R. Brown, S. Palmer, A. Garcia Gator-Ad: Help Your Body A. Bucklin, N. Budgar Pepsi is More an Okay 81

Gator-Ad: Help Your Body

Alexander Garcia, Seth Palmer, Ryan Brown

Energy drinks have been used by athletes for years and years, and there have been thousands upon thousands, if not millions of ads produced to sell these products, but this Gatorade “Greatness Starts with G” ad is particularly helpful when trying to understand how corporate interests shape the cultural legacies of common products. “Greatness Starts with G” ad is trying to sell their product Gatorade, by leveraging professional athletes doing their training as the foundation for the ad. Gatorade, created in Florida, is a major company worldwide. ey sell products such as their iconic drinks, merchandise including clothes and hats, and even household items like coolers. e Gatorade ad explicitly sells their drinks and all of its di erent avors, but behind that simplistic message lies a deeper meaning that is not immediately obvious. e ad is subliminally tying its product to greater overall human production, that if you drink their product, you will be work harder, and work longer, and ultimately lead a life that is more productive.

One of the major focuses of the Gatorade ad is the appeal to kids and a younger audience, because when it comes to kids, especially on the subject of sports, they tend to want to aspire to be their favorite athletes, because these athletes are their idols and inspiration for their own passion. Logically, Gatorade is

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appealing to kids in the sense that their favorite athletes are seen in the ad, using their product, leading to the kids buying their products in hope that they can get one step closer to becoming their idols. e fact that Gatorade went out and used well known names from di erent sports as well, from a logical standpoint helped build their audience, the more sports involved, the more fan bases immersed. e use of D.K Metcalf, a star receiver in the NFL, brings in a major audience from the United States due to the fact that American Football is one of, if not the most popular sport in the country. e use of Christian Pulisic, a well known soccer player who plays for Chelsea, one of the biggest clubs in the word, brings in even more buyers and consumers purely because soccer is and has been the biggest and most known sport in the world for years now. e attention to detail of this ad makes it a very clever one as well. ey know soccer isn’t the biggest sport in the U.S, but they compensate for that fact by getting a player like Christian Pulisic, a U.S born star player, which regardless if the viewer is a big fan of soccer, the power of patriotism which is always a characteristic of the average of American, will in uence the viewer to buy the product whether they like the sport or not. roughout the years, there have been many logos for large businesses that have appealed to customers’ trust; this could be a simple logo such as your local grocery store, but it could also be a product online such as the Gatorade symbol. is logo has been trusted by athletes and everyday people as a drink that helps them perform better in sports. You see the Gatorade symbol everywhere, on bottles, on gallons upon gallons of it displayed at major sporting events, in commercials. e list goes on, but it does not excuse the fact that this is a symbol people know and love. And it is known to help with thirst during the intense pressure and athletic ability that it takes to play a certain sport. It’s just as simple as “people trust the logo”. In the ad, you see the logo relates back to where it was originally made,

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Part II: The Advertisement Analysis

at the University of Florida, where Gatorade was born. It was named after the Gators, which is the mascot of the school. is community connection creates a level of trust between the students and faculty at the college who connected with the brand and learned to trust it. e aspect that Gatorade relates back to sports in more ways that one connects to the point that the ad presents ethos as a way of convincing people to buy their product. Gatorade has been known in the sports world for years as one of the best sport performance enhancing drinks, because of the name that it has made for itself and the trust that the label provides for athletes.

Gatorade, a brand that everybody knows and loves. But what makes it so special? Gatorade incorporates so many little features into ads that really draw attention to the viewers. For starters, this ad has very upbeat music; this detail is the base of this ad due to the other eye catchers such as the famous athletes training in the sport that they play, motivational words popping up continuously, and the overall idea that when you work hard you must consume Gatorade to help recover. Another key feature that connects the audience emotionally is by showing a swimmer with a missing limb. is snippet in the ad allows the watchers to realize that “if they can do it, then I can do it”. is ad also has a feature that allows the readers to connect with the athletes, when the athletes take a break to get a drink of Gatorade, the upbeat music in the back stops. When this happens, we get a feel for the hard work that the athletes are putting in. is product is truly meant for everyone, which is another great example as to how this company has turned out to become so successful. e appeal to the emotions that are present in the ad contribute to how much of their product they sell. Gatorade uses athletes that everyone knows and loves to help them sell their products, and they use the athletes famous quotes or sayings in their ads, making the audience more attracted to the product.

