Very important to a successful advertisement is the use of semiotics. Semiotics, among other things, plays a major role in catching the attention of the intended target market such as men, women, adults or teens. The placement of certain images, text, colors, aand other signs is a key part of the overall successfulness of the ad.
             I have also learned that the use of semiotics varies with the kind of product being advertised, however between similar products, the overall theme of the ads seems to stay the same with few exceptions. For example, many automobile ads stress a feeling of freedom or excitement from driving a certain kind of automobile. They do this by using images that make the vehicle especially more rugged or versatile than other vehicles. Alcoholic beverage ads, another example, insinuate that you will be more popular at the party scene and will have more fun if you drink a certain kind of rum, vodka, or beer.
             The example that I have chosen follows the same pattern as the other examples I have explained. I looked through magazines aimed and men, and then did the same for women's magazines. I found all the advertisements for perfume or cologne that I could find. I looked for a good use of semiotics in each as to whom it was intended for. I also looked for differences and similarities between what makes an ad more geared toward men, women, or in a few cases both.
             The first magazine I looked though was Maxim magazine. This is a monthly issued magazine geared strongly towards men. It has articles on very "manly" things such as women (sex), beer, and sports. I found a total of seven ads for different brands of fragrances for men. Then I tried to sort them by how they uses semiotics to gain the readers attention and how they appealed to men over other markets besides the fact that they were in a very "manly" magazine. The groups of ads, not to my surprise, strongly backed up the famous saying, ...