Fragrance advertisements are widely known for their eccentricity and uniqueness, and it can be hard to imagine how that contributes to its $75 billion industry. Clearly, they are very effective at selling perfumes and colognes despite their specific impact on customers being nebulous. Frequently the subject of parody, the unconventionality of this genre and its vague tropes cannot be understated, and it consequently proves itself to be a potentially fruitful topic of study.
This project strives to analyze, understand, and explain how the unique tropes of fragrance ads can aid in its purpose of selling the product. By examining commercials from within the past few decades, relevant trends in techniques, symbology, and themes and be established, and these can be deconstructed to discover the purpose behind their existence in the genre. Examining the history of fragrances commercially provides contextual insight on relevant trends as well.
Specifically, this project will examine recurring tropes and their ulterior rhetorical appeals, such as with bodies of water and the absolution of the wealth, and how all the components of the ads tie into a central rhetorical approach, to maintain the culture of luxury that the fragrance industry thrives on. The project will connect the elements that make the ads stand out, such as their vagueness and artsy presentation, to this overall approach as well. This analysis will be placed within the context of television commercials and print ads that are commonplace, considering their limitations and target demographics.
Common aspects of the commercials to be dissected include the commercial’s conceptual esotericism, the ethos of association with celebrities and luxury products, the exotic and artsy presentation of the ads themselves, and a focus on selling fantasies that appeal to the individual customer. These all work despite contradictions and curious observations within these ads, such as stinky imagery when the product being sold is a pleasant fragrance and a low cost of production per bottle for most household fragrances.
All genres self-perpetuate; adding new content to an existing genre only further cements the trends that define it. Fragrance commercials, however, are unique in that their tropes are contrived, intentional, and revolve entirely around maintaining a culture of luxury. All their components work towards this objective. This makes them a fascinating subject for the study of rhetoric, writing, and advertising, as well as shed light on the products we incorporate into our lives and how these commercials work and persuade us. Ultimately, the project concludes that there is a very palpable reason behind the ads’ obvious strangeness—to overcome the specific challenges that come with selling fragrance bottles.