[Coca-Cola Advertising Analysis—Encoding and Decoding of Stuart Hall] Stuart Dynasty

Abstract The Birmingham Center for Contemporary Cultural Studies (CCCS) is famous for its fruitful cultural research results. In 1968, Stuart Hall, who served as director of the Center for Cultural Studies, developed his encoding and decoding theories that had a profound impact on the field of cultural studies. The article analyzes Coca-Cola's advertising by applying Hall's encoding and decoding theory. In addition, the article also analyzes the star effect of Coca-Cola advertising and the relationship between Coca-Cola and sports.

Keywords CCCS; Stuart Hall; encoding and decoding; Coca-Cola

1. Introduction

1. Birmingham Center for Contemporary Cultural Studies (CCCS )

The term cultural studies was coined by Richard Hoggart in 1964 when he established the Birmingham Center for Contemporary Cultural Studies. Representatives of the Institute include Charlie Hoggart, Raymond Williams, E.P. Thompson, and Stuart Hall. The institute is dedicated to cultural studies, so it is also called the Birmingham School. The research center closed in 2002.

2. Stuart Hall’s Encoding and Decoding Theory

Stuart Hall was a descendant of black Africans born in Jamaica, the first generation of post-war British migrant. He was the first editor-in-chief of the famous magazine New Left Review, and in 1968 he succeeded Hoggart as director of the Center for Contemporary Cultural Studies at the University of Birmingham. This research model pioneered by Hall eventually formed an important social theoretical symbol of the British cultural studies school. It is not only a milestone in the field of media theory research, but also has far-reaching significance in the politics of reading. Hall's most representative work was written in 1973. It was first circulated within the circle, and then revised and included in the book "Culture, Media, Fables" published in 1980, titled "Television Discourse: Coding and Decoding" article. In the book, Hall proposed that the "meaning" of television discourse arises from three stages of communication. The first stage is the production of the "meaning" of television discourse, that is, the processing of raw materials by television professionals. This is also the so-called "encoding" stage. The second stage is the "finished product" stage. Hall said that once a television work is completed and "meaning" is injected into television discourse, the language and discourse rules that give the television work meaning will dominate. At this time, the television work becomes an open and polysemous discourse. system. The third and most important stage is the audience’s “decoding” stage. What the audience faces is not the original social event, but a processed "translation". The audience must be able to "decode" it in order to gain the meaning of the "translation." Through Hall's decoding theory. The article analyzes the meaning of the Coca-Cola advertising text, and points out that the success of Coca-Cola advertising is the result of the interaction between the manufacturer and the audience. The article then specifically analyzes the audience's reaction and their consumer psychology towards the brand. The article mainly focuses on the celebrity effect and advertising Coca-Cola advertising is analyzed from two spiritual levels.

2. Coca-Cola and Hall’s theory

1. Coca-Cola and star effect

Coca-Cola is a carbonated drink produced by the Atlanta Company in the United States. Its sales Located in more than 200 cities around the world. Often referred to simply as "Coke", its founder was Asa Griggs Candler, whose marketing goal was to make Coca-Cola the world's number one carbonated drink in the 21st century. Regarding Coca-Cola's advertising, the company's former president Erntst-Woodruff once said, "Coca-Cola is made of 99.61% water and sugar. If we don't use advertising to expand the publicity, no one will drink it." By reviewing the company's history , it can be seen that the Coca-Cola Company invests a huge amount in advertising. It spends almost 600 million US dollars on advertising around the world every year. The advertising investment in China alone reaches tens of millions of US dollars every year. In 1985, Coca-Cola produced its first commercial, starring a young Boston actress. Nowadays, the company's spokespersons are popular celebrities, because these celebrities can convey a fashionable message to people, and people will imitate their hairstyles, clothes, and even the drinks they drink. The Coca-Cola Company uses the effect of celebrities to expand product sales, integrating the energetic and healthy images represented by celebrities into consumers' impressions of the product, and establishing a positive image of the brand in consumers' minds. Since the beginning of the 20th century, there has been a craze for "star chasing" all over the world, spreading across all age groups, especially among young people. They express their love for the stars by imitating their favorite stars' behavior, clothing, etc. The Coca-Cola Company seized business opportunities from this craze. They expanded the popularity and sales of their products by recruiting celebrities to endorse their products. In addition, celebrities are usually regarded by consumers as reliable and trustworthy, so they The endorsed products also increase consumers’ trust in them to some extent.

2. Coca-Cola and sports

In 1970, sports craze spread all over the world, and young people in the United States were crazy about various sports. The purpose of sports is not only for entertainment, but more importantly, to challenge oneself and express a sense of rebellion.

Now, due to the deepening of the Olympic Games, people's understanding of physical exercise is becoming more and more profound. Having a healthy and strong body is increasingly important for modern people. Coca-Cola has always positioned its brand in sports. The company invites a large number of sports stars as spokespersons for advertisements. In China, athletes Yao Ming and Liu Xiang often appear in Coca-Cola advertising. The purpose of this is to establish a healthy image of the product in the minds of consumers. In addition to using sports stars, Coca-Cola has been sponsoring the Olympic Games since becoming the first sponsor of the Olympic Games in Amsterdam in 1928. In short, the success of Coca-Cola Company's advertising not only successfully captures consumers psychologically but also decodes the information behind people's behaviors very well. Advertisements not only visually satisfy consumers' aesthetic needs, desires, and emotional experiences, but also make consumers identify with the messages conveyed to them in the advertisements. In a sense, the decoder establishes an emotional relationship in the Coca-Cola advertisement, which can cause the coder and the decoder to scream.

3. Conclusion

In the modern commercial market, advertising strategy is undoubtedly a very important and effective marketing tool. For most companies, it is the first choice to expand product sales. In addition, advertising has a potential impact on consumer purchasing behavior. Coca-Cola, as the world's leading carbonated beverage company, has successful sales strategies and tactics. It not only uses star effect to attract consumers, but also adds sports and health elements to product promotion, which is very positive.

References:

[1] Lu Yang, Wang Yi. Introduction to Cultural Studies [M]. Shanghai: Fudan University Press, 2006.

Author Introduction: Fan Yingying (1987—), female, graduate student of Chongqing Normal University in 2010, majoring in: English language and literature, research direction: British and American literature.