Advertising Appeals As A Mirror Of Cultural Values: A Comparison Content Analysis Of Video Beer Advertising In The Usa And China

Advertising and culture are closely related. Cultural values have a great effect on the content of advertising and advertising strategies. In turn, advertising is not simply influenced by cultural values. It also deeply affects the development and change of culture and cultural values. Therefore, the relationship of advertising to cultural values has always been a major concern for culture scholars. With the development of globalization, advertising is also becoming globalized, which brings up the issue of whether the same cultural values can be demonstrated in advertising of different countries to influence consumers to purchase a product. So the intercultural study of advertising has attracted many intercultural scholars? attention.This thesis investigates the beer advertising in the United States and China. The research collected 80 beer advertisements from each country. These advertisements were analyzed with a content analysis method in terms of the usage of appeals, cultural values and other characteristics. Based on past studies, the frequencies of Pollay?s 42 appeals used in these advertisements were analyzed. By comparing the differences in the usage of different appeals, the cultural values demonstrated in these advertisements were examined. The study also tried to identify whether relationship existed between the usage of appeals and the countries? scores in Hofstede?s four cultural dimensions. Besides, occasions for beer drinking and roles of male and female depicted in the advertisements were also analyzed.The findings of the research show that there are both similarities and differences in the usage of appeals in the beer advertisements of these two countries, which was related to the product category and the cultural values in the country where the advertisements were displayed. Close relationship exists between the frequency of an appeal used in the video beer advertisements and the country?s score in the corresponding one of Hofstede?s four cultural dimensions. There are also great differences in occasions for beer drinking and roles of females depicted in the advertisements.