A major reason why advertising fails is because the advertisement or message fails to catch the attention of the targeted consumer. Companies are constantly competing for our attention with other companies as well with ourselves. Only so much information can be processed. Only the best advertising messages and strategies have what it takes to break through the clutter.
Whether we like it or not, or choose to accept it, we are constantly being bombarded with messages from the moment we wake up. We ignore many of these messages subconsciously, but there are some we do decide to give a chance. I was watching television the other day when I saw a Nissan car commercial that broke through and caught my attention.
The commercial starts off with a woman sitting in the bathroom looking at her pregnancy test. She smiles and sprints into the room to tell her husband the positive result. She conveys to him the good news by saying, “We are having a baby”, immediately followed by an embrace filled with pure joy. After a few moments, the husband’s face oddly changes its expression from happiness to a sense of worry or concern.
We immediately realize how such great news could have caused such an odd reaction when the scene flashes to the man standing outside in his driveway gazing at his brand new, sleek, shiny, silver Nissan 370z 2-door sports car. He looks disheartened as he stares at this beautiful car, realizing and contemplating his conflict.
He puts both hands on the car and looks around the interior. He notices that lack of room, the lack of space for a car seat, and simultaneously ponders about the practicality of this 2-door car that is clearly his pride and joy. He strokes the car with his hand, petting it like a dog, as if it was “man’s best friend” instead.
What happened next completely caught me off guard, mostly because how he resolved the conflict is impossible. He decided to “stretch” the car, and tweak its frame to satisfy both his needs. He pulled the bumper to elongate the car, made it wider, and transformed it into a practical 4-door in 10 seconds flat. He backed up, and with a grin from ear to ear said, “We are having a baby”.
The commercial is not advertising the use magic or super strength. It doesn’t have some new car that can be tweaked or molded like Play-doh based on the user’s ideal specifications. It is showing us a car that satisfies multiple needs, even seemingly polar opposite ones like these. The man wants a fast stylish sports car, but also knows he needs a more feasible family car. This car itself seems like a magic trick, letting the man easily satisfy such contrasting needs.
I could not help but think about Maslow’s hierarchy of needs and the consumer decision making process as I watched this commercial. The opposing needs and desires of the man fall into different stages of Maslow’s pyramid. The 2-door 370z sports car that he currently owns is his luxury and present to himself. Before the baby, he had already satisfied the needs at the base. He could afford a sports car, which definitely means that he has satisfied both his physiological and safety needs. We might then infer that he was able to satisfy the next level of love and belonging through the marriage with his wife. It was only then that he was able to focus having a nice sports car and his esteem needs. Maybe he feels more accepted by others by having the car and maybe it’s a meaning of status for him that raises his confidence and esteem. Maybe the car gets him more attention, or has increased his prestige and recognition.
With the introduction of a new baby, his needs will undoubtedly be altered. The needs he had already satisfied to purchase the luxury car must be revisited and satisfied. He realized that the sports car was no longer practical, either economically or physically for the new baby. A sedan that fulfills both the new needs as well as his desire to have a nice car is the perfect solution. This is what Nissan offers, the new and stylish but practical Nissan Maxima. A well-rounded car that is luxurious and practical. One doesn’t have to sacrifice one for the other; they can buy this car instead.
The commercial reminded me that people do not like to sacrifice when they make purchases. People want a product with the highest quality at the cheapest price. They want something that serves a practical purpose, but is very stylish at the same time. This car is appealing to consumers that do not want to make tradeoffs because it satisfies all needs in one car.
The New Nissan Maxima
Dan Pogoda is a Senior BEM major with a minor in Psychology
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