Raise your Right hand

A picture says a thousand words………………….. and so do print advertisements (ads). Print ad is one of the oldest forms of advertisement.  Print advertisement, like other advertisements, help to communicate the dominant ideology at given period of time effectively. Women are the most favorite “commodity” of advertisers selling almost any and every commodity. From sanitary pads to male deodorant, women feature prominently in all sorts of ads.  

Though some people argue that it is media that influences the society, others argue that media merely mirrors the society. With some experiences in ad testing, I can say that an advertisement usually reflects what people want to see / hear.

Print ads capture the evolution of women’s position in the society very well. Below are some of my picks to depict this change.

The 1920s to the 50s, women were the portraying the "HOUSEWIFE" role.

http://www.ltcconline.net/lukas/gender/pages/roles.htm

 This ad is from the 1920s era. This is what the ad says "EDNA'S case was really a pathetic one. Like every woman, her primary ambition was to marry. Most of the girls of her set were married - or about to be. Yet not one possessed more grace or charm or loveliness than she. And as her birthdays crept gradually toward that tragic thirty-mark, marriage seemed farther from her life than ever. She was often a bridesmaid but never a bride". 

Can you take a guess at the product this ad is selling? I bet very few will get it right. This ad is for a mouth wash. This ad is trying to convey the impact a bad breath can have on your life - a woman may never get married which is the primary purpose of her existence! This ad is trying to convince women into buying the product by instilling fear and insecurities.

http://www.ltcconline.net/lukas/gender/pages/roles.htm

 An ad for birth control pills interestingly depicts things women "think" of - Roasting on Sunday, Laundry on Monday, Ironing on Tuesday etc. In short, a woman can remember her domestic chores but can't remember her "cycle days".

The 1950s to the 70s saw the era of women the - "worthless" 

This 1950s ad for a ketchup is demonstrating that the cap of the bottle is so easy to open that even women can open it. This is indirectly trying to conveying that women are so useless that they cannot open a bottle cap on their own. Whatever this ad fails to encapsulate, the following ad says all that and more.

"Gosh! This is such a news to me!!! Women and Useful?!?!" I bet this line was running in the mind of the ad maker.  

With time ads began recognizing women outside work yet their roles were restricted to limited jobs.

With more and more women joining the workforce led ad makers to portray women in a new light. They were increasingly occupying positions of power.The ad below exemplifies how ads depicted these changes.

http://cargocollective.com/tommynoonan/MOTOROLA

However interestingly ad makers would depict  women in power usually in suits. There is nothing feminine about the lady (in the Motorola ad) in terms of her attitude and feel. The look and feel is that of a man except that she is a lady . This picture almost drives the point that corporate women are not feminine or rather feminine cannot be in the corporate. But gradually we see a change in the attitude. 

http://themoderngrad.wordpress.com/2011/05/17/fashion-for-empowerment-jones-new-york-savvy-campaign-ads/

The picture above from Jone New York is definitely an indication of some progress. All the women have left their hair down and are going for firm but soft expressions. Yet this ad does bring in some interesting points. If you look closely, you will observe that women in power suits are standing ahead of the women in skirts. This still depicts the stereotypes elucidated by the Motorola picture above but it is just not that blatant.

However, the truth is women's position has evolved. They have emerged in the job market and how! They are the buyers and the decision makers. 

Nobody realized this better than De Beers. De Beers has always positioned diamonds as the eternal sign of marriage with their campaign "diamonds are forever" (just like your marriage is). 

However, in the 2000s things began to change - not only marriages were lasting less often but a lot of women did not feel the need to marry anymore. Therefore, out went the engagement ring. Women were independent - they could take care of themselves and did not need a man to buy them anything including diamonds. Tapping on this, De Beers launched a new campaign  - "women of the world, raise your right hand".

This ad appealed to all groups of women. It was the most successful pitch for women empowerment. The woman is shown alone but very feminine indicating that she is strong but pampers herself.   

Going forward advertisers and marketeers are recognizing women’s potential as not only   mother, daughter or wife but as an individual who are unique and glamorous and have their own shining moment. They need to be celebrated and are definitely “worth it”!