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ese athletes showcased in the ad show the strong relationship the company has with the sports world too. Whether it be as a major sponsor of the NFL, or even having the minor league in the NBA being named after them, you can not have sports without Gatorade. e cultural signi cance of the company is major, leading some to argue that its impact is second to none when talking about sports. is ad speci cally has so much signi cance in itself, the very upbeat music, inspiring words, the athletes sweating and working hard, it all resembles this idea in American culture, that as long as you put in the work, you put in the hours, you will become successful, you will have succeeded in whatever you were preparing for, it’s what everyone likes to call “ e American Dream”, a rags to riches story with its only independent variable being the amount of practice you put in, this ads motto “Greatness starts with G”, motivating the people to chase, to try and achieve greatness with pure hard work and determination. is is American Culture, the constant bombardment of inspiration to make people feel empowered and determined to achieve what they need to achieve. is ad does so well in not only getting the U.S interested in buying their products, but getting the world to be a part of their so called “movement”. It’s showing the world the typical “American Dream” story. ese athletes are all so talented and highly regarded because of the work they put in, and obviously because this is an advertisement for Gatorade, they discretely imply that it all started with the use of their products. is ad might demonstrate a stereotypical view of how America and its people function, but the “American Dream” can hold true for some; it can still be used for inspiration and motivation, and that was the point of this ad, besides selling their product. Gatorade is pushing the idea of the “American Dream”, inspiring those who watch it to work hard and keep pushing, only then will they nd success.

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Pepsi is More an Okay

Natalie Budgar, Allyson Bucklin

Pepsi’s “More an Okay” ad aired during the 2019 superbowl. e purpose of this ad was to demonstrate that Pepsi is better than Coke and appeals to everyone. e commercial takes place in a modern diner in which a woman asks for coke and the waiter then asks “Is Pepsi okay?”. A guy sitting behind her then asks sarcastically “Is Pepsi okay?” and then goes on to compare Pepsi to special and sentimental occurrences in life in an attempt to show how good Pepsi is. e woman then ends up wanting a Pepsi. For as long as Coke and Pepsi have been around they have always been each other’s main competitors. As these are two very well known brands and people usually have their preference when it comes to Pepsi and Coke. is ad is trying to prove that Pepsi is better than okay while at the same time proving that Pepsi is better than coke. One of their main goals with the ad was to also show how Pepsi appeals to everyone. e Pepsi ad explicitly sells the idea that Pepsi is the best choice but implicitly sells happiness and satisfaction to everyone.

When it comes to the appearance of the ad, Pepsi made sure to create a clean and modern setting for the ad to take place in. is ad takes place in an upscale modern diner having multiple booths and a bar. Within the diner there are multiple custom-

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ers however the ad’s main focus is on a single woman in a booth and a single guy sitting in the booth behind her. e young male waiter is dressed in a more modern version of what diner servers used to wear. As Pepsi is known for their logo including blue, red, and white, throughout the advertisement these colors are prominent. roughout the ad we see red as this color is the color of the booths as well as the part of the ceiling over top of the bar. All three of these colors become more prominent towards the end as Cardi B, who is a female rapper, comes in wearing a dress with red, blue, and white jewels with matching red, blue, and white long, jeweled, acrylic nails which become one of the focus points in one shot of her picking up a Pepsi can that has the original design of a Pepsi can however matches her nails as the can is covered with red, blue, and white jewels. is advertisement was designed to appeal to everyone as well as those who prefer Coke over Pepsi. is advertisement aired for the rst time during the 2019 superbowl. e superbowl is known for their ads, as this event is annually one the most watched sporting events in America. With such a wide variety of people watching this event, Pepsi designed their ad to appeal to all of the viewers at home watching. e ad appeals to everyone no matter the age as this ad uses three di erent celebrities that have di erent fan bases in order to be inclusive to all age groups. e ad focuses on three major celebrities, Steve Carrell, Lil Jon, and Cardi B to help them promote the idea that Pepsi is better than Coke to their fan bases. Steve Carrell is a well known actor known for numerous of his di erent roles in old and modern television shows and movies. Cardi B is a well known female rapper whose music and personality have gained popularity over recent years. Both appeal to di erent age groups as Steve Carrell appeals to the middle aged and older audience and Cardi B appeals to the younger audience. When Cardi B walks in, one of her most well known songs, “I Like It”, also starts playing which helps appeal to the younger

