Page 132 - Introduction to Electronic Commerce and Social Commerce

Sport in Advertising • 121

considered to arise in interaction with others, and academic thought has focused on
the processes by which identity is constructed. In contrast to the idea that people

have a coherent, fixed identity, ‘the more recent view is that identity is fabricated,
constructed, in process’ (Sarup 1996: 14). Advertising steps into this gap and encour-
ages us to identify ourselves with what we consume.

Translating Meanings in Sport Advertising

Williamson (1978) argued that part of the myth of advertising is that it is transpar-
ent, that it is merely saying what it claims to say. While we can think of advertise-
ments as containing a message (‘buy this book’), we need to consider not just the
content of advertising, but its form. The surface meaning of an advertisement is only
one level of signification. The way the advertisement is constructed also has a mean-

ing. The watch brand Tag Heuer has used images of celebrities from sport and fi lm
in a series of advertisements carrying the strapline ‘What are you made of?’ One of
the advertisements that appeared in the press features the golfer Tiger Woods. The
full-page advertisement contains two images of equivalent size, each vertically oc-
cupying half of the page. On the left is an image of Tiger Woods in a position that
indicates he has just completed a golf swing, twisted, holding his golf club over his
shoulder and across his back. He is side on to the viewer, facing towards the other
half of the page, his gaze focused in the distance. An image of a metallic watch takes
up the rest of the page, beneath which is the Tag Heuer logo and brand name. The
images are not touching and no obvious connection is made between them. However,
the colours and shapes in the advertisement link the images and ideas. The position
of Woods’s body mirrors the shape of the watch, with the widest part of each oc-
cupying the same plane. The images are placed against a plain background of silver
and grey. The metallic grey of the watch is slightly lighter than the background, and
Tiger Woods’s clothes are also grey. Both images are lit from the side so that there
is a shine on the surface of the watch and the side of Woods’s body. The light also
makes the golf club gleam with a metallic glow, and there is a reflection on Woods’s

face (see http://www.tagheuer.com for similar advertisements).
Williamson (1978: 21) made the observation that ‘colour tells a story’. In the Tag
Heuer advertisement, the play of colour and light connect the product to the image of
the golfer. Qualities associated with Tiger Woods are transferred to the watch, and in
reverse, qualities of the watch are transferred to Woods. The emphasis on metal con-
notes machinery and perseverance (mettle). The shine connotes glamour and pres-
tige. The advertisement suggests that the watch performs like Tiger Woods, and that
Tiger Woods performs like the watch. Yet the ‘message’ of the advertisement is not in
its content, it is in the form. Importantly, the message is not complete. The strapline

‘What are you made of?’ is an open challenge to the consumer to find the answer. The
advertisement asks consumers to step into the gaps between the elements of imagery