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Fall 2014
The Perfect Pitch: Car Commercials in the
Environment
Alyssa P. Beyer '15, Gettysburg College
Sara Moyer ’15, Gettysburg College
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The Perfect Pitch: Car Commercials in the Environment
Abstract
Car commercials, like many advertisements, tempt its viewers with comfort, capability, or safety features, as
well as being well‐engineered, affordable, attractive, large or compact sized, or fuel efficient. This study
examines the pitches in YouTube car commercial video clips from the 1960s until 2014. We coded a total of
263 total car commercials based on pitch, setting, narrator, decade, and country of origin. The analysis
revealed that most car commercials were presented in rural settings and capability was pitched most
frequently overall. Fuel efficiency was ranked third overall; however, within urban settings, fuel efficiency had
the highest frequency. During the 1990s, there was no presence of commercials alluding to fuel efficiency and
instead safety was pitched more frequently compared to other decades. We discuss the other pitches that were
found to be significantly different between the settings, narrators, decades, and countries of origin. Over time,
pitches in car commercials have changed, perhaps because advertising is influenced by consumer demands,
interests, and concerns.
Keywords
cars, commercials, pitch, environment
Disciplines
Environmental Education | Environmental Indicators and Impact Assessment | Environmental Sciences | Oil,
Gas, and Energy
Comments
Environmental Studies Thesis
This student research paper is available at The Cupola: Scholarship at Gettysburg College: http://cupola.gettysburg.edu/
student_scholarship/275
ThePerfectPitch:CarCommercialsandtheEnvironment
AlyssaBeyer
SaraMoyer
ES400SeniorSeminar:TheImpactoftheAutomobileonCultureandEnvironment
EnvironmentalStudies
GettysburgCollege
December20,2014
BeyerandMoyer2
Abstract
Carcommercials,likemanyadvertisements,temptitsviewerswithcomfort,
capability,orsafetyfeatures,aswellasbeingwell‐engineered,affordable,attractive,largeor
compactsized,orfuelefficient.ThisstudyexaminesthepitchesinYouTubecarcommercial
videoclipsfromthe1960suntil2014.Wecodedatotalof263totalcarcommercialsbased
onpitch,setting,narrator,decade,andcountryoforigin.Theanalysisrevealedthatmostcar
commercialswerepresentedinruralsettingsandcapabilitywaspitchedmostfrequently
overall.Fuelefficiencywasrankedthirdoverall;however,withinurbansettings,fuel
efficiencyhadthehighestfrequency.Duringthe1990s,therewasnopresenceof
commercialsalludingtofuelefficiencyandinsteadsafetywaspitchedmorefrequently
comparedtootherdecades.Wediscusstheotherpitchesthatwerefoundtobesignificantly
differentbetweenthesettings,narrators,decades,andcountriesoforigin.Overtime,pitches
incarcommercialshavechanged,perhapsbecauseadvertisingisinfluencedbyconsumer
demands,interests,andconcerns.
Introduction
Theautomobilesectorisalarge,successfulindustry,partlyduetoitseffective
advertisingstrategytomarketitsproducts(Greuneretal.2000).Alladvertisements,
significantlyautomobileones,containandsendamessage;amessageinwhichsometimesis
clearandaccurate,whileothertimestheviewermustidentifythemessagethemselvesoften
beingmislead(Burnsetal.2005).Forinstance,commercialsforautomobilesoftenpromote
propagandathatexaggeratesandassociatesunrelatedaspectsandcharacteristicstothe
vehicles,inwhichismuchdifferentthanthepitch(Burnsetal.2005).Othertimes,
automakerschoosetoavoidmentioningfeaturescompletely,insteadfocusingonfeatures
BeyerandMoyer3
thataremoreimportanttomaketheautomobileattractivepotentiallycausingtheviewerto
purchasethevehicle(Burnsetal.2005).Ultimately,advertisingreflectswhattheadvertiser
believestheconsumerwantsandwhatitiscapableofproviding(Fergusonetal.2003).
Mostofthetime,weashumanbeings,areattractedtoandacceptthefallaciesand
falseandmisleadingnotionsofthecarcompanies’commercials(Burnsetal.2005).Through
theuseofamultitudeoftacticsofcraftinessandskillfulwork,carcompaniesusetheir
commercialstoappealtoouremotions,takingadvantageofinstinctivehabitssuchas
desiringaperfectimageandplayingoffofcustomers’desires(Burnsetal.2005).InAmerica,
specificallyCorporateAmerica,imageiseverything,determiningsuccessorfailureof
corporations;hence,favorableimagestothepublic,consumer,employees,andtheinvestor
throughadvertisingarekey(Burns1999).Inthepresentwithaprofit‐drivencorporate
culture,automotivecorporationshavebeenresponsibleforlarge‐scaleimageshaping
(Burns1999).Thisconstructionoftheautomaker’simageisspecificallysignificantduetoits
effectonthedecisionmakingofconsumersregardingautomobiles,sinceincorrectimages
arelikelytoleadtoincorrectdecisionsbyconsumers(Burns1999).
Likemanyadvertisements,carcommercialstemptuswithfeatures,suchashighgas
mileage,savingmoney,comfortfeatures,roadhandling,orwithusingcarstomakeaperson
seemwealthy,economic,beautiful,etc.whichareappealingtohumans.Safetyisoften
emphasizedbyhighlightingfeaturesthatthevehicleincludes,whileotherautomakersmay
insteadfocusonperformancebyhighlightingthevehicle’saccelerationandspeed(Burnset
al.2005).Thisstrategyismostapparentintheautomobileindustrywheremanufacturers
competeextensivelyinthemarketplace,andthereforeneedtodistinguishtheirvehicles
fromothers(Burnsetal.2005).
BeyerandMoyer4
Therehavebeenfewstudiesperformedonadvertising,specificallypertainingto
vehicles,andthusmanyquestionsremainunanswered.Whilepreviousresearchstudiedthe
trendsofadvertisingontheInternetinAmericathroughouttime(Chung2006),ourstudy
furtherfocusedontheevolutionofadvertisingspecificallylookingintocarcommercials.
