近十年中美可口可樂廣告視頻的文化差異分析

1、 ContentsChinese Abstract .2English Abstract .31. Introduction .41.1 Background of the Study .41.2 Object and Significance of the Study.52. Advertising Expositions .53. Advertising Characteristics.73.1 Similarities.73.2 Differences.84. Cultural Differences .84.1 Collectivism and Individualism.94.2 C

2、onservatism and Adventure.11 5. Implication .135.1 Understanding of the Cultural Differences.145.2 Localization of Brands.145.3 Identification of Competitors.156. Conclusion .15References .1717近十年中美可口可樂廣告視頻的文化差異分析摘 要廣告是經(jīng)濟活動，同樣也是文化產(chǎn)品。廣告視頻在跨文化交流中起著重要的作用，不同國家、不同民族的廣告視頻中都蘊藏了獨特的文化內(nèi)涵，文化的差異性很明顯的展現(xiàn)在廣告視頻中。筆者

3、通過比較近十年可口可樂公司在中國與美國發(fā)布的關(guān)于可口可樂的廣告視頻，就廣告視頻中表現(xiàn)出的文化差異進行分析，對我國企業(yè)實施“走出去”戰(zhàn)略提供建議。筆者強調(diào)廣告創(chuàng)作者應(yīng)充分認識文化差異，在廣告視頻中體現(xiàn)品牌的民族性與國際性，找準(zhǔn)目標(biāo)市場本土品牌的競爭對手，在廣告視頻中突出產(chǎn)品特色，以期實現(xiàn)更好的產(chǎn)品宣傳效果。關(guān)鍵詞：廣告視頻；文化差異；比較；“走出去”戰(zhàn)略Analysis of Cultural Differences Between Chinese and American Coca-Cola Advertising Videos in Recent 10 yearsAbstractAdvert

4、ising is an economic activity as well as a cultural product. Advertising video plays an important role in cultural exchange. Advertising videos of different countries and nationalities contains unique cultural connotations. Cultural differences will be obviously embedded in the advertising videos. B

5、y comparing the advertising videos about Coca-Cola published by Coca-Cola company in China and the United States in recent ten years, the author analyzes the cultural differences in the advertising videos and provides suggestions for Chinese enterprises to implement the “going global” strategies. Th

6、e author emphasizes that advertisers should fully understand the cultural differences, embody the national and international characteristics of the brand in the advertising videos, find out the competitors of the local brand in the target markets, and highlight characteristics of products in the adv

7、ertising videos, so as to achieve a better product publicity effect.Key words: advertising videos; cultural differences; comparison; the “going global” strategies1. Introduction 1.1 Background of the StudyAt present, advertising has become an indispensable section of human life. Itisundeniablethat v

8、irtually all of people living and working in this society are increasinglysurroundedbyadvertising. Nowadays, it is no doubt that in this irreversible era of economic globalization, there are more and more exchanges between China and the United States in the political, economic and cultural fields. F

9、rom a cross-cultural perspective, as a specific symbol of cultural exchange between China and the United States, advertising videos can intuitively reflect some cultural differences between two countries.Economic globalization is an inevitable trend, and enterprises have to face cultural differences

10、 for their companies survival and development when exploring new foreign markets. Intercultural communication refers to the communication between native speakers and non-native speakers, and also refers to any communication between people with differences in language and cultural background. More th

11、an ever before, with the increasingly development of the times, the world is now characterized by an interrelated, interdependent global community(Samovar et al., 2012: 1). Due to the differences in historical background, social norms, traditional customs, values, thinking patterns and living habits

12、, in China and the United States, peoples behavior and think patterns are quite different. Therefore, the same story can be expressed in diverse ways, in accordance with a Greek proverb that “every tale can be told in a different way”. In fact, the commercial value of advertising has always been the

13、 focus of peoples research, but the important value of advertising cultures has often been ignored. In recent years, many researchers and scholars have studied the cultural differences of Coca-Colas advertising cultures from different perspectives.In Cultural differences Between China and the West a

14、nd the Creative Expression of Modern Advertisements(黎夢怡, 2010(11): 163), by comparing Coca-Colas advertisements of China and the United States in the early period of the same generation, Li Mengyi believes that Coca-Colas advertisers in different countries used different advertising symbols in order

15、 to achieve effective cross-cultural advertising communication effects because of the cultural differences between China and the west.In Thinking Mode of Chinese and Western Commercial Advertising Cultures(向羅群, 2009(6): 215-216), Xiang Luoqun makes a comparative analysis of the cultural differences

16、between Chinese and western commercial advertisements, including overall thinking and analytical thinking, image thinking and abstract behavior, collectivism and individualism, power awareness and right awareness, and the study makes people realize the importance and necessity of attaching importanc

17、e to cross-cultural factors.Cai Zhiguo analyzes the differences between Chinese and Western advertising cultures from thinking mode, advertising appeal and specific performance in On the Differences Between Chinese and Western Advertising Creativity(蔡之國, 2007(11): 133-136). In his opinion, Chinese a

