Comparing and Contrasting of Two Cell-Phone Ads

I am analyzing two cell-phone advertisements. The first advertisement is for the T-Mobile myTouch 3G phone from Rolling Stone magazine. The second advertisement is for the Sony Ericsson C905 Cyber-shot picture phone from FHM magazine.

The first advertisement is from Rolling Stone Magazine, which is a magazine, geared towards people interested in the entertainment industry. Rolling Stone has a large audience, as it is not oriented towards one gender. The readers of Rolling Stone magazine are primarily young and middle-aged adults between the ages of 18 and 50. The second advertisement is from FHM magazine, which is a British magazine, oriented towards younger heterosexual men. The audience of FHM magazine is much smaller than that of Rolling Stone due to the fact that it markets itself only men. The readers of FHM magazine are younger people, most likely between the ages of 16-38

The first advertisement from Rolling Stone magazine features rock and roll legend Eric Clapton. The photo displays Clapton holding up the T-Mobile phone in a very serious manner. The color of the back of the phone matches the color of the background behind Clapton. The phone that Clapton is marketing is tied to the famed Fender guitar company. The text of the advertisement is very modern looking and easy to read. The modern font of the text suggests that the phone Clapton is marketing is the newest and best phone currently available. The text also states that T-Mobile is a sponsor of Eric Clapton’s Crossroad Guitar Festival. This statement suggests to fans of Eric Clapton that any real fan of his music needs to have a T-Mobile phone. T-Mobile’s tagline “Stick Together” suggests to fans of Clapton’s music that they should “stick together” with Clapton and buy a T-Mobile phone.

The second advertisement from FHM magazine features a very attractive lady in nothing but lingerie. The advertisement features only the body of the attractive women, as her eyes are cut off at the top of the page. The woman is also wearing very modern looking lingerie, which only furthers her appeal towards the male audience reading the magazine. The background of the advertisement uses a bluish silver color to further emphasize the sleek silver color of the phone itself. The font of the text is very modern looking, which much like the Rolling Stone advertisement, suggests that this phone is the best of its kind. The text also states that the photographer took the picture for the advertisement with the phone itself. This suggests to the reader that they are getting two products in one.

I chose these two articles due to the fact that their subjects are very different. One product is marketed by an aging Rock and Roll icon, while an attractive young woman endorses the other product. The background colors are also very different. The Rolling Stone advertisement uses warmer colors such as orange and red, while the FHM advertisement uses cooler colors such as blue and green. The advertisement from Rolling Stone plays into the stereotype that people will follow whatever celebrities do. Ergo, the advertisement suggest that music fans will buy the phone simply because it is endorsed by Eric Clapton. The advertisement from FHM follows the concept that “sex sells” in business. The advertisement assumes that FHM’s male readers will buy the phone simply because an attractive woman is holding it.