Today,forinstance,theautomobileadvertisinghorizonisverydifferent.Whenaskedabout
thethreemostimportantfactorsthatledconsumerstopurchaseaparticularvehicle,
appearance,vehiclecost,manufacturerreputation,andperformance/handlingwereplaced
aheadofsafetyinonestudy(Fergusonetal.2003).Therehasbeenanupwardtrendofusing
luxuryandpleasureappealsinadvertisementsandadownwardtrendofemploying
practicalityandfunctionalityappealsintheUnitedStates(Chung2006).Eventsamongst
otherfactorscouldhavecausedthesechangesinappealsandwantsofU.S.consumers
(Greuneretal.2000).Inthisstudy,weaimtohighlightavarietyoftheseinstancesin
relativelyrecentAmericancarculturethatmayhaveaffectedthewaysinwhichautomobile
manufacturerspitchedtheircommercials.
Onewaythatadvertisersselltheirmessagesandproductsisbyattachingmeaningto
thequalitiesandfeaturesofthenon‐humannaturalworldandourrelationshipstothem
(MeisterandJapp2002).MeisterandJappconcludethat:“Nature‐as‐backdropads,
therefore,provideanimportantrecordofthepositionofthenaturalworldinourcultural
environment”(2002).CommercialsthusoftenalludetoaspecificcarbeingonewithEarth,
incompleteharmonywithitssurroundingsetting.Ultimately,“natureactsasarhetorically
usefulbackdroporstage”inautomobileadsandcontinuetobeafeatureeventoday(Meister
andJapp2002).Thesebasicallyruralsettingsarenottheonlyplacesthatcarsarefeatured
inadvertisements;suburbanandurbansettingsalsoareevidentinads.Often,carsare
BeyerandMoyer5
placedwithinthesesettings,butthepitchthatispresentedbythenarratorismuchdifferent
thanwhatisdisplayed,providingmisleadingnotionstotheviewersandconsumers.
Inthisstudy,weusedasampleofcommercialsfromYouTubetoanswerthefollowing
questions:Dopitchesinautomobilecommercialsreflectthecountryoforigin,setting,and
narrator?Havepitcheschangedovertime?
Methods
Toanswertheresearchquestions,wesampledandcodedcarcommercialsfrom
YouTube,apopularvideo‐sharingwebsite,fromthe1960suntil2014.Accordingto
Alexa.com,YouTubeisthefourthmostvisitedsitebypeopleintheUnitedStates
(youtube.com.:Howpopularisyoutube.com2014).FoundedinFebruary2005,YouTube
nowhasmorethan1billionuniqueusersthatvisiteachmonth,andmorethansixbillion
hoursofvideoareviewedpermonth(YouTube2014).ConsideringYouTube’srapidgrowth
andpopularityasarelativelynewermultimediachannel,thisstudyisinterestingand
importanttoinvestigatequestionsandtrendsrelatingtocaradvertisementcommercials.
YooandKim’s2012YouTubecontentanalysisandChung’s2006analysiswereused
astoolstoaidinthedevelopmentofourstudy.TheYouTubewebsitewassearchedwiththe
carmake(Ford,Toyota,Nissan,Mazda,Mercedes,Volkswagen,BMW,Honda,Renault,
Peugeot,Chrysler,andVolvo)followedbythekeywords“carcommercials”andthen
proceedingtheyears.AnalysesoccurredfromOctober25toNovember18,2014.The
selectedyearswereeveryotherwithinthespecificdecade(forexample,forthe1960s
decade‐1960,1962,1964,1966,and1968).Onevideoperyearforeachcarmakewas
analyzed.Weincorporatedthe1960s,1970s,1980s,1990s,and2000sdecadesandalsothe
2010swiththeyears,2010,2012,and2014.Twenty‐eightvideospercarmakewere
BeyerandMoyer6
analyzedforatotalof263videosonYouTube.Foreachcarmakeandspecificyear,we
selectedthefirstrelevantvideointhelist;thevideosweresolelyfromandcreatedinthe
UnitedStatesandclipswithlanguagesotherthanEnglishwereexcluded.Accesstotelevision
advertisingintheearlyyearsismorescarceandcouldnotbelocated(n=73).Videosthat
couldnotbelocatedwerenotedinthedataandexcludedintheanalyses.Thebasic
informationaboutthevideoincludingthetitleofthevideoandthewebpagelinkwere
recordedintheExcelspreadsheetinstrument.
Theunitofanalysisforeachvideo’scontentwastheentirecommercial,includingthe
video’svisual,audio,andtextpresentation.Eachvideowasexaminedbytwostudentswhom
weretrainedwithcoding;thetwoexaminerspracticedwiththefirsttenvideosandany
disagreementswiththetestedvideoswereresolvedafterfurtherdiscussionstoeliminate
furthererrorinthestudy.Sincethestudymainlyfocusesonthepitchandthesettingofthe
carinautomobilecommercials,weanalyzedandrecordedfeaturesinallofthecommercials.
Aspectsofthecarsthemselves,suchascarmakeandmodel,typeofcar(coupe,sedan,truck,
SUV,minivan,stationwagon,convertible,hatchback,sportscar,electric,andhybridcars),
andcountryoforiginwererecordedintheExcelspreadsheetinstrument.Additionally,the
settingwasanalyzedforeachcommercialandwascategorizedbyathree‐tiersystemas
eitherrural,suburban,orurbanalongwithamorespecificsetting(thelistisincludedinthe
Appendix)andasecondarysettingwithitsmorespecificsetting.Furthermore,themain
pitchandspecificpitchofthecommercialwaschosenfromthecategories:affordability,
attractivestyling,capability(performance/power/speed/acceleration/technology),comfort
(luxury/prestige),compactsize,fuelefficiency,largesize,safety,well‐engineered
(quality/reliability/durability),andsafety.Asecondarypitchanditsmorespecificpitchand
BeyerandMoyer7
otherkeyaspectsofthepitchwererecordedaswell.Additionally,thenarrator’sgender
and/oraspects(male,female,kids,singer)andagewererecorded(young,old).Morethan
onefeaturewithineachcategorywaspermitted.
