Men In New Zealand Media: Tui "Yeah Right" Billboard Ads

It's a common belief that Kiwi blokes (and in particular young men) are relaxed, shallow and informal pleasure-seekers, and the series of Tui billboard ads use this male representation to market their beer.

The Tui "Yeah Right" billboards are famous throughout New Zealand for their humourous value, and they are  funny because they represent the thoughts of Kiwi males on topics such as interests, women and work. These ads create a strong representation of Kiwi men, telling us that they are lazy and sexually suggestive, as well as being interested in things that are perceived manly (such as barbecues and rugby) and critical of things perceived non-manly (such as poetry and ballet). These stereotypes of NZ men are conveyed to the public through statements on billboards which are answered with the phrase "Yeah right.", with the Tui logo placed at the bottom of the ad.

One of the statements made by Tui about Kiwi men is that they are informal, over-casual and self-centred:
"It took me ages to pick your present. (Yeah right.)"
"Giving is better than receiving. (Yeah right.)"
"Happy birthday, my shout. (Yeah right.)"
Men are interested primarily in benefiting themselves according to Tui, who imply that men prefer getting rather than giving and are reluctant to spend money on others.

The Tui billboards also portray men as being quite lustful towards women:
"Double down, the most pleasure you can get from two breasts. (Yeah right.)"
"I was reading her t-shirt. (Yeah right.)"
"I thought it was a shop where girls sell calendars? (Yeah right.)"
The representation that men gain enjoyment out of womens' bodies is present in each of the three above ads; by implying in the first two ads that females' breasts are pleasurable to men and by suggesting in the third billboard that the Calendar Girls strip club is a place men choose to visit (whether they take accountability for it or not).

CALENDAR GIRLS: This ad portrays men as being strip-club
visitors and people with no accountability for their actions.

The final portrayal the Tui ads make about men is that they reject certain pastimes which are seen as being non-masculine, such as ballet, poetry and man-bags:

"If he wants to do ballet, let him. (Yeah right.)"

"I wrote you this poem. (Yeah right.)"

"Hope I get a man-bag for Father's day. (Yeah right.)"

The two activities are not seen as favourable male pastimes in common New Zealand ideology, and the Tui billboards support the idea that real men do not do ballet or write poetry. They also tell us that young men find man-bags unfavourable.

This collective stereotype surrounding the thinking, actions and behaviour of (generally young) Kiwi men is used by Tui as part of their marketing scheme which attempts to sell beer. This marketing scheme uses humour as its way of luring customers towards the Tui brand, and this humour comes in the form of "Yeah Right" statements made from the point-of-view of stereotypical young men. The representation Tui promotes about young men (lazy, self-interested, woman-loving and masculine) is necessary to create the humour as it provides the audience with an outline of the "type" of person who would make these comments. If the "Yeah Right" campaign featured mindsets which could not be related to by the target audience (young men), then the jokes would likely not make any sense and Tui wouldn't get on good terms with any new customers. For example, if the ads were written from the point-of-view of middle-aged female marine biologists then most of the target audience wouldn't understand them. The representations are made about young men because this is the demographic Tui are marketing to; and they stereotype this group because they want to be able to relate to as much of this audience as possible.

BOOBIES: A sure-fire way to gain the attention of young men?

While the "Yeah Right" billboards attempt to relate to as many young men as they can, in reality the stereotypes they convey do not accurately represent all of this young male demographic. While men are portrayed in the ads as being self-centred, in real life there are plenty of males who enjoy giving to others and would happily "shout" a friend drinks on their birthday. Also, the Tui billboards suggest that men are all perverts and lustful for women, however in reality lots of men are not attracted to women or do not behave in the ways that the ad implies men do (ie. visiting strip clubs). Finally, the ads send out the message that men do not write poetry or enjoy using man-bags, however there are a number of males who do. The stereotypes in the ads differ from reality because the ads are targeted at what is believed to be the biggest group of people in their target market (of young men) as opposed to being targeted at all the separate sub-groups or individuals contained in the young male demographic.

The representation that young men are self-centred, lustful and masculine can effect both the actions of the stereotyped group and the way in which society perceives young males. For example, young men influenced by the ads may choose not to take up ballet because it has been portrayed as an unfavourable activity to do for young men. Men who do not currently act or think the way the ads say they do could be prone to changing their behaviour in order to fit in and be part of this "normal" group. The stereotypes emitted by the Tui ads can also effect how society perceives young men. People outside the target group, especially those who don't associate with any young men, could be led to believe that all young males think and act the way that is implied in the Tui ads. This could lead to judgement and social prejudice of members of the target group by those outside it, for example an elderly woman may think that a young man is a self-obsessed pleasure-seeker even if he is not, because that is the way he is represented in the media.

Young men in New Zealand are often represented as informal, self-interested blokes who enjoy women and manly activities, and Tui uses this stereotype in their "Yeah Right" billboards to create humour as a method of selling beer.

Men In New Zealand Media: "Mate!" Anti-Drink Driving Ad

In New Zealand there is a common stereotype that young men are loud, rowdy alcohol-consumers. LTNZ (Land Transport New Zealand) uses this representation in a TV ad to relate to the audience in an effort to stop people from drink-driving.

The "Mate!" anti-drink driving TV ad portrays young men as social, boisterous characters who hang out in bars and drink lots of beer:

The social nature of the men is shown by the constant exchange of the word "Mate!" between the characters, and by the way that the men are always close together in a small but open group. Young men are also portrayed as being loud and boisterous in the ad, which contains plenty of enthusiastic speaking and extroverted behaviour by the characters. The setting of the advertisement and the actions of the men in the ad tell the audience that young men hang out in bars and drink lots of beer. The techniques used in the ad are effective in portraying the characters as "typical Kiwi young blokes" because they show behavioural characteristics commonly found in men of that age. This makes the characters plausible to the audience, which in turn helps give the ad's message credibility.

