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Charlena L. Wright
The creators of Volera’s “Make the Net Fly” advertisement had a challenge: How can an information technology firm (with a dot-com, to boot) make an intangible service seem tangible to a growing audience of bricks-and-mortar businesses desperate to make head-way into the confusing world of Internet commerce? Furthermore, how can a clicks-and-mortar IT firm establish itself as a reputable, steadfast, and trustworthy company with which to do business? The art designer of the Volera, Inc. ad that appeared in the March 19, 2001 issue of InformationWeek faced the challenge of using strong production values and, to this media analyst, passed with flying colors. The art director of the Volera advertisement uses color to give the reader a sense of nostalgia related to the soft browns and yellows associated with old photographs and withering autumn leaves. Although you may not be able to tell by looking at it, the shade variations in the colors of the kite would indicate that the kite itself is rainbow-colored. The color scheme is washed out of the kite by the overall rosy look of the page, yet results in giving the reader the same security and positivity associated with the reds and yellows of the background. The warm colors tend to make an audience feel secure, positive, and involved in the ad, in the sense that the reader is taken back to a childhood memory of flying a kite and thinks of the perceived “history” that the Internet firm has. The lighting affects the message the reader receives from the advertisement. The perceived natural light shows the life in the scene. The bright, soft light shown in the sky and on the boy flying the kite makes the reader recall the innocent joys of childhood while promoting the goodwill and secure protection of the company. The shape of the line of hypertext sweeping upward from the lower left-hand corner of the page toward the upper right-hand corner shows ascension, which suggests positive feelings of progress and enlightenment—the results of dealing with an IT firm that knows how to “network” (pun intended). The scale within the scene also affects the message in the advertisement. The boy seems larger than the kite in the scene, showing that the boy, as a possible representation of the Volera firm, shows the emphasis on the company as the creator of “an intelligent Internet.” The kite could possibly represent either the Internet created by Volera or the reader’s business made successful by employing Volera to create its web site network. The relative position of the boy to the kite is another production value worth looking at. In this ad, the boy is shown closer to the reader in the lower right-hand corner of the page, making him the first focal point in the ad. Then, the reader must follow the boy’s upward gaze and turned head to look up at the kite soaring high in the sky. The line of vision here connects the two images of the boy and his kite to recall to the reader an often-common childhood experience. As with relative position, the art director’s use of angle also influences the message that the reader receives, affecting the ad’s effectiveness in positioning the IT firm as secure and trustworthy. The camera angle is set below the height of the little boy, compelling the reader to see the child and treat him respectfully and, like Volera, take him seriously. Likewise, the ascending movement of the kite (towards the heavens) is a positive sign of an up-and-running web site and its resulting profitable business. As the scene suggests, the sky’s the limit for commerce in an IT world. The point of view expressed in the body copy of the ad is, obviously, the members of Volera:
“We’ve created an intelligent Internet. Nobody told us it couldn’t be done.
It’s amazing. With a smarter Internet you can send more content with the same bandwidth. Boost response times without adding expensive Web servers. Deliver richer media at little or no cost. And have virtually unlimited scalability. When you really think about it, what can’t you do with an intelligent Internet?
Voleraä content networking solutions. For those who want to do more with a smarter Internet. Call Volera 1-800-204-3100 or visit volera.com.”
Thusly, the body copy ends with the company name, logo, and slogan in the bottom right-hand corner to draw the most attention from the reader used to reading from left to right on the page. The slogan “Make the Net fly” relates to the image of a gust of wind—as a stream of hypertext language—lifting the boy’s kite high into the sky. The images in the advertisement include those of a young boy flying a kite, the kite, the open sky, and the gust of wind (hypertext language) that propels the boy’s kite high into the air. In dream interpretation, to dream of flying a kite denotes a great show of wealth or business. To see a child flying a kite denotes pleasant and light occupation. If the kite ascends, high hopes and aspirations will be realized. To dream of a clear sky signifies distinguished honors and interesting travel. To romp and play with children denotes that all your speculating enterprises will prevail. Thus, all of the images used in the ad signify positive changes and success in business ventures when the reader becomes associated with the IT firm that can “make the Net fly.” The creators of Volera’s “Make the Net Fly” advertisement were able to make their virtual service seem more real to their audience of bricks-and-mortar businesses by effectively using production values within their ad. Through the art director’s use of color, lighting, shape, scale, relative position, movement, point of view, angle, and connotative images and words, the clicks-and-mortar IT firm was able to establish itself as a reputable, steadfast, and trustworthy company worthy of doing business with growing companies seeking commercial opportunities through the Internet.
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