MSExcelwasusedtocreatefigures.Piechartsdisplayingthepercentageofvideos
displayingpitches,settings,andnarratorswereproduced.Stackedbargraphswerecreated
comparingthepitcheswiththesettings,decades,genderofnarrators,andcountriesof
origins.Inallcases,themainandsecondarypitchesweresummedtogetherforanalysis
purposes.Percentageswereusedintheanalyses.SPSSwasusedtoanalyzethedatausing
thePearsonChi‐Squaretest;thealphais0.05.Ifthe“Asymp.Sig.(2‐sided)”fortheChi‐
Squarestatisticislessthan0.05,thereisarelationshipbetweenthevariablesbasedonthe
levelofconfidence;thenullhypothesisisrejected,andthealternatewasaccepted(thereisa
significantdifference).Ifp>0.05thenthenullhypothesiswasaccepted(thereisno
significantdifference).
Results
Commercialcharacteristics
Outofallthecommercials,capabilitywaspitchedthemostat29%.Comfortwas
pitchedin18%followedbyfuelefficiencyin14%andattractivestylingin11%(Figure1).A
largemajorityofthenarratorsinthecommercialsweremales(77%),whileonly5%were
females(Figure2).Aruralmainsettingwaspresentin40%ofthetotalcommercials,26%
hadanurbansetting,and21%,asuburbansetting(Figure3).
Comparisontopitch
Inthe1970s,1980s,1990s,2000s,and2010s,capabilitywaspitchedhighestand
greaterthan25%ofcommercialsintherespectivedecades.Comfort,however,waspitched
BeyerandMoyer8
highest(25%)incommercialsduringthe1960sandcapabilitywaspitchedsecondmost.
Comfortwaspitchedsecondmostinthe1970s,1980s,1990s,and2010s.Inthe2000s,
attractivestylingwaspitchedsecondmost.Inthe1960s,safetywasnotevidentinanyofthe
commercials.Inthe1970s,compactsizeaswellasfuelefficiencywerepitchedmoreoften
comparedtotheotherdecades,whilesafetywasminimallypitched.Inthe1990s,fuel
efficiencywasnotpitched,whilesafetywaspitchedmoreoftenthanintheotherdecades.As
well,inthe2010s,fuelefficiencywaspitchedmoreoftencomparedtotheotherdecades
(Figure4).P=0.0001betweendecadeandpitch(Table2).
AlthoughcarsoriginatingfromSwedenpitchedcapabilitythehighestat30%,safety
waspitchedmorefrequentlythanintheothercountries.Germanoriginatedcarsfeatured
thehighestpitchrelatingtocapability(42%),butpromotedsafetyprominentlycomparedto
theothercountries.CarsthatoriginatedinFrancepitchedcapabilityhighestat46%and
safetywasnotpitched.Japaneseoriginatedcarsincommercialspitchedcapabilitythe
highestat31%andfuelefficiencywaspitchedmorefrequentlythanintheothercountries.
UnitedStatesautomakers’commercialsfeaturedcomfortmostat37%(Figure5).P=0.000
betweencountryoforiginandpitch(Table3).
Capabilitywashighestpitchedincommercialswithruralsettings(38%)and
suburbansettings(21%).Commercialswithanurbansettinghadthehighestpitchwithfuel
efficiencyat31%.Commercialswithaninsidesettinghadthehighestpitchwithcomfortat
35%(Figure6).P=0.004betweensettingandpitch(Table4).
Femaleandmalenarrators’pitchesdisplayedrelativelythesametrend.Females
pitchedcomfortandcapabilitythehighest(bothat24%)inthecommercials,whilemales
BeyerandMoyer9
pitchedcapability(28%)highestfollowedbycomfort(22%)(Figure7).P=0.045between
genderofnarratorandpitch(Table5).
Discussion Overalltrendsinpitchesandnarrators
Sincecorporateimageshaveprofoundandinfluentialeffectstotheconsumers,
automakersoftenprovidevaguetermstopromotetheirproductsanddirectthepublic’s
focusawayfromthenegativetothepositiveaspects(Burns1999).Commercialadvertising
requiresidentifyingtheneeds,wants,andvaluesofconsumerstoconvincethemthatthe
producthaswhattheydesireandthuspitchesinadvertisementsarethebestwaythatthisis
achieved.Wefoundthatcapabilitywaspitchedmostinallofthecommercials.Invehicle
advertisingpitches,themesrelatingtoperformanceattributes,whichweregroupedunder
capabilityinthisstudy,havebeencommon(Donovanetal.2011).Forinstance,inFerguson
etal.’s2003study,thethemeofperformancewasidentifiedin50%ofall1998TVaired
advertisementsandasthedominantthemein17%oftheseads(Donovanetal.2011).
Conversely,safetywaspitchedinonly4%ofthetotalcommercialsinourstudy.
Burnsassertsthateventhoughnumerousstudiesranksafetyashighamongstconsumer
concerns,safetymaynotrankasevenhigherinimportancesinceconsumersmaytakesafety
forgranted(1999).ForinstanceaparticipantinaNHTSAgroup,stated:“Safetyisnotgoing
tobemyprimeconcernbecauseIknowthatbyfederallawtherearecertainfeatureswhich
mustbeonallvehicles.Itrustthosefeatures”(Humphrey1996).Insteadofsafetybeinga
concernbyconsumers,manyoftenplacetheirtrustinthefederalregulationsand
corporations(Burns1999).Thisislikelythecaseforcommercialsinourstudyaswell,in
BeyerandMoyer10
whichaudienceshavebecomemoreawareofthevehiclesafetyfeaturesandalreadyhavea
certaintrustespeciallyinthemorerecentyears.
