Smirnoff vodka brand history and market position

¶ … 1994 Smirnoff advertisement.

Incorporate three of the factors that influence meaning as critical criterion.

Smirnoff's 1994 campaign was a trend-setting advertising campaign that boosted the product and enhanced its worldwide selling power.

This 1994 advertisement for the world's best selling vodka was based on spectacular or illusion advertising. The theme -- this bottle can change reality. This is a good example of category and brand development tools that set the stage for some of the more critical criteria for producing a successful advertisement.

What is the advertisement saying to audiences? And what was its intended message? In all probability, the message(s) could be perceived differently by different populations. The overall connotation appears to link Smirnoff with symbols of American pride -- the Statue of Liberty, Marilyn Monroe and what looks like New York City. The hidden message could be "American loves Smirnoff"; or "be true to the red, white and blue, drink Smirnoff"; and possibly, "Americans and Smirnoff go together." Basically, it is supporting a sense of value in American pride. It is linking drinking Smirnoff with being a patriotic American.

If you look at the ad closely, the subliminal message is Smirnoff. Look at the placement of the product name. Small lettering on the top with the face of the bottle is sideways. Symbolically, the placement of the name at the top could connote the brand's being the "top" or number one choice for vodka drinkers. Putting the face of the bottle to the side implies that the image of the Statue of Liberty, a well-known American symbol comes first and foremost.

The guise of advertising is to create and increase awareness of a product and to develop loyalty among current and potential customers. Smirnoff's ad seems to have been developed to meet that goal by appealing to a customer type not a mass audience. The message speaks to a target group, arouses desire and promotes action.

Let's look harder at the ad. There is also an element of "hidden" or subliminal messages, i.e. The illusion of Marilyn Monroe. This choice of subject matter could promote the myth (illusion) that women who are like Marilyn Monroe drink Smirnoff or men who drink Smirnoff are the "all-American" type males who is going to meet the Marilyn Monroe type because he drinks Smirnoff.

The city backdrop could promote the myth that sophisticated, savvy city dwellers drink Smirnoff. Perhaps the middle-age businessman, who commutes to a large city and was born during a time when Marilyn Monroe was most men's fantasy of a blond bombshell, would select Smirnoff as his drink of choice.

In considering ideology, what would be the reaction of people to this advertisement today? After the tragic events of September 11th, this ad might produce two very different responses. One might be an annoyance at the fact that the Statue of Liberty is being linked to a sex symbol. This could be misconstrued as a mockery for some patriotic Americans. Others may view this as a representation of some of the things that are good about America -- our freedom, our cities and the Statue of Liberty.

But the whole advertisement is based on that simple concept of illusion. It simply implies that what's in that bottle can change your perception of things, i.e. linking the Statue of Liberty with a very famous pose by Marilyn Monroe. Could that connote that drinking Smirnoff can loosen up even the stodgiest people?

Obviously, back in the 90s, Smirnoff was developing a campaign that would reach out to younger consumers without alienating their core audience composed primarily of people over 35. The ad offers a delicate balance between contemporary and appealing, without being too daring or edgy. It's conservative but with a touch of flashiness.

If we look at it thematically, does it support any core values? Definitely a sense of patriotism in an unassuming way. Surely, it attests to how much we value our celebrities, be they real or imagined -- human or just symbolic. It could also speak to our sense of accomplishment, i.e., people who drink Smirnoff have reached a certain level in life. Again, the city skyline intimates business, success and being part of a fast-paced environment.

One interesting note is the idea of seeing this vision through the clarity of the bottle. That would appear to support the subliminal message that you can see things clearly when you partake of Smirnoff. Perhaps the intimation is again that you can change your reality. That's a power that most people would like and that powerful people think they have. So now you have gained the interest of two different audiences.