fiona india jordan joseph

By Jordan Jennings

A recent advertisement released for a new fragrances entitled “Parisienne” by YSL, has set a fresh bar for selling woman’s perfume. The targeted audience for this ad is young women aged 18-23. However, it could easily appeal to women in their 30′s. It is a feminine ad stereotypically positioned at the female gender. It’s a neat, pretty and sophisticated campaign. These qualities are what people look for, in a good classy ad.

The story is a about a young beautiful woman lost in Paris. The product suits mise en scene, the fairy floss pink bottle matches perfectly with the sunset in the background. The bold black background for the brand, matches the dark silhouet of the Eiffel Tower and her short ink black cocktail dress. The product name “PARISIENNE” has neat capitalised gold font, signifying the rich, and feminie likes of a woman. The slogan is appealing, “living and loving the moment”. It uses effective alliteration and there’s a comfortable catchiness to it the way your tongue rolls off the words. The ad has been very clever with the usage of the slogan. The scene is set in the evening the  a young woman is going out to spend her night in “the city of love”. We suppose someone has jumped in front of her and taken a picture; it has captured her living wildly and loving freedom. This draws the viewer  in, we are meant to dwell on the fact that this new fragrance might bring a new sense of liberty.

This ad is addressing woman and woman only, for the stereotype of a woman is to like perfume, and smell beautiful all the time, and this ad greatly reinforces that stereotype. The woman in the picture is dressed up in a beautiful cocktail dress, with  a jacket thrown over her shoulders and a sensuous dusky pink rose, I believe this fully affirms the stereotype of what a woman wants to be.

The advertisement  has a deeper meaning beyond the visual. The rose she is holding to her chest illustrates delicacy, elegance and sensitivity. She is wearing a black dress which alternatively signifies mystery and secrecy. The little black dress suggests spontaneity, because every woman has a little black dress. A gentleman’s jacket has been draped over her shoulders implying protection and possession. The silhouetted background of Paris, embodies romance, love and adventure. There is also the embrace of seduction.

This ad has used stereotypes to convey its message. Girls like to wear perfume not just to smell nice but to impress people. There are a lot of ways that you can read this ad, everyone has a different interpretation of the real meaning, the deeper concept. She is a fashion statement, dressed up beautifully awaiting prince charming.

The audience has been positioned to see the obvious; the model is the first thing you see, she stands there looking like a princess, this gives the impression that the product is for beautiful woman. This is what the ad wants you to think because women want to be seen as attractive. Its every girls dream to be a princess. This is just one of the very reasons why the advertisement is satisfactory. The ad also seems to be saying that if you buy “Parisenne”  it will bring you a fresh new start. The company values the products they sell and they value the people who buy their product just as much. This advertisement proves that they have put a lot thought and dedication towards the success of the product.

This is a refreshing advertisement. When you look at it, it overwhelms by how much it makes you think, how many ideas and stories are behind it.  All in all I believe that this ad is brilliant I personally have never seen an ad sell perfume so inventively. It posh, sophisticated yet wild. These are elements people love. Its stereotypically beautiful. It personifies “living and loving in the moment”.

9/10