Ourstudydisplayedaconsiderableamountofmalenarrators;infact,77%ofthe
narratorsinthecommercialsweremales,whileonly5%werefemales.InAllanand
Coltrane’sstudy,anevengreaterpercentage,93%ofthecommercials,hadmalenarrators
while7%werefemaleinthe1950sandearly1960scommercials,whileinthe1980s,91%
weremaleand6%werefemalenarrators(1996).
Havepitcheschangedovertime?
Carcommercialsdisplayedasignificantdifferencebetweendecades(1960sto2010s)
andpitches.Thus,theremustbefactorsand/oreventsthathavecausedpitchestovary
betweendecades.
Ourstudyconcludesthatcomfortwaspitchedhighestfollowedcloselybycapability,
whilesafetywasnotpitchedinanyofthe1960scommercials.Carsinthisdecadewere
powerful(capability)andrepresentedfreedom,independence,love,popularity,andthe
ultimatestatussymbolforpeople,teensespecially(Imam2014).Songs,furthermore,
romanticizedtheAmericancarandmoviesoftenemphasizedthepowerandspeedofcars
(bothfeaturesofcapabilityinourstudy)duringthistime.By1964,almost20%ofAmerican
familieshadsecondcars,whichwerebecomingnecessitiesespeciallytothoseinthesuburbs
(Ingrassia2011).Manyfamilieslivedinthesuburbsandcarswereawaytoescapethislife
thatwasreferredbymanyasdreary(Imam2014).Hence,comfortfortheselongrideswas
important.SafetymayhavenotbeenpitchedduetotheMotorVehicleSafetyActof1966,
whichwaspassedbyCongressandrequiredcarcompaniestopubliclydiscloseanyrecallsof
vehicles(Ingrassia2011).Carsmadebeforethelate60sdidnotcomewithsafetybeltsas
BeyerandMoyer11
well.
Duringthe1970s,wefoundthatcompactsizeaswellasfuelefficiencywerepitched
moreoftencomparedtotheotherdecades.Thisdecadeisrecognizedastheadventof
ecologicalconcerns,aconsequenceofallsortsofenvironmentalcatastrophes,the
environmentalmovementandenvironmentalismintheU.S.andalongwithit,arosethe
creationofmanypreservationsocietiesandenvironmentalprotectionregulationsthat
requiredcompliancebyautomakers(Brown2001).Forinstance,automakersneededto
followthe1970CleanAirAct,whichorderedDetroittodecreaseemissionsby90%overthe
nextsixyears,leadingtodevelopmentsofunleadedgasolineandthecatalyticconverter(A
HistoryofReducingTailpipeEmissions2011).Inaddition,automakerswererequiredto
reacha“fleet‐wideaverage”of27.5milesagallonby1985duetothe1975Corporate
AverageFuelEconomy(CAFE)law(Ingrassia2011).ThesereasonscausedAmericansto
demandsmaller,moreefficient,andhigh‐mileagevehicles(Ingrassia2011).Fuelefficiency
waspitchedoftenduringthe1980sinourstudyaswell,possiblyduetotheeffectsofthese
regulationsandimplementations.
Furthermore,inthe1970s,additionaleventsoccurredwhichcouldhavecontributed
tothecompactsizeandfuelefficiencypitchespresentinthecommercials.Duringthis
decade,automakerswereforcedtoadapttothegascrisisof1973,inwhichtheoil‐rich
countriesoftheMiddleEastdeclaredanembargoagainstIsraelanditsallies,includingthe
UnitedStates,causingashocktoAmericanmotorists(Ingrassia2011).Asaresult,American
motoristswereforcedtowaitinlonglinesandcouldonlypurchaseacertainamountof
gasolinewithhighcosts(Ingrassia2011).Aswell,in1974,Congressimplementeda
nationwide55‐mphspeedlimittoconservegasoline,causingAmericanstofurtherdemand
BeyerandMoyer12
smaller,morefuelefficient,andreliableforeignimports(Ingrassia2011).
Additionally,wefoundthatsafetywasminimallypitchedduringthe1970s.Consumer
advocacygroupsandRalphNader’sconsumermovementinthe1970scontinuedthe
campaignforsaferautomobilesinAmerica,whichresultedintheintroductionofshoulder‐
harnessseatbeltsandlapbelts,paddeddashboards,andimprovedbrakingsystems,butdid
notbecomeimplementeduntillater(Ingrassia2011).Likewise,vehiclecrashtestscores
didn’tbeginuntil1979andthegreatestimprovementsdidnotcomeaboutuntiltheearly
1980modelyears(Humphrey1996).
Wefoundthatfuelefficiencywaspitchedfourthhighestinthe1980scommercials.
The1979oilembargoonIranianoilplacedbytheU.S.inresponsetoIran’shostage‐takingof
AmericanembassypersonnelinIrancreatedlonglinesandhighpricesatthegaspump
(Greuneretal.2000).Asaresultofthisoilcrisisamongmanyotherevents,U.S.consumers
begantovaluefuelefficiencyaswellascost(affordability)oversizeandstyle(Greuneretal.
2000).Thiswasdisplayedinourstudy.Duetothis,Americansbegantodiscoverthat
Hondas,Nissans,andToyotas,allJapaneseimports,werefuelefficientandalsomechanically
sound(Ingrassia2011).
Duringthe1990sdecade,ourstudyfoundthatcapabilitywaspitchedthehighest,
followedbycomfort,andaffordability.The1990swasatimeofmanyevents.TheBigThree
recoveredastheJapanesewentdownhill,causedbythedevaluationoftheyen,thusdriving
thepriceofJapanesecarsupward,whileAmericancarsbecameaffordable(Ingrassia2011).
