Iconic Ads: Chanel No 5 – Mother’s Day

When you were in primary school, there are high chances that your teacher had you and your classmates do a Mother’s Day art project to give to your mom. Probably, you couldn’t wait to surprise your mum with the artwork.

Chanel’s Mother’s Day ad campaign looked different in 2020. To market their eponymous No. 5 fragrance, Chanel developed a tender and heartfelt advertising campaign. The campaign is a lovely way to honour moms by suggesting they reward themselves for everything they do. This commercial has a powerful message for all the mothers out there.

Posters featuring a child’s drawing of a Chanel No. 5 perfume bottle and the words “Happy Mother’s Day” are sure to get a few chuckles from passersby. Because motherhood is so challenging, this campaign seeks to recognise and honour all mothers for their contributions. Mothers should take time for themselves, a concept Chanel expressed (treat themselves to a bottle of Chanel No. 5, that is).

The director of Chanel’s digital creative team, Vincent Fichard, explains, “All parents here at Chanel have kids passing by the office, and quite often they end up re-drawing our classic beauty products.”

Even though most mothers don’t buy themselves Mother’s Day presents, Chanel’s internal creative team created a campaign directed squarely at moms. They might be influencing women to request fragrances from their spouses. Getting moms to consider Chanel No. 5 as a possible Mother’s Day present is also perhaps to expand their thinking.

As a mother, you won’t have much need for high-end things. Moms may feel overly pampered or self-indulgent by buying perfumes. As a mother, you’re expected to put everyone else’s needs before your own and sacrifice your desires. This seems at odds with the luxurious reputation of a company like Chanel.

This advertisement aims to normalize the concept. As a mother, you may still appreciate fashion. It’s not inappropriate for mothers to ask for luxury items like an expensive perfume. Instead of going too far and depicting “elegant parenting,” which may be seen as a violation of corporate identity, the film avoids that trope.

A person’s identity is shaped by emotional experiences, thus appealing to those memories and emotions can help your message resonate with them. Chanel was able to combine strong feelings with specific, easily identifiable recollections successfully.

This is how Chanel was able to create such an effective ad campaign with only a sketch and a message. Learn about the people who will be hearing your message and what you can do to bring them together and make them feel invested in what you have to say.