2. Contents
• The Campaign (3- 6)
• Purpose (7)
• Design & Production (8-12)
• Response (13-16)
• Distribution Channels (17-21)
• Audience Research (22-26)
• Wieden + Kennedy Advertising Agency Profile (27-33)
• Legal & Ethical Issues (34-35)
3. ‘Dress Normal’ Campaign – By GAP
• Client – GAP
• Advertising Agency – Wieden + Kennedy
• Country – UK
• Campaign – Print Campaign
• Directed By – Sofia Coppola
4. The Campaign
This print campaign is GAP’s 2014 holiday campaign which was directed by Sofia Coppola. It celebrates
those sweet yet sometimes cringe-worthy holiday family moments.
The campaign is just one of the parts of GapGiftGuide.com, which is an interactive holiday gift guided
that catalogs potential gifts in a stress free way. Its done with ten short films, which give viewers a
glimpse into the secret lives led by gloves, mittens and leggings.
5. The Campaign
This advertising campaign is cross platform with work that is displayed through advertisement on
television, via print and also advertised through the radio.
They all feature familiar Thanksgiving and Christmas moments ranging from sweet to cringe-worthy, as the
characters display items from GAP’s latest collection. Each advert ends with the tagline “You don’t have to
get them to give them GAP”
6. The Campaign
A lot of clothing adverts are very similar, following the same structure. Although, GAP has its own structure
which includes a small piece of text in each print which helps to explain the picture to the audience. All of the
viewers would recognize GAP's prints as they have the small piece of text which tends to be very meaningful
and relatable for the viewer.
The advert seems to focus more on the storyline and the structure rather than the actual clothing that
the models are wearing. But linking the text in with the colour scheme of the setting that they are in and
the clothes that they are wearing makes you focus on the clothing as well as what is going on in the
image and I personally think that this is very important in an advert. If a
colour scheme wasn't used then I believe that the advert would be slightly
washed out by the text as that where the main focus is drawn to. But using
text that is same colour as some of the tones in the jumpers that the two
girls are wearing means that you also focus on that as well as the text itself.
7. The Campaign
The main genre of this campaign is fashion. The fashion campaign focuses the different kind of clothing that
the shop is selling. The advertisements show that this is the genre although it goes further than this. The genre
also shows the quirkiness of the clothing that is sold there and also shows the clothes in a more retro way.
8. Purpose
The purpose of this advertising campaign is to promote the brand and the clothing that GAP are offering to
the general public.
They are putting the clothing across by relating to the audiences through print advertisements. By using
something that the audience can relate to will improve the relationship between the company and their
potential customers.
The print has been made around Christmas time and is shown to be focusing on the holiday times, going by
the title - GAP, Holiday 2014. The meaning behind the advert is very strong and touching for those viewing
the print. A lot of people would be able to relate this advert as they would be able to relate to the text that is
in the image.
10. Design + Production
This print has a very specific style which I believe
would be easily recognizable as GAP products and
clothing. There is a specific colour scheme that has
been used in this print as the jumpers hold many
different colours. The colours follow an autumn
scheme, leading up to Christmas which fits well as you
can see the leaves on the floor from the trees.
The two different colours in the trousers that the girls
are wearing contrast each other with one being light
and one being dark. This is also shown in the shoes
that the two girls are wearing in the print. This has
been carefully thought through to make sure that the
colours fit well with the other clothes and also fit in
with the autumn colour scheme.
11. Design + Production
In the image the two models are mirroring each others
body language which is very effective. Both of the
models have blonde hair which I personally think works
very well as they are following the autumn colour
scheme. Although brown and ginger would also work,
they would be washed out by the background of the
image as the fence in the background is a deep red.
A lot of clothing adverts are very similar, following the
same structure. Although, GAP has its own structure
which includes a small piece of text in each print which
helps to explain the picture to the audience. All of the
viewers would recognize GAP's prints as they have the
small piece of text which tends to be very meaningful
and relatable for the viewer.
12. Design + Production
In this specific advert it seems to fit the female target audience
rather than the males. The clothing in the advert are female
clothing and the two models are both female. This means that
females would be more able to relate to the advert. The autumn
colours such as the deep reds, purples, browns and the pastel
colours seem to be more female colours rather than male
colours.
I believe that when this advert was being created the designers
wanted to connect with those viewing the print and there is no
better way to do that than pick out something that happens
around this period of time which is seeing people that you
haven't seen in a long time. Adding that small amount of text
really helps with the design and helps the viewer to connect with
the image.
13. The advert seems to focus more on the storyline and the structure rather than the actual clothing that
the models are wearing. But linking the text in with the colour scheme of the setting that they are in and
the clothes that they are wearing makes you focus on the
clothing as well as what is going on in the image and I
personally think that this is very important in an advert.
If a colour scheme wasn’t used then I believe that the
advert would be slightly washed out by the text as that
where the main focus is drawn to. But using text that is
same colour as some of the tones in the jumpers that the
two girls are wearing means that you also focus on that as
well as the text itself.