HondaandToyotaclosedfactoriesandlaidoffworkers,whereasDetroitproducedsomeof
thebestcarsinitshistory;Americanautomobilesofthe90sruledthedecade(Ingrassia
2011).Fergusonetal.’sstudyfoundduring1998andthroughoutthepreviousdecadeanda
BeyerandMoyer13
half,performance(capability)andsalesincentives(affordability)werethepredominant
themesincarandpassengervanadvertisingontelevision(2003),similartoourstudy.
Whentheenvironmentalmovementandenvironmentalismbecameamainstream
goalintheUnitedStatesinthe1970s,advertisersdiscoveredandtookgreatadvantageof
themarketbycapitalizingoffofgreenconsumers(MeisterandJapp2002).Thesemarketers
creatednewproducts,butalsorepositionedexistingonestoappearmoreenvironmentally
friendly,evenintheiradvertisementsoftenwithwildanimals,mountainvistas,orclear,
flowingwaters(MeisterandJapp2002).Asaresult,alargenumberofadsbegantofocuson
greenproductfeatures,makingclaimsthattheyarebothenvironmentallygoodandsafe
(MeisterandJapp2002).Infact,between1989and1990thesetypeofgreenadsincreased
367percent(MeisterandJapp2002).
However,bythelate1990s,advertisersannouncedtheendofenvironmentalperiod
duetolackofconcernforbeing‘green’(MeisterandJapp2002).Debateoveranti‐green
productsincludinggas‐guzzlingSUVsdecreasedandgainedpopularity(MeisterandJapp
2002).Aswell,aboomingeconomy,agrowingmiddleclass,andlowgaspricesinthelate
1990screatedmanyconsumersthatweren’tconcernedandinterestedinfuel‐efficient
vehicles(Matulka2014).ThiswasdisplayedbyDavisandTruett’sstudy,inwhichSUVs
becamethefastestgrowingsegmentoftheautoindustrywithsalesreachingalmost19%of
thetotallightvehiclemarketin1999(n.d.).Ourstudydisplayedasimilartrendwithfuel
efficiencynotbeingpitchedinthe1990s.Similarly,asurveyconductedbyAutoPacificin
1998showedonly30%ofallnewcarbuyersconsideredfueleconomytobe“extremely
important”;while,18%ofsportutilityvehiclebuyersconsideredfueleconomyas
“extremelyimportant,”andonly10%ratedthefueleconomyoftheirnewSUVas“excellent”
BeyerandMoyer14
(DavisandTruettn.d.).
Wefoundthatsafetywaspitchedmoreofteninthe1990sthanintheotherdecades.
The1996TransportationResearchBoardmarketsurveysfoundthattherewasasafety‐
consciousmarketfornewcarpurchasersduringthistime(Humphrey1996),largelyaging
babyboomerswhowantedtoprotecttheirchildren.DatacollectedbyGMin1994indicated
thatconsumersrankedsafety6thoutof38reasonsforchoosingandpurchasinganewcar
andJ.D.PowerandAssociates(1993)likewisestatedthatprospectivecarpurchasersin
1993ratedsafetythirdinimportancewhenselectinganewcar.Additionally,safetywas
ratedfourthinpurchaseimportancebyFordMotorCompanybytheNHTSAin1994(Burns
1999).Ourstudydisplayedsafetyinthe1990sasthefourthhighestpitch.
Reasonsforthehighnumberofpitchesrelatingtosafetyincommercialsduringthe
1990sarenumerous.TheDirectorofPublicRelationsforGeneralMotorsofCanada,Stew
Low,reasonedthatinthe1990s:“Consumersbecamemoreawareofsafetyasanissue,
whetheritwaspersonalsafetyorsafetyontheroadorthewholechangeinthetideof
opinionondrinkinganddriving”(Burnsetal.2005).Lowsimilarlystated:“Allthesethings
startedtobringautomotivesafetytotheforefrontofconsumers’minds.Theystartedasking
fornewtechnologiesandwerewillingtopaythepriceinthecostofthevehicleforthose
features”(Burnsetal.2005).Additionally,Lahey(1997)stated:“Largernumberofyoung
familiesandoldercarbuyerswithsafetyconcerns,improvedsafetytechnology,andthe
growingneedtofindwaystodifferentiatemodelsfromtheircompetitors”asreasonsfor
safetyasautomakers’primarymarketingtool(Burnsetal.2005).Inonestudy,safetywas
mentionedrarelyinpastyears,exceptin1993,atimewhenmanufacturerswerecompeting
toinstallairbagsintheirvehicles(Fergusonetal.2003).Inthelaterpartsofthe1990s,
BeyerandMoyer15
Lahey(1997)stated:“WhileBMWisadvertisingitsimprovementsindealingwithside‐
impactcollisions,Saabispromotingasystemthatwillprotectagainstwhiplashinrear
collisions.Chrysleristalkingmoreaboutitsantilockbrakesystems,andFordispositioning
itsWindstarastheonlyminivantoearnfivestars‐‐thehighestpossibleU.S.government
front‐endcrashtestratingforbothdriverandfrontpassenger”(Burnsetal.2005).
Inourstudy,wefoundthatpitchesrelatingtocapabilitywashighlyevidentinthe
2010scommercials,butitisimportanttonotethenumberofcommercialsthatpitchedfuel
efficiencycomparedtotheotherdecades.Gaspriceshavecomedownrecently,butcar
companiesarestillemphasizingfuelefficiencyasawaytosavebothmoneyandtheplanet
(Deutsch2006).Therevivaloftheelectricvehicleoccurredaroundthestartofthe21st
centurywiththeturningpointinpartduetotheintroductionoftheToyotaPrius,the
world’sfirstmass‐producedhybridelectricvehicle,releasedin1997(Matulka2014).Later,
in2000,thePriuswasreleasedworldwide,becominganinstantsuccesswithcelebrities,
raisinginterestinthecaralongwithconcernaboutcarbonpollution(Matulka2014).Inlate
2010,theNissanLEAF,atotallyelectricvehicle,wasreleasedintheU.S.market(Matulka
2014).ThroughtheRecoveryAct,theEnergyDepartmentinvestedinbuildinganation‐wide
charginginfrastructureacrossthecountryandnewbatterytechnologyhelpingtoimprovea
plug‐inelectricvehicle’srange(Matulka2014).
