"Beer commercials are usually targeted at young men, and this is another side to the genius of this particular campaign. Not only does it appeal to young women as well as men, but even for the intended audience of young males these ads stand out from the rest. The Most Interesting Man in the World is superbly confident, obviously successful and a clearly a role model." (source)
Euro RSCG commented the following on the campaign:
He is that man we aspire to be.
So... who is he anyways?
Could this be a form of "brown face?" What are the implications of a white man pretending to be South American in origin? Are there any?
I believe so. Just as by wearing "black face" in the 1927 talkie "The Jazz Singer", Al Jolson only added to the damaging racial prejudice at the time, I believe that Goldsmith, in presenting the South American as a womanizing entitled millionaire, is damaging as well.
Or, perhaps it's not so much that the image he presents is negative (to be the Devil's advocate), but that in general, taking on a spokesperson role of a different ethnicity isn't right to begin with.
Euro RSCG could have hired an actual South American to play the role. The did not. Why? What does this say about the company? Did they themselves have certain predisposed notions that South Americans could not embody such a role?
Whatever their reasoning, the campaign caught on, and Dos Equis got immensely popular. Euro RSCG posted on their webpage:
"Full year case sales are up 20% and total dollar sales are up 33.7% vs. YAG - significantly exceeding the 2.7% category growth rate (Nielsen). Sales in TV markets are outpacing sales in non-TV markets, 21.1% and 15.7%, respectively. Velocity gains for the Dos Equis franchise are 45% and an incredible 85% for lager, which is featured in the campaign."(source)
At museums, he’s allowed to touch the art. . . . His blood smells like cologne. . . . Sharks have a week dedicated to him. . . . He once had an awkward moment, just to see how it feels. . . . The police often question him, just because they find him interesting. . . . He can parallel park-- a train. . . .
Johnathan Goldmsith is clearly fueling the sales for Dos Equis in comparison to other brands such as Heineken, Coors Light, Samuel Adams, and Corona. What separates Dos Equis from other beer brands is the utilization of the god-like, male figure that appeals to a demographic that desires the same qualities Goldsmith displays (Intelligence, humor, physical attractiveness, and an adventurous personality).
ReplyDelete“What Dos Equis was looking for was a lead actor for a campaign that would break the beer-advertising mold. While so many spots featured fancy cars, hot babes or exotic locations, the Dos Equis team discovered that "more than anything else, [drinkers] really wanted to be seen as interesting by their friends," said Senior Brand Director Paul Smailes.” They achieved this by hiring Goldsmith to heighten the male persona while simultaneously attracting the female demographic.
Although you mentioned that Goldsmith’s role should’ve been played by an actual Spaniard versus doing a semi-brown face, I don’t find Goldsmith’s sun-kissed glow offensive. If anything, it’s an alluring feature that’s appealing to the audience that Dos Equis caters to.
On the other hand, one feature to consider in your next post is expounding on Goldsmith’s age. He is a 73 year old man that is surpassing the average life of a typical male who drinks beer. When I think of a 73 year old, my mind instantly drifts to the senile grandfather depicted in movies, commercials, and television shows. For Dos Equis, it’s the complete opposite.
“Rather than cast a young actor, Dos Equis went with an older, worldly protagonist. The logic was that the target of young men would not "see him as a threat or as a reminder of accomplishments they hadn't achieved yet," Mr. Smailes said. He "needed to be someone to work toward, vs. a mirror of themselves."
Do you agree that this tactic has made Dos Equis a cut above the rest, and if so, why?
You have made an interesting point about the use and implication of the "brown face" in this campaign. Although some may have found the portrayal of Jonthan Goldsmith as a South American with the typical brown or golden tan to be offensive, I think it acts as a positive factor in this case. As you have quoted, the campaign resulted in an increase in their total sale and ultimately was able to appeal to a broad range of consumers. All this success is mainly attributed to the image of the spokesperson and his "intersting" story. The fact that the brand used a Jewish man to portray a South American with an accent is a matter to question; however, I think Goldsmith's age and physical apperance should be taken into account as to why he was hire to play this role as the spokesperson. As Elyse Hill said, Goldsmith is 73 years old and still physically fit. Maybe the company hired him because he, at his age and with his appealing appearance, is able to depict the image that the company wants the audience to see and recognize the brand as. Added with the story that he tells in the commercial, his appearance and age do make him an interesting person. Also, he creates the image that people would like to look up to, specifically for those in that demographic. He is old yet health and fit, even when he drinks beer. He has the appearance and tone that give him authority. Overall, the "brown face" is not portrayed to be offensive in any way but adds to the physcial attractiveness that specifically appeal to the targeted demographic. What I would like to suggest for your next post is to analyze why this particular campaign worked so well, especially with the utilization ot the brown face" and its possible implications. Also, I, personally, think you have added too many quotes (and sources) in your post. This is not a problem, and I think it is wise that you have many references for what you are writing about. However, I think you might want to try to put those ideas into your own words and make them your evaluation towards the subject that you are focusing on.
ReplyDeleteThe debate over actors of one ethnicity impersonating someone of another ethnicity is still very much alive, so I'm glad to see you touch on that fact. This still happens quite frequently in Hollywood, with the most recent example that I can think of being the Wachowski siblings' film Cloud Atlas. An Asian American advocacy group was offended that white actors used "yellow face" to portray Asian characters (I'll link a story that goes into it a bit more: http://bit.ly/L4BgD7). While the group was offended by the poor makeup job, they were more upset about the lack of an Asian American actor getting to play the role of an Asian character. I know you already talked about the casting of Goldsmith instead of a South American actor, and I recommend that you explore that idea further in future writing assignments.
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