The first period can be very stressful for some girls. As happened to Katie in HelloFlo's “First Moon Party” TV commercial, which advertises a menstruation starter kit. The story is about Katie, a girl who wants her period so badly that she fakes it. In her desperate attempt to become a woman, she lies to her friends about her first menstrual period. Katie's mother, knowing she was lying, decided to teach her a lesson by throwing a first period-themed party. This period starter kit commercial engages and allows the viewers to accept the idea that menstruation is not a forbidden topic and also creates a sense of desire in the minds of the target audience convincing them to purchase the product. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay The “First Moon Party” commercial portrays menstruation for what it is, a natural process that all girls are experiencing or will experience. Unfortunately, this topic is full of misconceptions and misconceptions. Many people are not well informed and do not feel comfortable learning about menstruation. The commercial portrays the lack of information in society and how men are usually uninformed. For example, Katie's mother's coworker brings a super pack of coffee filters and says he's not sure which brand she likes. Additionally, two male teenagers, who are "the band", congratulate Katie on her birthday stating "this is the weirdest birthday party ever". According to the article “Preparing Girls for Menstruation: Recommendations from Adolescent Girls,” written by psychology professor Elissa Koff and clinical psychologist Jill Rierdan, “Girls who have been menstruating for one to three years needed to feel supported emotionally and be informed. They don't like to think that menstruation is something abnormal and unhealthy, ugly, scary, or shameful. Most of the girls only talked about it with their mother because they felt uncomfortable discussing the topic with their father. Other girls wanted fathers to be more supportive but silent, and some girls believed that fathers should not be included in the process (paragraph 1).” Essentially, the authors argue that some parents have difficulty talking about the topic with their children, men are usually not involved, and the topic is not normally discussed during childhood. As a result, the advert seeks to bring about a change in society's perception by recognizing how girls experience puberty in real life and encourages openness to communication within families by considering new ideas. HelloFlo's commercial applies several hidden meanings to persuade the audience. Try to change their beliefs or ideas to realize communication between parents and children about the transition process from childhood to adolescence. Every culture has a different way of approaching the topic with their children, and some don't even talk about it openly. The ad relatable and satirically portrays the way Katie doesn't communicate with her mother about her desire to become a woman and her anxiety about being compared to her other friends. She also describes how the mother waited too long to explain how some girls develop at different times and that it is normal to wait longer than others. To illustrate, the mother found a swab stained with “ruby” nail polish and when she questioned Katie, she bluntly replied “What do you think it is? I'm in my women's days. Furthermore, at the end of the commercial, an older boy is depicted whohe holds a bottle of ketchup, upside down, and says in a firm tone “sometimes you just have to wait.” As the audience watches the commercial, they move to the paradigmatic level, meaning they replace the idea, “we'll talk about it later,” with a new idea, “don't wait too long to talk about it.” The new idea is in the same context because it serves the same function as the old idea. Therefore, we suggest that the period starter kit is the perfect tool that will help start "The Talk" early. Surely, the "First Moon Party" commercial portrays how some cultures have related celebrations upon the arrival of puberty, and in some of them, all family members are invited. This target audience is persuaded to purchase the product because it supports the celebration of the first menstruation as a cultural code closely connected to the members of those particular cultures example, the commercial describes how Katie's friends and family (her mother, father and grandfather) take part in the celebration. Therefore, convince this target audience to purchase the period starter kit as a gift for the next celebration. This is in contrast to other target audiences who will embrace the cultural code advertised in the commercial. Despite the audience's beliefs, they will green-light the main idea because the humorous appeals will change their social and moral values. For example, the commercial portrays male individuals through unusual scenarios: Katie's grandfather shows up with a gift and great joy, and Katie's father emerges from the cake wearing a red dress representing the menstrual period. Therefore, it convinces men to form a new concept related to menstruation and be more supportive of their daughters or other women in their family. HelloFlow uses semiotics to create meaningful communication. As we already know, the commercial focuses on the theme of menstruation. Semiotics is used in the commercial through elements with figurative meanings such as clothes, backgrounds, games and colors. For example, the connotation of the color red, which is present in almost every scene: red balloons and streamers, red bracelet, red dress, red chocolate fountain, red headpiece, and red costume, represents Katie's "new flow." The images are well made and have a very strong connotative meaning such as a woman wearing sanitary pads as earrings and eating marshmallows covered in melted red chocolate. But it also uses scenes with strong meaning where the denotation (the primary meaning) is very literal. For example, Katie gets very frustrated at the party and confesses to her mother that she faked her period. She expected to be grounded, but instead she receives a free period starter kit, with HelloFlo branding on it. Her mother claims she already knew because "periods have no glitter." Therefore, with the constant and repetitive display of the color red in addition to the product and brand shown at the end of the commercial, the message remains in the viewer's mind. The characters in the commercial are seen as funny and real. They persuade people to be open-minded about the topic. If people act the same way as the characters, they will feel “cool” or appropriate for this generation. The commercial uses scenes and expressions to allow viewers to enter into the thoughts and feelings of the characters. For example, Katie's mother explains her thoughts and ideas astutely and in such a natural way that many mothers feel identified with the character. Therefore, making everyday situations more relatable to the audience. The appeal of humor is one of the advertising strategies that HelloFlo uses in its commercial,".”
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