Dopitchesinautomobilecommercialsreflectthecountryoforigin?
Thisstudydisplayedasignificantdifferencebetweenthepitchandcountryoforigin
oftheautomobilesinthecommercialsaswell.CarsoriginatinginSweden,pitchedsafety
moreoftencomparedtotheothercountries.SafetyisalargepartofSweden’scultureand
heritageandisplacedaboveallelsebyautomakers(Mooij2013).Volvo(Sweden)has
BeyerandMoyer16
alwayshadafocusonsafetyandwasoneofafewautomakers,whichstressedsafetyintheir
advertisingpriortothe1990s(Burnsetal.2005).Bydoingso,safetyhasbeenanother
dimensiontodifferentiatethemselvesfromotherautomakersaswellasawaytoprovide
revenueandasafety‐consciouscorporateimagetoadvertisementviewers(Burns1999).
Germanoriginatedcarspromotedsafetyprominentlyaswellamongstthecountries.
Mercedes(Germany)hasbeenfocusingonandpromotingsafetyforsometime,unlikethe
UnitedStates’automakers(Burns1999).InBurnsetal.’sstudy,severalJapanese
automakers,includingHondaandToyotaearnedaboveaveragecrashtestscores,yetfailed
tostresstheiraccomplishmentsintheiradvertising(2005).Ourstudylikewisedisplays
safetybeingtheleastpitchedinFrenchcommercialsfollowedcloselybyJapaneseoriginated
carcommercials.
Japanesemanufacturedvehiclespitchedfuelefficiencymoreoftenthantheother
countriesinthisstudy.Japaneseimportshavealwayshadgreatengineeringinnovations.For
instance,inthe1970s,Japanesecarfeatures,suchasfront‐mountedenginesandfront‐wheel
driveleadtogreaterfuelefficiencyandsafervehicles(Ingrassia2011),afeaturethatwas
alsopitchedinourstudyforJapan.Additionally,DeutschassertsthatSubaru’s(Japan)ads
stressfuelefficiency,notenvironmentalcorrectness;sinceall‐wheeldrivehasbecome
commoninSUVs,theyfeardriverswillassociateall‐wheeldrivewithgasguzzlers(2006).
TheJapanesemanufacturers,Toyota,producedtheworld’sfirstmass‐producedhybrid,
whileNissanreleasedall‐electricvehicles.
UnitedStatesautomakers’commercialsfeaturedcomfortmostoftenwithinand
amongsttheothercountriesinourstudy.BelkandPollay’s1985studyfoundanupward
trendofusingluxuryandpleasureappeals,ultimatelycomfortpitches,andadownward
BeyerandMoyer17
trendofemployingpracticalityandfunctionalityappealsintheU.S.(Chung2006).Inthe
U.S.,theautomobileservesasanecessity,inexpensivegoodsthatarecommonand
affordableforthemasses(Chung2006).Therewere133,438,000registeredprivatecarsin
theU.S.in2009andthemedianhouseholdincomeoftheU.S.was$49,777(Statistical
AbstractoftheUnitedStates2012).Thelowestpriceofanewcarisonlyabout$10,000,
makingcarsaffordableandratherinexpensiveforAmericans(Chung2006).Thus,
necessities’primaryfunctionistohelpconsumersachieveastateofcomfortandtendto
resultinadvertisementswhichaddressthesevalues(Chung2006).
Dopitchesinautomobilecommercialsreflectthesetting?
Wefoundasignificantdifferencebetweenthesettingsandpitchesinthe
commercials.Withregardstopitches,commercialswitharuralsettinghadthehighestpitch
withcapability.Americanpopularcultureincludesroadmoviesthathighlightthepopularity
ofautomobiles,oftenwithhigh‐speedcarchasesoverhighwaysandbackroads.Thiswas
portrayedasasourceoffreedomandexcitement.Thereisanostalgiafortheexperienceof
motoringonslower,narrower,andscenichighwaysofthepast,aruralsetting.Inthe19th
centuryandintothe20thcentury,theriseofurbanisminmuchofthewesternworldledto
anitineranturbansocietycomparedtoaoncesettledagrarianone(Brown2001).Thisledto
alossofcommunity,senseofplace,andruralrootedness(Brown2001).Peoplehence
turnedtotheopen,rural,roadsforadventure,fun,discovery,andindependence.Itcanbe
seenthathumansnowadayshaveaninfatuationwith“natural”settings,whichiswhythey
mayspendalotofmoneyeachyeargoingtoNationalParksandNatureReserves.Thismay
alsocontributetowhyweseesomanycommercialsintheruralsetting.Seeinganatural
setting,suchasanopendirtroadoropenland,romanticizesthecar,thushavingapositive
BeyerandMoyer18
effectontheconsumerswatchingit.
Wefoundthatcommercialswithanurbansettinghadthehighestpitchwithfuel
efficiency.Urbandrivinginvolvesstop‐and‐gotrafficandwasonceconsideredthebiggest
challengetomaximizingfuel‐efficiencyinvehicles.Modernfuel‐efficienttechnologieshave
beendevelopedtominimizetheimpactstoppingandgoinghadonfuelconsumption.Tonget
al.reportedthattransientdrivingmodes,suchasaccelerationanddecelerationweremore
pollutingtotheatmospherethansteady‐speeddrivingmodes,suchascruisingandidling
(2011).
Dopitchesinautomobilecommercialsreflectthenarrator?
