Green Ads Analysis—SAMSUNG Eco Friendly TV

When I said that I need to analyze an advertisement of an eco friendly consumer product, my friend in China suggested me to go for information about Samsung products. Then, I found out this TV advertisement on YouTube:



It is a one minute video advertisement of Samsung eco friendly TV. Throughout the advertisement, the blue sky and green earth have always been in front of audiences’ eyes. Along with the color green and blue, background music creates a peaceful feeling and a clean and comfortable earth. By using the 3D technology, every scenery appears in this advertisement seems to be true in real life. Green energy structure, trees, grass, and pretty houses can be seen everywhere on the earth. And a pretty green world that seems could only be seen in our dream appears to audiences.

Through moving on the surface of the green earth, audiences are leaded to a Samsung factory. Then, a Samsung delivery truck came out. Following the deliver truck of Samsung, audiences come to a big house with a beautiful garden. And the box with a Samsung TV in it flows out from the truck smoothly until it reaches the land. A scale shows that the box is as thin as 240mm. After that, the box opens like a flower, and there comes the TV. Through several extremely close up shoots, audiences can know that this TV is free of mercury and free of spray. Lastly, the Samsung delivery truck leaves the house, and goes back to the Samsung Recycling Direct. At the end of the advertisement, audiences can see the green earth again. Seeing the delivery truck going through so many green spots, including the factory and the recycling direct, audiences might relate the company’s image with such a green world, and would believe that all Samsung factories are environmentally friendly.

Even though the background music is the only audio effect during this advertisement, there are written information in different places to help audiences understand it. At the beginning of the advertisement, a slogan comes out in front of the green earth “GO GREEN! WITH SAMSUNG ECO TV”, which leads audiences to explore the earth with the camera. When camera arrives at the Samsung factory, there are words telling people that Samsung products are “MANUFACTURED IN A CLEAN ENVIRONMENT”. With symbols and words, the Samsung TV is told to be thin, “free of mercury”, and “no spray”. To illustrate the advantage of being “free of spray”, written information also tells audiences that it has “no air pollution”. Then the word “Samsung Recycling Direct” introduces a service provided by Samsung Company in order to recycle old consumer electronics. Lastly, the sentence “COME, JOIN THE SAMSUNG ECO FAMILY; LET’S SAVE THE WORLD TOGETHER” connects Samsung products with the life of the world. It implicates that if audiences all buy Samsung products, the world can be saved. Moreover, the word “let’s” makes the company become part of its audiences. In these ways, it calls for audiences’ action to purchase Samsung eco friendly product.

According to the language (English) used in the advertisement, and the appearance of the big house, the target audience of this advertisement supposed to be middle or upper class American who cares about environmental problems. As owning a big house with a pretty garden is many American’s dream, most American who can afford it would prefer to live in such an environment. The creation of this peaceful and clean living environment matches target audiences’ dream. So audiences would easily associate that people living in such kind of environment would buy Samsung product, or buying Samsung product would gives people such a living environment. After learning how the eco friendly TV contributes to the environment, with the feeling that the eco friendly TV would bring us a nice living environment like the one in the advertisement, audiences’ desire of purchasing Samsung TV would certainly increase.

Also, the last shoot of the green earth yells at audiences’ attention through the comparison between the clean part of the world and the dirty/ polluted one. This shows a risk to audiences that the area where families don’t use Samsung products would live in the grey world. Or it’s telling audiences that the world cannot be all green since you haven’t bought our product. So, it’s telling audiences that buying Samsung eco friendly product is also saving the world.

Generally speaking, this advertisement is very appealing to people who are pursuing a big house with peaceful, clean, and green living environment.

Yet, there are some points in this advertisement that should be questioned. The first one is for the words used to describe the Samsung factory “MANUFACTURED IN A CLEAN ENVIRONMENT”. Audiences might easily accept this point. Since in the advertisement, the factory is really “green” being surrounded by trees and grass. However, where on earth does the Samsung factory locates in real life? Does the country where the Samsung factory locates in have a good environmental condition? All in all, what’s the definition of “clean” in Samsungs’ perception? Only trees and grass around the factory is clean enough?

Besides, the box keeping Samsung TV opens like a flower in order to create a sense that it’s also environmentally friendly. It might be true. But how about materials that are needed to fill in the box, so that products in the box could not easily be hurt while being transported? When the same Samsung TV is delivered to our house, it would never be that simple inside the box.

Then, the part that shows the amount of mercury contained in the Samsung TV is somehow vague. In the advertisement, half of the TV is filled with mercury, but the other half of it is claimed to be mercury free. So, how much mercury is actually contained in the TV? Is it trying to compare Samsung TV with other brands’? Or is it trying to explain the term “mercury free” in their company’s perception?

Lastly, the green earth showed in the advertisement has a large part being in the “dream” condition while there is a small part being grey and polluted. But the reality is on the contrary. If the real earth is showed in the advertisement, will you still have such a good impression about the Samsung TV?