This year I conducted a personal investigation into the language of advertising found in magazines which are targeted at young women aged 18-30. I took 15 advertisements from a variety of magazines, including Cosmopolitan, Cleo, B, and the slightly more mature Marie Claire. From there, I was able to find the similar language techniques between advertisements and present my findings. .
Allusions to sexual innuendo were often found in the ads which I studied. For example in an ad for Clairol's new larger sized 400ml bottle of Herbal Essences, many allusions to sex were found, such as "Size is important girls" "Twice the size" and "the orgasmic, oops, organic experience of-.
Also in an ad for Softlips lip balm the main headline suggests that attractive lips will "Stop men staring at your chest" These allusions to sex provide humour for the reader, and also mean that the ads relate directly to women.
Language which mimics the everyday, conversational language of women is also often found in the ads. For example in the Herbal Essences ad "for a totally organic experience" and in an ad for Dove Skin Care "moist, dewy, gleaming bod". This language provides a conversational tone with the viewer and relates directly to women.
Statistics are very commonly used in advertisements directed at young women, with 7 of the 15 ads I looked at including some form of statistic. An example of this is in an ad for Mintec, a pain relief from bloating, and abdominal pain: "it affects 15-20% of the population" and also in an ad for Ural, a treatment for cystitis "and the fact is, one in two of us girls has had it". These statistics have the effect of reassuring women that these conditions are normal, which gives women the confidence to seek relief and buy the product. Also some ads include statistics to indicate the popularity of the product and to show the viewer that it is a proven product in the consumer market.