KIWI YOUNG MEN: Social, energetic drinkers

The "Mate!" ad creates this representation to try and persuade young men not to drink and drive. By showing men being social and loud while drinking in a bar the ad is attempting to relate to as much of the young male demographic as possible. This is so that when the drink-driver crashes at the end of the ad it impacts on a greater amount of people than if the ad portrayed young men as something unusual, such as scooter-riders or Jenga enthusiasts. Going out for drinks and being social is a normal part of life for many young men, and the anti-drink driving ad uses this stereotypical behaviour to relate to that target audience and influence their decisions when in similar scenarios.

The stereotype that young men are loud, rowdy pub-goers differs from reality because in real-life there are plenty of young males who do not behave like this or visit bars. This is not shown in the ad, as it focuses only on a group of men who do.

This representation of how young men act can affect the target audience in a few ways. For those who are similar in behaviour and pastimes to the men in the ad, the message that "If you drink then drive, you're a bloody idiot" is likely to sink in better as they can relate to the characters and situation in the ad. The ad may have a different effect on the young men who don't fit the presented stereotype, however. The happiness displayed by the characters could inspire non-stereotypical young male viewers to act in ways similar to the men on the screen, or on the other hand the ad's shocking ending could dissuade these people from drinking or going to pubs altogether.

BLOODY IDIOT: Young male stereotypes combine with an
up-front slogan to discourage drink-driving

The stereotype that young men are loud and drink excessively (supported by the "Mate!" ad) has a big effect on the way that society views this target audience. Many older people have disapproving opinions about young men, and this may lead to prejudice and prejudgement of the behaviour of young males who they come into contact with. This can lead to men who never drink irresponsibly (ie. before driving) being judged and treated as if they are boisterous, out-of-control citizens by people who don't know them and are influenced by media representations.

Young men in New Zealand are often stereotyped as being loud, beer-drinking socialisers, and the "Mate!" TV ad uses this representation to relate to its target audience and convince them not to drink and drive.

Men In New Zealand Media: "Mitre 10 Mega" TV Ad

A common ideology surrounding New Zealand men is that they should be resourceful, hands-on workers. Mitre 10 Mega's current "Easy As" promotion conveys this ideology and uses it to sell building supplies.

The Mitre 10 Mega television advertisement sends a blunt message to New Zealanders, and in particular Kiwi men: You want to be a hard worker. You want to build things yourself. You don't want help, and you don't want people to do things for you:

This ideology of men being hard-working is conveyed by the dialogue and tone of the narrator and the contrasting facial expressions of the men in the video. The narrator isn't subtle in announcing that men should enjoy construction:

"..there's the 'pay someone else to do it' type. You don't wanna be this type."

The viewers are told that they should be like the first man in the video, who builds and fixes things himself, rather than the second man, who pays other people (presumably professionals) to do the work for him. The narrator's shift in tone from a happy voice when describing the first man to a disapproving one when describing the second man also helps to convey this ideology to the audience. The contrast in facial expressions between the two men also reinforces the idea that the first man is preferable as he bears a content smile whereas the second man looks uncomfortable and perhaps dissatisfied with himself for not engaging in DIY.

MEN WHO AREN'T BUILDERS: "You don't wanna be this type"

These techniques are effective in creating the ideology by appealing to people's basic wants- people want to fit in, and they want to be happy. The Mitre 10 Mega ad tells men that if they are resourceful and active in construction then they will be happy and more accepted by society.

This ideology is enforced by Mitre 10 Mega in their ad to get people to buy their products (building supplies). After telling viewers that they want to build and fix things, (and definitely don't want to be like the second man who pays workers to work for him- workers who may not shop at Mitre 10 Mega) the narrator  explains that by following instructions on their website and by buying equipment from Mitre 10 Mega that you will be able to be like the first, "ideal" man. This ideology of Kiwi men shows biased thinking and does not reflect rational real-world ideals because exchanging money (which is worked for) for skilled services can be a sensible option in many cases. It is also not a fair or realistic ideology for many people who lack the physical capabilities required to perform construction (ie. people with disabilities) or people who simply don't have enough time to dedicate to such tasks (such as travelling businessmen or students in higher education).

This ideology affects the targeted group by making men feel like it's important that they build things and fix problems themselves. At the end of the advertisement, the viewers are told: "DIY, it's in our DNA". This message implies that it is natural to want to engage in DIY, and therefore men who do not get involved in building things are not normal. This ideology can have a large impact on the target audience, especially those men who don't fit the ideology, as it makes them feel less manly. It is these people, represented by the DIY-hesitant second man, who the marketing campaign is primarily aimed at. When confronted with the opportunity to build or fix things, those people who submit to the ideology (in order to be a "normal" or "favourable" man) are likely to take on the job themselves and purchase supplies from Mitre 10 Mega.

DIY: "It's in our DNA"

The ideology doesn't only affect the thinking of the target group, however; it can also shape the way that society perceives the men around them. For example, constructive men could be seen as more attractive to women than non-constructive men due to their perceived greater masculinity. Men who avoid construction could also be more prone to sitting lower in the hierarchy of social groups and workplaces than the idealistic DIY-men.

There are few ideologies in New Zealand as strong as the resourceful, DIY-loving Kiwi bloke, and Mitre 10 Mega uses this ideology and its social impact as a way to sell their building supplies.