In the image the two models are mirroring each others body
language which is very effective. Both of the models have
blonde hair which I personally think works very well as they
are following the autumn colour scheme. Although brown
and ginger would also work, they would be washed out by
the background of the image as the fence in the background
is a deep red.
Design + Production
14. The GAP logo also appears on the advert which is very important as for someone that is new to hear about
the company can easily access it by looking at the print. Rather than having the logo in the corner of the
page or hidden at the top or the bottom it is shown nearly in the middle which allows you to focus on it and
find it easily. Not only is the logo just on the page, it is on top of a square box which holds the colour
scheme - allowing the logo to stand out in the image.
Design + Production
15. 'American retailer Gap raised eyebrows with its "Dress Normal" campaign. But, as it turns out, no one wants to
dress normal.
On Thursday, the retailer reported comparable sales for November rose 6 per cent to $1.72 billion from $1.63
billion. The uptick was driven by its Old Navy brand, which saw sales soar 18 per cent, and Banana Republic,
up 2 per cent.
However, its Gap brand was down 4 per cent, extending losses for yet another consecutive month following a 7
per cent decline in October despite heavy promotions in-store and online discounts. Judging by the numbers, it
looks like its customers don't want to dress "normal" after all.’
On the 5th December a web reporter for The Independent called Maria Tadeo wrote the article below. This shows
the main response of what people have written about online. Everyone seems to have the same opinion on this
campaign.
Response
16. In a press release Gap described the campaign as a "rallying cry to be confident in who we are by
dressing how we're most comfortable.”
Jezebel described the campaign as “blah,” and quoted other analysts saying Gap had “missed the
mark” by jumping on the “normcore” bandwagon.
Response
'Gap’s Dress Normal Campaign
Isn’t Working Because Normal
People Don’t Want to Be Normal'
17. The holiday campaign is part of the retailer’s beleaguered “Dress Normal”
campaign, which, has gotten flak from critics who ask why Gap gets to decide what
“normal” looks like. Sales for the retailer have taken a hit, too.
“Play Your Stripes encapsulates the lighter tone of our Dress Normal Holiday
campaign, by reinventing the idea of gifting crazy stripe knitwear for a digitally
focused audience,” Seth Farbman, Gap’s global CMO said in a statement. “It also
reflects the increasing focus on digital and social media engagement we have been
building toward as a brand.”
“Finding your own version of ‘dress normal’ is an art –
my normal is different from your normal, and that’s the
essence of the campaign,”
Response
18. The adverts seem to focus on the
unavoidable interactions between friends,
relatives and colleagues around the
Christmas period. The adverts seem to
focus a lot more on what is going on in the
advert than the clothes that Gap is
supposed to be promoting to the viewers.
This is a search into Google of Gap's Dress
Normal campaign. Nearly all of the results
are from newspapers or magazines who
seem to be reviewing the campaign. Most of
the responses are negative as you can see
from the image above.
Response
19. After more research into Gap's advertising I have come to the
conclusion that they haven't really used much outdoor
advertising such as bus stops, posters, fliers, etc. Although
they have advertised through their shops with posters on
their windows for example, but no outdoor advertising away
from their shops.
If Gap really wanted to advertise their company to more
people and of all different ages then they should look at
advertising in busy places using magazines, billboards and
promotions. This could be done in offices, universities,
colleges etc. They could promote their clothing by creating a
campaign where those who shop at their store and others
have a chance to win something - such as a £100 voucher to
spend at any of their store. Personally, I think that this would
work a lot more than telling people to dress normal when no
one really wants to be classed as normal as everyone likes to
believe that they are unique in their own way.
Distribution Channels
20. Distribution Channels
To advertise your campaign in a magazine or a newspaper it costs a sum of money depending on where
abouts you would like to have your advert displayed, how much space it will take up and if its coloured or
black and white. Below are the 2014 prices for space in a magazine.
The cost of advertising in an office, university or a college will be substantially lower than advertising in a
magazine or at a bus stop or on a bill board. Although, I think could be more effective in some aspects as its
more personal knowing that they are working closely with the place that you attend.
21. All of the people are the offices, universities or college are in reach of the product and are more
likely to create a relationship with the products that you are offering as they will feel that the company
are targeting them and their age group - although they will be doing this with a lot of people. Any
other types of audience that they attract from this will just be an added bonus to the situation.
YouTube advertisers pay per view of their ad, with an average cost-per-view ranging between $.10 –
$.30. The views also count toward your overall YouTube views. On YouTube there are four standard
types of adformats: In-search – an ad shows up above the YouTube search results.