18、dvertisers need to take the national cultures as the basis, and learn from the experience of Western advertising creativity to realize the combination of Chinese cultures characteristics and the advanced creativity of the western world.In a word, the existing studies for successful multinational com

19、panies usually only extract a segment of an advertisement as a reference, but there is little analysis on different advertisements of the same company. For the analysis of the Chinese culture displayed in the advertising videos, the research focus at this stage is mostly on the Confucian culture, wh

20、ich is often expressed as family affection, reunion and filial piety. On the other hand, the study of western culture is mostly embodied in individualism, heroism, extroversion and so on.1.2 Object and Significance of the StudyCoca-Cola company, a soft drinks business tycoon, was born in Atlanta in

21、1886, and after hundreds of years development, Coca-Cola has become the leader of carbonated beverage industry, with a very high market share of 48% in the world. It was ranked the 1st in the worlds top 100 most valuable brands list in 2006, and the 13th in 2017. In Coca-Cola company, there is a say

22、ing: “99.61% of Coca-Cola is a carbonated, water and sugar syrup. Without advertising, who will drink it?” Consequently, for such a beverage, Coca-Colas advertising and marketing strategy is extraordinarily significant. Thus, on the basis of intercultural communication perspective, by exploring Coca

23、-Colas adverting videos issued during the last decade, the paper can further improve our understanding of Chinese advertising. The study of Coca-Colas advertising videos is able to help Chinese companies to adjust and formulate their promotion strategies. This paper is dedicated to providing some im

24、plications that may help Chinese firms, especially those in FMCG industries, make proper advertising strategies when opening new overseas markets. 2. Advertising ExpositionsCoca-Cola issued two significant advertising themes for the brand in 2009 to 2019-“Open Happiness” in 2009 and “Taste the Feeli

25、ng” in 2016. There are some information about Coca-Colas typical advertising videos launched in the recent 10 years:Advertising ThemeAdvertising TitleIssuing TimeIssuing CountryVideo Content DescriptionOpen HappinessNew Year, the First Coca-Cola(新年，第一瓶可口可樂)2010ChinaSome young people share Coca-Cola

26、with friends through screens on New Years Eve around the world.Insect Thief2010AmericaA group of small insects pursue a bottle of Coca-Cola and enjoy it.Catch the Coca-Cola Bear(捉緊可口可樂熊)2012ChinaThe story of three bears and a bottle of Coca-Cola in which two of bears are tripped by the bottle.Polar

27、Bears Watch the Ball With You2012AmericaWhile watching the ball, one bear was in a bad mood. The other took out some bottles of Coca-Cola to comfort him.Taste the FeelingBrotherly Love(兄弟篇)2016ChinaCoca-Cola adds fun to brothers daily life to show the eternal theme of love and conflict.Supermarket20

28、16AmericaThe “l(fā)ove” between an anthomaniac female convenience stores clerk and a male customer when buying Coca-Cola.Anthem(頌歌篇)2016GlobalPeople share the happy time and Coca-Cola with friends and lovers to show friendship and love.Coca-Cola, We are Going to Be Together in new year(可口可樂，新年就要在一起)2019

29、ChinaIn the new year, people gather with family members. People simply share the joy by a bottle of Coca-Cola, and make the reunion more special. Family members celebrate this inseparable emotional bond with their loved ones.Together is Beautiful2019AmericaPeople in different countries, with differe

30、nt colors and different occupations drink the same cola.Advertisements draw attention when they are positioned strategically (Roberts, 1987). Television advertisements employ verbal and visual modes of signification and offer specific strategies for viewers to infer meanings(Benard et al., 2015: 377

31、). These advertising videos in the above table in China and America have achieved success in their respective regions and increased the sales of drinks, reflecting the characteristics of Coca-Cola enterprise and the charm of Coca-Cola. For instance, in 2008, affected by the 2008 economic crisis, Coc

32、a-Colas sales worldwide fell. After publishing a various of advertising videos, Coca-Cola has embraced the remarkable growth of sales for four consecutive years soaring 35,000 million U.S. dollars in 2009 to more than 45,000 million U.S. dollars in 2012.(Net 1)By comparing these classical and well-k

33、nown advertising videos published in China and America, the author lists the following characteristics of these works similarities and differences, and analyzes the cultural differences between China and the United States behind these advertising videos.3. Advertising CharacteristicsCoca-Cola posses

34、ses a leading position in soft drink markets around the world. Its sales volume far exceeds that of Pepsi, its main competitor, and Coca-Cola was once listed in the Guinness world record. Designers do always describe the delicious and fresh Coca-Cola drinks in a unique way, and seize the spirit of c

35、onsumers enjoyment of happiness and the desire to express their creativity. As Qin Yuanyuan said in the article Analysis of Coca-Cola Advertising Copywriting, Coca-Cola meets consumers material and spiritual needs, and truly achieves the two core elements of “Coca” and “Cola”(秦媛媛, 2013(07): 191). Th

