Merit’s Everything Bag. This ad delivers the message that you can get a free Merit tote bag with any online purchase over $125. Merit is a beauty brand that sells makeup and skincare products. This company sells their products in stores at Sephora, where I’ve purchased their products from time to time. The brand’s ad claims that you can receive a free tote bag along with an online purchase, however that ad may be confusing for some people. At the top, it says that the bag is a ‘free gift with purchase’, however the bottom says that the bag ‘ships free with orders over $125.’ These statements made me question if the bag is only free with orders over $125, or if it only ships for free with orders over $125, but you can still get it for free with any purchase, you would just have to pay shipping.
The visual aspect of this ad has the product placed right in the centre. It is a beige coloured tote bag, with the word “MERIT” written at the bottom of the bag in bold, dark brown, and all caps. A rather simplistic bag. It is placed on top of a stack of magazines, to give it a more elevated look, rather than having it placed slumped on the table. There is a wallet, and some cash on the right-hand side of it, and wired headphones dragging from behind the bag, and out towards the left-hand side of the bag. Also on the left-hand side of the bag are two Merit brand products, what appears to be a compact mirror, and a lipstick. Inside the bag itself, we see some papers, an envelope, and a headband poking out. There is also a set of keys and a pair of eyeglasses hooked over the side of the bag, there is also a brown fabric draping over the right-hand side of the bag, it looks like it could be a hat of some sort, maybe a toque. Behind the bag, is a light blue background that fades up into white, and the text at the top written in white so that it appears in contrast with the blue behind it. The bag, and the other objects are placed on an off-white table, and text at the button is typed in dark brown to contrast, with the word ‘FREE’ written in bold and all caps. There is also a link at the bottom of the ad that says ‘shop now’ and takes you directly to the Merit website, where you shop all their products.
The overall message this ad is delivering is that this is the perfectly imperfect bag. You can throw all your junk into it while still maintaining a sophisticated look. To me, what this is doing is trying to sell the bag, rather than sell their products. This may be because this is already an established, well known brand, and their range of products is quite small, with a number of only 8 total products that they sell. So by saying this, most of these brands’ consumers are already familiar with the products sold. In return the brand is trying to promote something new, in this case, it would be ‘The Everything Bag’, in order to get customers to buy more products, rather than trying to influence them into purchasing a new product. This ad could also be interpreted as selling a certain type of personality rather than an item or product. For example, it is clear to anyone that this bag is extremely minimalistic, and can honestly be recreated very easily, however, the way this bag is being used and portrayed is promoting a bag that screams mature and clean, but overflowing with personal, unique traits, or in other words, completely incomplete. Or, it could be very simple, and not deep at all. The company may just be trying to convince you to buy more. Seeing that their products prices range from $33 to $341, trying to convince you that if you’re going to buy something, you might as well push yourself to $125 to get the free bag.
I think I may be part of its target audience because I follow and support this brand. I am a fan of Merit beauty products, and have purchased multiple products repeatedly, as well as recommend Merit beauty products to my friends and family. So I can see why I would be part of their target audience, seeing as I usually press the links whenever I see a Merit ad. However, this ad didn’t convince me. I personally feel like it is not a smart financial decision to spend $125 on products just to get a free tote. If I needed a bag, I would much rather spend money on a bag that I actually want and have been eyeing for some time, rather than $125 worth of makeup and skincare products for a free tote bag. That’s my point of view, but I can see why this ad may influence others who are chasing a certain type of visual look, and who have the money to do so. Overall this brand uses a certain aesthetic to promote a certain emotional personality.
Bibliography
DeBelen, Bianca. “Marketing Makeup: How Advertising Cosmetics Affects Consumers.” Handle Proxy, Google Scholar, 24 Nov. 2021, hdl.handle.net/20.500.13013/605. Accessed 02 Feb. 2025.
Raghubir, P. (2004), Free Gift with Purchase: Promoting or Discounting the Brand?. Journal of Consumer Psychology, 14: 181-186. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15327663jcp1401&2_20
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