Invictus Ad Campaign Analysis

This essay analyzes the Paco Rabanne Invictus advertising campaign, examining its persuasive strategies and alignment with marketing models. The student discusses the campaign's use of pathos and ethos, comparing the Lavidge & Steiner model and the AIDA model. The analysis delves into the importance of storytelling and nonverbal communication in creating a lasting impact on the audience. The student critiques the limitations of the models, noting that not all consumers follow linear steps. The essay highlights the effectiveness of the campaign's integrated marketing communication in appealing to various stages of the consumer journey. The student uses academic sources to support their analysis, linking theoretical concepts to specific elements of the advertisement.

Extract 3.
This is a different structure. Student starts with theoretical discussion then works through specific
features of interest (mood, storyline, semiotics etc not shown here) and relates them back to the
model. The danger with this approach is that you have a very dry discussion at the start with no
mention of your chosen campaign until later- by which time I may have given up reading (Not
really!). An overly descriptive approach is avoided here by linking the theory to Invictus at an early
stage. Good to note the criticisms of the models- none are perfect so don’t be afraid to note this.
Later, in the storyline section- see how academic source is mentioned first (Lundquist) then linked
to how this is created in the ad by the director.
2.0 Advertising strategy and model
The role of any successful advertisement campaign is to ultimately modify the state of attitude
amongst the target audience or consumers to be more informed about the brand and the product
hence be more favorable to purchase it (Karlsson, 2007). The Invictus campaign uses persuasive
advertising to differentiate itself from other its competitors as well as predecessors (Mann, 2013).
The persuasive strategies used by advertisers who want consumers to buy their product can often be
divided into pathos, logos, and ethos. The campaign by Paco Rabanne utilises two of these
strategies which include pathos aiming to evoke an emotional response in the consumer through the
" euphoria of victory " as well as ethos by using a celebrity in the advertisement giving it more
credibility and appealing to the consumers (Bolatito, 2012). However it can be argued that final
advertisement itself might not persuade the audience into buying the product but rather enforce the
brand differentiation. The use of content-controlled advertising matters in brand building as is the
advertisement can be viewed as a form of brand-sponsored communication (Reid, Luxton, &
Mavondo, 2005).
The campaign embraces Lavidge & Steiners Hierarchy-of-effects model which was introduced in
1961 that is based on six steps, and just as other models must be completed in a linear manner
(Figure 1). In contrast to the AIDA model which was introduced in 1925 consisting of just four
components (raise awareness, stimulate interest, customer to desire and eventually leading to
action), the model by Lavidge & Steiners is more comprehensive and steps can be completed
simultaneously (Karlsson, 2007). However both models face criticism as not all consumers go
through the liner steps in sequence and some consumers just have the initial impulse to buy the
product (Karlsson, 2007). The marketing of Invictus appeals to all the various steps of the consumer
due to its integrated marketing communication campaign.
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3.2 Storyline and communication
Lundqvist et.al., (2013) , emphasizes on the power of storytelling on consumer experiences.
The research demonstrates how positive brand stories can be used to create and reinforce
positive brand associations. As audience is more likely to remember a story rather than a
fact as it evokes an emotion in them (Bolatito, 2012). In under a minute, Alexandre Courtès,

a French feature film director created a storyline which is compelling and leaves a long
lasting impact due to surrounding content of the advertisement. One of the characteristic
features of the advertisement is the effectiveness of the nonverbal communication (Sri
Ranjan, 2010). In the advertisement the protagonist is continuously moving until the final
few seconds. This is reflective of life as it is continuously moving and is relatable by the
audience. Furthermore the masculine characterization of the protagonist is also an effective
method of non verbal communication. The slow walk of victory and his body language
depicts power and command