Candies Foundation: raising awareness about teen pregnancy
I actually find this ad very smart. The company found a way to get into the teenage life/brain by appealing to them with wit and not lecturing them about sex like everyone else in their life. The slogans they used were also kind of funny, though teenage pregnancy is a very serious matter, in my opinion.
From here on out, the word "sex" will refer to sexual intercourse.
Some statistics:
- 46% of all high school age kids have had sex
- 39% do not use condoms
- 6% have had sex before the age of 13
- 14% have had more than 4 partners
- 8% of girls said their first partner was 6 or more years older
- 20% of 9th graders say they are sexually active (had sex within the past 3 months)
- 28% of males and 16% of females say their first partner was someone they had just met or were "just friends" with
- More than 33% of teens have said they have sent a sexual text, IM, or email
- 61% say they want to save sex until marriage
- 63% said they wish they would take their virginity back
- 60% have reported feeling negative after sex, such as feeling used
- 41% lost their virginity to rape (though this statistic is for college women, it can still apply to high school girls because it still happens to high school girls)
The first picture is the funniest. It says, "You think your parents give you a lot of crap?" This is implying that a baby will give you even more literal crap! Gross! But very true. Coming from experience, teenagers tend to be fed up with their parents around this time in their life, which is understandable. We want to go out and do things on our own even if we may not be mature enough to handle it. Just like sex. We want to be grown up and do grown-up things when in reality we're still little kids that need our parents to take care of us. Though that may not be true for all, I would say it is the majority. There is a small percentage that can take care of themselves and live on their own and provide for themselves. But for the rest of us, we want to make those decisions that adults make, such as having sex in high school, which is not the smartest idea.
The second picture says, "Not really the way you pictured your first crib huh?" This is telling teens that if htey get pregnant, it will be very hard for them to move out and get their own place once they have a baby because they will need their parents to support them. Their first "crib" (house) wont be for themselves it will be for their baby.
Most other ads and shows on tv and songs we listen to glamourize sex and losing your virginity. They make it seem like it's normal to have sex before marriage when, in fact, it is not. No one, and especially not teenagers, should be having sex before marriage.This is one of the first ads I've seen that doesn't make sex seem okay and actually show you the consequences of sex. Other ads over sexualize everything and make it seem like it's okay and no one gets hurt and everything is peachy when you have sex and lose your virginity. Big reality check here: IT'S NOT! Losing your virginity in high school takes a big emotional toll on everyone, even those who think they are "strong". Studies show teens who have sex early are more likely to suffer from despression, use drugs and alcohol, get pregnant, have more than one partner, and less likely to use condoms or a form of birth control. Many ads show losing your virginity as no big deal when in fact it is a very big deal. That is something precious and something that should be cherished, not thrown around and given to the first guy/girl that looks your way. It should be given to your husband/wife, but sadly our generation has changed our culture to where not very many people are saving themselves for their honeymoon. Though I will say, since high school I have met many more people who claim they do not want to have sex before marriage. It seemed in previous years, though we were younger, everyone wanted to have sex, to get it over with, because they thought that would make them cool or they would be one step ahead of everyone else and be somehow more grownup.
This ad shows a glimpse of the hard life that teens will have if they do choose to have sex and get pregnant. A baby is very expensive, which is why I believe people should wait to have babies until they are married, have stable jobs, and are emotionally stable to care for a child. I do not belive you should bring a child into this world unless you are 100% capable of taking care of the child, which means supporting him/her with food, clothes, shelter, not being abusive, emotionally with love and kindness, and spiritually by teaching the child about God and the Bible (though many may be of a different religion or not believe at all, that is how I plan to raise my children). Teens are not ready to be parents no matter what they've gone through or how grown up they think they are. Even if a child was put in a situation where they've had to care for siblings and think of them as their own, I still feel it is very different. The point is, babies shouldn't be having babies. Meaning: When you're a teenager you're still a kid yourself, so how can you take care of another living being when you haven't fully experienced life and learned all your lessons? Some adults shouldn't be parents, let alone teenagers.
This ad, while promotion abstinence, is also promoting the Candies clothing brand. It also is drawing attention to the national issue of teen pregnancy. Yes, it is an issue. Now we even have TV shows about teenage pregnancy. Has it gone too far?
The target audience for this ad is both abstinent and sexually active teenagers, an their parents. This ad encourages abstinent teens to keep doing what their doing. It also warns sexually active teens they must be careful and use protection or they will have to face the fact of a baby. It's directed at parents as well because no parent wants their high schooler to have a baby, so it's also kind of a warning to parents to have "The Talk" with their kids or to keep a closer eye on them and make sure they are being responsible.
This ad uses the appeals of Need to Nurture for parents becaause parents always want to protect their children especially from their own mistakes. It uses the advertising techniques of Plain Folks because it doesn't just aim towards one group of people because anyone can get pregnant, not just a certain ethnicity or socioeconomic group. It also uses Testimonial because all of the ads have a celebrity in them telling teens not to have sex, or not to get pregnant. Wit and Humor is also used in the slogans in the ad. It appeals to the teens culture and brings them in by making them laugh. Once you have their attention and are on their level, then the message is introduced and teens are more likely to read it and think about it.
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