Dolce and Gabbana

Dolce and Gabbana’s Unrealistic Gender Expectations There are many ads on television, magazines, and billboards that target specific genders. For example, if they are trying to advertise something for men, they usually have sexy women to seduce them to buy the product. The women are usually wearing a bikini or some type of clothes that look tight to show off their body. Now, in a women’s ad, it is the opposite. They have sexy men showing off their abs tying to seduce women to buy the product. Although Dolce and Gabbana use sexual appeals on their campaign, it should change because they show unrealistic expectations for the consumers, which can lead me and women to feel imperfect and inferior. Dolce and Gabbana may be popular and entertaining, but their substance is problematic because it makes insecurities for men and women. In one commercial, for example, the female is wearing a white bikini and the male is wearing white underwear and they both come out of the water and start making out while the man takes off the woman’s bikini top. The ad catches our attention because it has an attractive male and an attractive female relaxing in a location with a nice view of the beach. The ad implies that if you get a fragrance like the Dolce and Gabbana fragrance, you can get either a sexy man or a sexy female. These can appeal to both genders. In a Luxury Daily article titled “Dolce & Gabbana Offers Social Entry Point to Brand Lifestyle” journalist Erin Shea says that “Dolce & Gabbana taps into that with a very sensual image of a man and a woman that people want to look like and in a relaxed and beautiful location where people dream of going” (para 20). When ads start to give these kinds of impressions with a nice view and having a sexy female or male on your side, it gives viewers an unrealistic expectation. If Dolce and Gabbana would redesign their ad campaign using females and males with more realistic bodies, consumers would be more able to relate and would not feel inadequate. Advertisers that want the commercials or ads to go out to a lot of viewers, spend millions of dollars. When they design ads, they think of what can catch more viewer’s attention and one thing the use are celebrities. Advertisers use the media because it is best known for most viewers. For example, the television, magazines, internet, and billboards are used because it is everywhere. Getting a celebrity to do a commercial can be difficult because they have to get a celebrity that is well known and does not have many negative comments about their career. If they do not get a good celebrity to show their product, it will not sell as they had hoped. Female advertisers can make men and women want to change. For women, the way they get their attention is by making them change for example by wanting to look as sexy and get that much attention. For men they would think if they get that they can get a good looking girl like them. For men, it is the same but opposite it can catch either men or women attention. For men it can make them want to look just like the actor to get the nice women. For women they would think they can get the fragrance for their boyfriend and think their man would look like that too. One Dolce and Gabbana commercial advertisement that is popular because it has a famous celebrity is one featuring Johansson McConaughey. In this commercial, McConaughey is being shown with colors of black and grey while he is wearing a suit with paparazzi chasing him and taking pictures as he enters a hotel. In the end of the ad, as he is entering his hotel room, he starts to take off his jacket and his button up shirt. Once he is shirtless, color starts to come in. This ad will catch female’s attention just because it is a big celebrity showing off his body. This ad implies that if you get the fragrance, you will get the same attention as the celebrity did. This ad attracts more females then males just because it has a man showing off his sexy body. In a Relax News article titled “Johansson, McConaughey together for Dolce & Gabbana The One journalist says “Meanwhile, McConaughey plays an older Hollywood screen icon in the style of Marcello Mastroianni, chased by paparazzi and women wherever he goes.”Matthew is the ultimate charmer. He is an outstanding actor, and a very handsome man whose good looks seem to be increasing with age. And he has also been blessed with style. Not to mention a clever with and boundless charisma” (para 6). When ads start to give these kinds of impressions with handsome men with a nice body being followed, it makes men think they need to look that way to get girls’ attention. This is a problem because this fragrance makes men feel they have to look good and always wear a nice suit in order to be considered successful and attractive. Dolce and Gabbana should change their advertisement campaigns because they give unrealistic expectations of what their products will do for consumers. Not every male has the best body, and not every female has a nice body to show off by wearing bikinis. Fragrance like these make people think of unrealistic expectations. The actors for these ads make the more common people think they are not good enough and have to change. This is how ads get consumers to change by getting people to want to be like the actors in the ad. Works Cited Bispo, Radames. “Dolce and Gabbana the one.” Online video clip. Youtube. Youtube, web. 22 Oct. 2013. Shea Frin. “Dolce and Gabbana Offers Special Entry Point to Brand Lifestyles” Luxury Daily. 13 May 2013. Web 21 Oct. 2013. Watchfashionnews. “Dolce and Gabbana- Light Blue Fragrance commercial.” Online video clip. Youtube, web. 22 Oct. 2013.