Pampers (Ad)

The intended audience of the Pampers’s Baby Wipes advertisement can be identified as parents, in particular mothers and/or female caretakers. This can be said so, due to the gender representation and image manipulation presented throughout the Ad. 

Firstly, the advertisement attracts its audience through the image of (most probably) a mother cleaning and taking care of her child, who in turn is smiling joyfully. This imagine instills within the reader the need to nurture and therefore addresses the target audience as women, who are typically depicted as nurturing and affectionate. This gender stereotypical female “value” effectively appeals to the maternal instinct found in most women and is thus conveyed through an emotional appeal, i.e. pathos. Furthermore, the image manipulation plays a significant role as the ‘mother’ is seen to be playing with her child and is even kissing his/her feet. This once again demonstrates an area in which the advertisement is able to resonate with the reader and is evident, as the joy and intimacy of the child and mother motivate the readers to do the same (in the form of buying the baby wipes.) 

Additionally, the portrayal of the text within this ad further adds to the need to nurture, as it utilizes specific diction that attributes to nurturing qualities. For example, the words, “gentle” and “sensitive”, invoke within the reader the desire to be a good parent, by paying attention to your child’s soft skin. This then helps in boosting sales and promoting the product, as now the reader feels compelled to buy the product, since doing so will be beneficial for their child’s happiness.