Okonkwo Prelims

In order to achieve a high level of effectiveness in luxury advertising, it is

important to differentiate the general style, message and execution of the

advertisement. The luxury goods sector is highly competitive and as brands

strive to get noticed, they end up falling into the trap of sameness. It is not

uncommon to look through the pages of a fashion magazine and find adver-

tisements of several brands that are so similar that if the brand names were

concealed, they could pass for the same brand. Consumers long to see fresh

and distinctive advertising that has high and lasting appeal and this is only

achieved through differentiation. The message of the advertisements also

ought to be deeper than the surface beauty of a pretty model flaunting a desir-

able product. Luxury brands have differing underlying personalities but their

advertising messages sometimes reflect the same brand image and personal-

ity which is wrong. The distinct brand images could be effectively portrayed

with a more focused attention on insight, innovation and imagination.

Also, the concept and style of the advertisement of the sunglasses product

of Armani, shown in Figure 5.19, has been adopted by several luxury brands.

chapter 5 149

the art of creating and managing luxury fashion brands

Figure 5.17

Burberry emphasizing

its English heritage

through using a British

actress to depict the

quintessential English

lifestyle, (2006)

© Mario Testino