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Part II: The Advertisement Analysis

audience as they know and enjoy the song. In addition to both of these celebrities, Lil Jon also makes a short but important appearance in this commercial as he is used for the transition in between Steve Carrell and Cardi B. As these celebrities have a wide range and vast amount of followers, together they help to gain popularity for Pepsi as they are proving that Pepsi is more than okay to all of their followers and fans, making them more inclined to drink Pepsi rather than Coke. is advertisement relies heavily on the appeal of ethos to help promote Pepsi. To help promote their credibility, they aired this advertisement during the 2019 Super Bowl which is one of the most watched sporting events every year in America. As there are millions of people at home watching television, to have your ad played during this event costs a lot of money which helps to prove their credibility. What also makes this ad rely on ethos, was the appearance of three major celebrities known as Steve Carrell, Lil Jon, and Cardi B. ese celebrities combined have a vast amount of followers as well as each having a diverse fan base. As this ad focuses on proving that Pepsi is better than Coke, by showing that these major celebrities support Pepsi, this helps to appeal to each of their fan bases at home, hopefully resulting in them trying and enjoying Pepsi. is advertisement also relies heavily on pathos to help sell the idea that Pepsi is better than Coke. is ad appeals to pathos as it utilizes Steve Carrell, who is an actor and comedian to help make this ad humorous. is scene starts as a woman asks for Coke and then the waiter asks “Is Pepsi Okay?” and Steve Carrell pops up out of a neighboring booth and sarcastically restates the question “Is Pepsi Okay?” with emphasis on the word “Okay”. He then uses hand gestures and compares Pepsi to a puppy, shooting star, and the laugher of a small child. All of these comparisons are special things that people often cherish in life and are experiences they will never forget which helps to comfort the audience. e ad then becomes humorous

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towards the end as the customer decides she wants a Pepsi and Steve Carrell tries to imitate Cardi B’s well known catchphrase “Okurrr”. Ultimately by making this advertisement humorous but also comforting, by evoking these emotions from the audience, people watching the ad at home will be more inclined to trust the brand Pepsi and buy the product as they believe they will enjoy this product like they enjoy the comparisons made by Steve Carrell.

Finally this advertisement also relies on logos to help get their messages across to the audience. is ad speci cally revolves around the word “Okay” as it is used in multiple di erent forms and tones to help get the message across. Cardi B plays one of the major roles in this advertisement and is also known for her catchphrase “Okurrr” which is another way of saying “Okay”. is pronunciation of the word “Okay” has become a well known catchphrase among the younger generation as it grew through social media. e question “Is Pepsi Okay?” goes along with the idea that Pepsi is more than Okay as well as incorporating what Cardi B is known for. As she walks in with one of her most popular songs playing called, “I Like It”, and saying her catchphrase “Okurrr”, this helps to appeal to the younger generation while also staying true to what the ad is trying to promote. Lil Jon also wears a big diamond chain that says “OKAAAY” as he says this is in response to Steve Carrell stating that Pepsi is more than okay. As all of these celebrities use this word in di erent ways but still relate to the message of the ad, this appeals to the logos of the ad as the di erent pronunciations break down the logic of the ad when trying to prove that Pepsi is more than okay.

Another appeal to logos falls within the fast pace of the ad. is ad is only around 30 seconds making it very fast paced when trying to get their message across. is is the reason for the repetition throughout the ad of the word “okay” and the phrase “Pepsi is more than okay”. As the ad takes place in a din-

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Part II: The Advertisement Analysis

er, when transitioning between the celebrities and their parts, it goes from Steve Carrell to Lil Jon who rings a bell while also saying “OKAAAY” and pointing to Cardi B walking in as her song comes on. is ad is continually moving forward in an attempt to get the message across quickly which is similar to how a diner works. A diner is usually busy with a fast pace feel to it which makes everything come together regarding the logic behind the ad. is appeals to logos as this helps to stay true to the setting and the feel of the ad while still promoting their product.

Overall, while this advertisement is trying to promote the idea that Pepsi is more than okay, this goes to reveal di erent details about American culture. As this advertisement is very fast paced and is continuously moving, this helps to show how Americans are always on the go and are restless. If this was a 2-3 minute advertisement, we would get bored and not pay attention to it compared to this 30 second ad. We tend to always want to be going and moving instead of relaxing for once. is ad also goes to show how competitive we are. is ad speci cally targets Coke as Pepsi’s main competitor and goes to persuade those at home that Pepsi is better than Coke. is goes to show how competitive we are as humans and always wanting to be the best. is advertisement was speci cally designed to appeal to everyone while at the same time, using celebrities and the culture of the younger generation to increase Pepsi consumers as opposed to Coke consumers.

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