A feel good ad is a type of advertisement that incites some kind of memorable emotion inside the viewer of the ad. The creator uses the picture and some text to convey a message that engages the viewer. This feeling is supposed to leave a resonating impression with the viewer and possibly create a motivation for them to one day want to buy the brand. I also think that feel good ads are better aimed at women.
I found this advertisement in Vogue. I think this exact ad was in Vogue because of the audience that typically reads Vogue are hip, impressionable, women that want to feel empowered. Women of all ages read this magazine and I think they can all identify with the message of this ad. It says “Exceed expectations.” And it shows a picture of a young woman wearing trendy, business attire. At the bottom of the ad, it says “Life at Work”, I assume that because Life and Work are capitalized, this is the name of the line. This is a good place to put this ad because women of all ages want to feel that feeling of “exceeding expectations” in the work place. This ad both empowers women and creates a positive feeling about Banana Republic for women readers.
According Carolyn Setlow of findarticles.com, “There are, of course, no easy answers. However, a recent RoperASW survey reveals that far from disdaining funny ads, Americans are enamored of them. A striking 85% say they “like” ads with “humorous” themes. Humor scored higher than nine other themes in terms of likability, and eight points higher than the next-most-liked theme. The success of funny ads might be seen as a harbinger of” normalcy”–good news to all retailers.”
Essentially, feel good advertising is exactly what it sounds like: it makes a person feel good. This can include an image of sun coming through clouds, a woman jumping up in the air with a smile across her face, something that conveys a message of happiness and freedom. Something that makes you FEEL GOOD.
To end, George Bittlingmayer of econlib.org tells his reader about the different forms of advertising. He says:
“Advertising comes in many different forms: grocery ads that feature weekly specials, ‘feel-good’ advertising that merely displays a corporate logo, ads with detailed technical information, and those that promise ‘the best.’ Critics and defenders have often adopted extreme positions, attacking or defending any and all advertising. But, at the very least, it seems safe to say that the information firms convey in advertising is not systematically worse than the information volunteered in political campaigns or used car ads.”
In conclusion, it seems pretty clear that MOST ads, especially feel good advertisements, like to cater to emotion rather than logic (and I know this is an overstatement. There are definitely some ads with logic as their driving force). But, if most advertisements wanted to be logical, they would say things like, “Hey. We know you are overdrawn $400 dollars in your bank account, but you will LOOK like you’re not if you spend $400 more on this nice purse. Your friends will never know!”