Business & Management Studies

Exploring communication metaphors in preventive products: A critical discourse analysis on the portrayal trends of condom advertisements

Exploring communication metaphors in preventive products: A critical discourse analysis on the portrayal trends of condom advertisements

The research focusses on the critical analysis of the changing discourses in condom advertisements and understanding its effectiveness with respect to today’s evolved audience.

Authors

Sabyasachi Dasgupta, Assistant Professor, Jindal Global Law School, O.P. Jindal Global University, Sonipat, Haryana, India.

Priyadarshani Jain, CEO, Management, BrandMavs, Mumbai, India.

Summary

Among preventive products, communication of condom usage through diverse advertisements have always occupied the centre stage targeting male audience majorly. The critical observation at the communication trends of these advertisement put forward, the portrayal of condom advertisements have undergone significant changes in the last one decade with the globalization and feminist movements being stronger than before. According to the report “Condom Market”, U.S. demand for condoms is expected to reach USD 1,563.95 million in 2020, growing at a CAGR of 3.5% between 2015 and 2020.

A few studies have tried to gain insight on changing trends and its relation with changing outlook among individuals. The research focusses on the critical analysis of the changing discourses in condom advertisements and understanding its effectiveness with respect to today’s evolved audience.

The purpose is to identify whether the condom advertisements have been dynamic enough to capture the changing mind-set of the consumer and measure the extent of impact. For study implementation, quantitative methods are used to explore important parameters from condom communication research and evaluate the changing discourses of condom advertisements in the last one decade. The five parameters that this paper would undertake are: Preparatory behavior (sexual cues); Portrayal of gender; Textual discourses; Visual discourses and Target Audience.

The study showed which parameters have undergone change over the last one decade and which have remained constant. Comprehensive study will lead to advertisers in finding feature-efficient way of telling buyers what is for sale. Medical practitioners and health researchers will be benefitted in persuading people with meaningful communication of the preventive products.

Published in: International Journal of Recent Technology and Engineering

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