Compare and Contrast Barbie Dolls Advertising History

For this project, you will take a product not a company (Barbie Dolls) that has been on the market at least 40 years (preferably longer). Analyze a minimum of eight ads (if done well, more will result in a better score), in the form of commercials, print ads, radio ads or billboards spanning the life of the product.

When writing up the response, provide a properly cited link to each of the eight ads,

Part 1 – Analysis:

You will analyze each of the ads via the following, (where applicable):

• Who is/are the target audience(s) of the advertisement
• What are the main messages of the ad (text)?
• What are the underlying messages of the ad (subtext)?
• What about the product isn’t being said in the ad?
• What kinds of persuasive and psychological techniques and styles are being employed?
• What kinds of production techniques are utilized?

Part 2 – Compare and Contrast:

After analyzing the ads, you will write up how the ads have changed and stayed the same over time comparing and contrasting the following:

• Has the target audience for the product changed or stayed the same over time? How/why?
• Has the message about the product changed or stayed the same over time? How/why?
• Has the primary media/media used to advertise the product changed over time? How/why?
• How has technology affected the way that the product is advertised?
• What cultural changes (if any), have impacted changes in the advertisement of the products