Inourstudy,therewasasignificantdifferencebetweengenderofnarratorandthe
pitches.Malesandfemales,however,displayedsimilartrendsinthepitchespresentedinthe
commercials.AllanandColtrane’sstudyfoundthatmalesincommercialsaretheruleandfar
outnumberwomen,butareshownindifferentsettings,performingdifferentactivities,and
displayingdifferentcharactertraits(1996).Malespitchedcapabilityslightlyhigherthan
femalesinthisstudy.Cars,oftenusedincarracing,haveservedasobjectsformento
positionthemselvesintermsofmasculinityforalongtime,providinganarenatodisplay
theirmasculinepower;malesinvestinfastcarsasawaytodisplaymasculinityasparodied
andsatirizedinpopularmedia(Best2006).Asaresult,malesseekcarswithhigh
horsepower,speed,andaccelerationcapabilities.Ontheotherhand,femalespitched
comfortandcapabilitybothatthesamepercentagesinourstudy.Womenaremorelikelyto
usecarsforwork,childcare,andshoppingandthusasPennyWark,themotoringeditorof
Women’sJournal,states:Women“seek...comfort,economy‐‐andaplacetoputtheir
handbag”(Lees‐Maffei2002).Ourstudyaffirmsthisfinding.
BeyerandMoyer19
Improvementsandfuturestudies
Withanyresearch,thereisalwayspotentialforimprovement.Whenlookingatthe
dataset,itisimportanttonotethatwecouldnotfindeverysinglecarcommercialineachof
theyearsthatwewishedtoanalyze.Wecanseemorecommercialsmissingespeciallyinthe
earlierdecades,sinceYouTubeprobablyhasnotacquiredsomeofthosecommercials.As
well,inourstudy,wewishedtoanalyzesolelycommercialsthatwerecreatedintheU.S.,
meaningthatmanufacturersfromothercountrieshadmanyoftheircommercialsin
differentlanguages.Inthatsense,withtheabsenceofsomecommercials,apotential
improvementcouldbeconductingmoretrials,possiblynotinthespecificyear,todevelopa
largeroveralldataset.Aswell,insteadoffindingthoseinaspecificyear,wecouldhave
chosenmorewithinthedecades.
Intheareaofouractualdatacollection,therecouldalsobeimprovement.Inmostof
thecommercials,therewasnotonespecificsettingportrayed.Manyhadtwoormaybethree
settingsthroughoutthecommercial.Inthisway,itwasdifficulttodeterminethemain
settingineachofthecommercials,sincethereweresomanydepicted,thus,ouruseof
‘primary’and‘secondary’settingsinthedataset.Alongthosesamelines,itwasalsodifficult
todetermineurbanvs.suburbanandsuburbanvs.ruralinafewofthecommercials,since
theremaywerefastturnoversatsomepointsinthecommercialmakingitchallengingto
differentiatebetweensettings.Similarly,inafewofthecommercials,thereweremorethan
twopitchesbesidesthemainandsecondarypitchesthatweusedinouranalyses.Toaccount
forthis,werecordedallpitchespresentedinthecommercials,butsomeaccountedformore
thantwo,sometimesuptofourtotalpitches.Lastly,sincebothtesterswerenot
simultaneouslyanalyzingthecommercialstogether,therecouldbepotentialdifferencesin
BeyerandMoyer20
howeachtesteranalyzedthecommercials;however,thisisconsideredaminorerrorinthe
study,sincethefirsttencommercialswereconductedtogethertogetasenseofwhattolook
foranddiscussionsoccurredwithanycontroversialinstances.Additionally,futurestudies
maywanttolookatothercarmanufacturersbothwithintheUnitedStatesandother
countries.Thisstudyaimedtoincludeadiversegroupingofmanufacturers,butthereis
roomforimprovement.Inthestudy,weincludedtwomanufacturersfromtheU.S.,fourfrom
Japan,threefromGermany,twofromFrance,andonefromSweden.
Conclusion
Itdoesseemthatthepitchesincommercialsreflectthecountryoforigin.Ourstudy
showedthatthepitchesspecificallyinJapanese,U.S.,andSwedenoriginatedcar
commercialsarelikelylinkedtothecultureofthecountryaswellastotheautomakers’
aims.However,interestingresultswereevidentbetweenthepitchesandsettings.Inurban
settingsfuelefficiencywaspitchedhighest,whileinruralsettings,capabilitywas,inwhich
wefoundsurprisingsinceenvironmentalaspectswerenotfeatured.Inthecommercials,we
sawthatmalesandfemalesrelativelyhavethesametrendinpitches.Additionally,itwas
shownthatpitcheshaveindeedchangedovertime.Overthedecades,ourstudydisplayed
thatvaryingpitcheswereprominentlydisplayedincommercials,includingfuelefficiencyin
the1970sand2010s,andsafetyinthe1990s.
Evenwithsomelimitations,thisstudyoffersvaluableinformation.Thechangesin
pitchesovertimeaspresentedinourstudyareperhapsbecauseadvertisingisinfluencedby
consumerdemands,interests,andconcerns.Presently,corporatecultureisprofit‐drivenand
automotivecorporationshaveusedlarge‐scaleimage‐shapingtoappealtotheconsumerand
affecttheirdecisionmaking.Anincorrectimagepresentedtothepublicislikelytocause
BeyerandMoyer21
incorrectconsumerdecisionsandthusisofgreatimportancetoautomakersindetermining
theapproachestakentoconstructtheirimage.Becauseofthis,thepitchesthatthese
automakersshareinsomeinstancesdifferfromthesettingportrayedintheircommercial
advertisements.
Thus,mediahasastrongeffectonshapingindividuals’understandingandattitudes
towardcarsandthisstudyalongwithfuturestudiescanbeusedforevaluationpurposes.
Overall,thisstudyprovidesanexploratorygroundforstudiesinvolvingadvertisement
commercialsonYouTube,specificallyautomobilesandtheirpitches,andcallsforfuture
researchtobuildupontheseexploratoryfindings.
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FiguresandTables
4%
4%
9%
Affordability
10%
Attractivestyling
11%
Capability
Comfort
14%
Compactsize
Fuelefficiency
29%
1%
Largesize
Safety
18%
Well‐engineered
Figure1.Percentageofthespecifiedpitchinthecarcommercials.n=263videos.
