While riding the escalator in London's Underground, a series of posters flashed before me. In big, bold letters, posters read "Atlanta is so gay...South Carolina is so gay...Boston is so gay." I was immediately stunned and confused by this ad, and it was only after I had caught a glimpse of the company name, Amro Worldwide, a gay travel company, did I realize that this was an ad endorsing the ultimate travel experience provided for gay and lesbian travelers.
The process of viewing this ad reminded me of the Cognitive Response Theory that we discussed in class earlier that week. When initially seeing the posters, I thought to myself, "what did their message mean, and what were they advertising? Wouldn't others find this ad offensive due to the negative connotation associated with the expression?" Wouldn't a poster that read its company's logo, "Amro Worldwide- Gay Travel. Tried and Trusted." be just as effective? Probably not. The fact that it brought to mind my own thoughts and concerns about the message made the ad much more memorable, which according to the Cognitive Response Theory, is the most important element when developing a persuasive advertisement.
1 comment:
I was also taken back by all the US locations listed especially South Carolina. I looked over Amro's website and was surprised to find that each state's tourism department is helping pay for the cost of this advertising campaign in London's Underground.
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