36、rough the comparative analysis, some similarities and differences can be discovered from Coca-Colas advertising video creations issued in China and the United States mentioned above.3.1 Similarities Advertising videos title is the soul of an advertisement video as a good title is beneficial to gain

37、the psychological recognition of the audience and is conductive to implement brand marketing strategies. Coca-Cola advertising titles, which are brief, concise and refined, have the ability to make the audience understand the advertising videos intuitively and leave a deep impression. Coca-Colas adv

38、ertisers usually make advertising videos that are easily accepted by the target customers, and formulate advertising marketing strategies which conform to local characteristics, customs and cultures in line with the target customers in different countries or regions. Advertisers tend to mix customs

39、in the target markets with companys present marketing strategy to realize internationality of the advertisements.Entertainment is the most obvious feature in popular cultures, and advertising is the booster of economic and cultural development. Coca-Colas advertisement is a critical point of mass en

40、tertainment cultures. In the mentioned advertising videos, so many entertaining elements can be found such as celebrity endorsers, pop music, World Cup and other sports events, and so on. If advertisements are regarded as condiments, the entertainment of advertisements can conquer the taste buds of

41、consumers all over the world.3.2 DifferencesIn different markets, Coca-Colas advertisers produce diverse business advertising videos that highlight the unique customs and cultures in those countries or regions.For advertising videos published in the United States, the characteristics are as follows:

42、 first, heaps of elements of individual value and personality can be found in the videos; second, American advertisers are good at using elements of exaggeration and humor; at last, American advertisers integrate the spirit of adventure into the advertising creativity, which is shown in the advertis

43、ing video with visual impact and passionate advertising copy.For advertising videos published in China, the characteristics are as follows: first, advertisers integrate Chinese traditional cultures especially Confucianculture into advertising videos, and they value folk customs well; second, in Chin

44、ese videos, producers often put the concept “home” in the first place, and attach importance to the core idea of family, friendship and filial piety; at last, the core of Chinese cultures is the word “harmony”, so most of the advertising ideas are conservative, and designers tend to make warm and ha

45、rmonious pictures and happy endings.4. Cultural DifferencesIt is known to all that Coca-Colas advertising designers are good at grasping the differences of different cultures, therefore consumers in Coca-Colas target markets can quickly accept and remember the product more deeply. Based on the adver

46、tising videos and their characteristics mentioned above, the author will analyse the differences between Chinese culture and American culture from two main sections: collectivism and individualism, conservatism and adventure. 4.1 Collectivism and IndividualismInfluenced by Chinese traditional cultur

47、es, Chinese people focus on collectivism and emphasize that everything should be orderly. But American people tend to emphasize individual freedom, individual power and individual independence(常春梅, 2009(11): 254). This aspect of difference can be linked with the myths and legends about human creatio

48、n in China and the West: the Western God, Jehovah, created the individual Adam and Eve according to The Bible. While the Chinese God, Nvwa, created a group of people without a surname according to Chinese fairy tales.Geert Hofstede, a well-known Dutch social psychologist and management scientist, pu

49、t forward the social dimension of culture to measure cultural differences in different countries. In this framework, Hofstede describes five indicators of cultural differences, including collectivism and individualism(竇衛(wèi)霖, 2005: 66). Hofstede thinks that in an individualism culture, free will is hig

50、hly valued; and in collectivism culture, the groups needs are more important.4.1.1 Collectivism in Chinese CultureIn Hofstedes theory, collectivism describes that people belonging to in-groups that look after them in exchange for loyalty. From the Coca-Colas advertising videos released for Chinese c

51、onsumers, it can be easily found that these advertising videos with strong humanistic care tend to focus on families, groups and teams. The themes of advertising videos issued in China mentioned in the second chapter are all related to family reunion and friends gathering. For example, in the video

52、Coca-Cola, Were Going to Be Together(2019), the main idea is that a group of people compete for a bottle of Coca-Cola when they gather in the Chinese New Year. This phenomenon is related to the importance of collective power and the interests of the majority in Chinese traditional cultures, as well

53、as the herd mentality of the Chinese people. Therefore, as Yang Yanqun and Pan Youzhi point in On the differences Between Chinese and Western Advertisements that Chinese advertisements reflect a common concept of group that people emphasize the whole, attach great importance to family and family aff

54、ection(陽艷群, 潘有志, 2007(09): 126).(Coca-Cola, Were Going to Be Together, 2019)The Chinese traditional virtue of “being happy alone is not better than being happy with others(獨樂樂不如眾樂樂)” has long been rooted in the fertile soil of social value. In advertisements, Chinese often associate products with collectives to obtain good feelings of the audience. Thus, in China, the commercial appeals with the themes of family, friendship and love are always effective. This is why Coca-Cola created an advertisement video called New Year, the First Coca-Cola a