6% 5%
1%
11%
Female
0%
Male
Kids
Maleandfemale
None
Singer
77%
Figure2.Percentageofnarratorsspeakingpitchesinthecarcommercials.n=263videos.
BeyerandMoyer24
13%
21%
Inside
Urban
26%
Rural
Suburban
40%
Figure3.Percentageofthespecifiedsettinginthecarcommercials.n=263videos.
100%
%ofCommercials
90%
80%
Well‐engineered
70%
Safety
60%
Largesize
50%
Fuelefficiency
40%
Compactsize
30%
Comfort
20%
Capability
Attractivestyling
10%
Affordability
0%
1960
1970
1980
1990
Decade
2000
2010
Figure4.Percentageofcommercialswiththespecifiedpitchforeachdecade.n=263videos.
BeyerandMoyer25
100%
%ofCommercials
90%
80%
Well‐engineered
70%
Safety
60%
Largesize
50%
Fuelefficiency
40%
Compactsize
30%
Comfort
20%
Capability
10%
Attractivestyling
0%
France
Germany
Japan
Sweden
United
States
Affordability
CountryofOrigin
Figure5.Percentageofcommercialswiththespecifiedpitchforeachcountryoforiginofthe
vehicles.n=263videos.
100%
%ofCommercials
90%
80%
Well‐engineered
70%
Safety
60%
Largesize
50%
Fuelefficiency
40%
Compactsize
30%
Comfort
20%
Capability
10%
Attractivestyling
Affordability
0%
Inside
Rural
Suburban
Setting
Urban
Figure6.Percentageofcommercialswiththespecifiedpitchforeachsetting.n=263videos.
BeyerandMoyer26
100%
90%
%ofCommercials
80%
Well‐engineered
70%
Safety
60%
Largesize
50%
Fuelefficiency
40%
30%
Compactsize
20%
Comfort
10%
Capability
Attractivestyling
0%
Female
Male
Kids
Male
and
female
Narrator
None
Singer
Affordability
Figure7.Percentageofcommercialswiththespecifiedpitchforeachnarratortype.n=263
videos.
Table1.Percentagesofcommercialswiththespecifiedpitchforeachsetting.n=263videos.
Pitch
Inside
Rural
Suburban
Urban
Affordability
11%
10%
11%
8%
Attractivestyling
5%
10%
16%
10%
Capability
21%
38%
21%
27%
Comfort
35%
20%
18%
7%
Compactsize
3%
1%
3%
1%
Fuelefficiency
6%
8%
8%
31%
Largesize
6%
2%
8%
2%
Safety
6%
4%
0%
6%
Well‐engineered
6%
8%
14%
8%
Table2.Chi‐SquaretestforDecadevs.Pitch.
Chi‐SquareTests
Asymp.Sig.
Value
df
(2‐sided)
PearsonChi‐
75.716a
40
.001
Square
LikelihoodRatio
80.005
40
.000
NofValidCases
452 a.21cells(38.9%)haveexpectedcountlessthan5.
Theminimumexpectedcountis.81.
BeyerandMoyer27
Table3.Chi‐SquaretestforCountryofOriginvs.Pitch.
Chi‐SquareTests
Asymp.Sig.
Value
df
(2‐sided)
PearsonChi‐
82.272a
32
.000
Square
LikelihoodRatio
83.807
32
.000
NofValidCases
451 a.20cells(44.4%)haveexpectedcountlessthan5.
Theminimumexpectedcountis.43.
Table4.Chi‐SquaretestforSettingvs.Pitch.
Chi‐SquareTests
Asymp.Sig.
Value
df
(2‐sided)
PearsonChi‐
46.338a
24
.004
Square
LikelihoodRatio
48.744
24
.002
NofValidCases
452 a.11cells(30.6%)haveexpectedcountlessthan5.
Theminimumexpectedcountis.98.
Table5.Chi‐SquaretestforNarratorvs.Pitch.
Chi‐SquareTests
Asymp.Sig.
Value
df
(2‐sided)
PearsonChi‐
56.301a
40
.045
Square
LikelihoodRatio
52.764
40
.085
NofValidCases
451
a.38cells(70.4%)haveexpectedcountlessthan5.
Theminimumexpectedcountis.03.
BeyerandMoyer28
Appendix
YouTubeCarCommercialsSpecifics:
Decade:1960s,1970s,1980s,1990s,2000s,2010s
Carmake:Ford,Toyota,Nissan,Mazda,Mercedes,Volkswagen,BMW,Honda,Renault,
Peugeot,Chrysler,Volvo
Typeofcar:Minivan,electric,hybrid,sportscar,SUV,stationwagon,truck,sedan,and
hatchback
Countryoforigin:Ford(US),Toyota(Japan),Nissan(Japan),Mazda(Japan),Mercedes
(Germany),Volkswagen(Germany),BMW(Germany),Honda(Japan),Renault(France),
Peugeot(France),Chrysler(US),Volvo(Sweden)
Setting:Inside,urban,rural,suburban
Specificsetting:Fromlistbelow
Pitch:Affordability,attractivestyling,capability
(performance/power/speed/acceleration/technology),comfort(luxury/prestige),compact
size,fuelefficiency,largesize,safety,andwell‐engineered(quality/reliability/durability)
Narrator:Gender‐Female,male,kids,maleactor,maleandfemale,none,andsinger
Age‐young,old
Specificsettings:
Suburban
Schools
Singlehomes(privateresidences)
Parks
Stores
Neighborhoods
Largeyards
Garages
Urban
Offices
Sportsparks
Cityhall
Stores
Schools
Homes
Apartments/Townhouses
Skyscrapers
Museums
Hotels
Businesses
Streets
Amongbus,trains,taxis
Lotsofpeople
Sidewalks
Rooftop
Rural
Country
Farms
Openland
Woods
Townhall
Highways
Camping
Openroads
Nature
BeyerandMoyer29