Distribution Channels
22. Google advertising or Google Adwords lets you decide the cost to run your ads. However, the minimum bid
required depends on the competitive score of your keywords. The more competitive a keyword, the more
your minimum bid required would be to run the ad. You can have your ad campaigns run tailored to your
budget and that's the biggest advantage about Adwords. However, the more your budget, the more
impressions and the resulting click through rates (CTR) you will be able to achieve, under the conditions that
you have a good competitive Quality Score.
Distribution Channels
23. You could choose to have your ads displayed in Google search, Google search network, Google Content Network.
You again have the option to choose for pay per click (i.e, you pay each time somebody clicks your ad) or pay
per thousand impressions which is applicable for content network (you pay the amount for every 1000
impressions gained. The clicks are not accounted).
The cost of advertising on a
billboard in the UK is shown here:
Distribution Channels
29. Wieden + Kennedy are the agency that created GAP’s advertising campaign.
Wieden + Kennedy is an independently owned American advertising agency best known for its work for Nike.
Founded by Dan Wieden and David Kennedy, and headquartered in Portland, Oregon, it is one of the largest
independently owned advertising agencies in the world.
Wieden + Kennedy are an independent creatively driven advertising agency that creates strong and
provocative relationships between good companies and their customers. They believe that it doesn't matter
where and how in what medium an idea is expressed, you still have to start with a good one.
Wieden + Kennedy
30. Wieden + Kennedy - Key Facts
Created – 1982
Number of staff – 1,040
Number of countries – 6
Number of offices – 7
Asia Pacific – 3 North America – 2 EMEA – 2
International Clients
Nike (Global excluding Japan)
Nokia (Global)
Nestea (Global excluding US and Japan)
Coca-Cola (EMEA and North America)
EA Games (US, Asia, Latin America, Africa)
Key Local Clients
APAC Nike
North America ABC, Coca-Cola,
Diet Coke, Converse, EA Games,
ESPN, Levi’s North America, Nike
Old Spice, Target
UK Honda, Nike
Major Wins
Levi’s (US)
EA Games Digital Media Planning
And buying (US)
Delta Airlines (US)
Nestea (Global)
Fair-trade (UK)
Ebay (India)
31. Wieden + Kennedy
Over the past year, Wieden + Kennedy has expanded
and rebuilt new digital departments all around the
network. These efforts are evident in terms of the
breadth of work coming out of each office – from large-
scale sites to flash experiences and web applications. It
has expanded its experience of the social media world
alongside additions to its strategy and planning teams.
Wieden + Kennedy has won new business in all its offices
across the network and in London it is launching
Platform on 9th September. Platform is a creative talent
hub that will draws on knowledge from the worlds of
arts, sciences and technology across the globe, who will
work on specialist projects as well as live business
problems.
In March 2009, Tony Davidson and
Kim Papworth, ECDs in the London
office, were appointed agency
partners of the global Wieden +
Kennedy network. This is the first
partnership since 1996 and the
first time any agency partners have
been appointed outside the global
headquarters in Portland, Oregon.
32. There independence is reflected through the work and culture of each of their offices.
Portland New York Sao Paulo London Amsterdam Delhi Shanghai Tokyo
Wieden + Kennedy - Global
33. There are many different people that work for Wieden + Kennedy which all play different roles in the company.
Wieden + Kennedy – Company Roles
34. Wieden and Kennedy have a lot of different clients which can be found all over the world. Some
of the main clients of them are shown below.
Wieden + Kennedy - Clients
Portland Clients New York Clients
36. Legal & Ethical Issues - ASA
Role of relevant regulatory bodies
• ASA stands for Advertising Standards Authority
• It regulates the advertising industry in the UK
• Non-statutory organization so they cannot
interpret of enforce legislation
• Advertising is affected by the change of
concerns of society
• Works with multimedia platforms
• Sophisticated and visually literate audience
Adverts have to be:
• Legal
• Honest
• Decent
• Truthful
• Have to ensure consumers are not misled,
harmed or offended by ads.
37. Legal & Ethical Issues
Body Image – Nearly all of the models that
represent fashion houses are abnormally thin,
in keeping with the perceived preferences of the
public. This focus on extreme thinness in women
has been blamed for eating disorders and poor
body image among some women whose bodies
do not conform to this idealized image. The
models that have been used in the GAP Dress
normal campaign are all of an ideal weight and
size which shouldn’t cause any ethical issues
with the general public.
38. Legal & Ethical Issues
Fur - Fashions that use real animal fur support
the fur industry, which is infamous for its
inhumane treatment of animals. Fur is
acquired either by trapping wild animals and
skinning them or by raising animals
domestically for their fur. Although, GAP
doesn’t advertise any fur in their campaign
which means they are not going to cause any
legal or ethical issues with the public viewing
and following their campaign.
39. Legal & Ethical Issues
Younger Models - A lot of clothing ranges use
children to model their clothing of their younger
clothing brands. This is a good idea but can also be
risky if consent has not been given by the child’s
parent/s. GAP has used a child model in one of
their print adverts but have had consent from the
child’s parent/s as they have been included in the
adverts.
