Author(s)

Tian Peng

Corresponding Author

Tian Peng

ABSTRACT

Ambassadors in cosmetic advertising was traditionally regarded as females’ arena. However, facing with the need to constantly find new growth drivers, cosmetic brands increasingly use male as advertising ambassador. This phenomenon is popular in Asian countries recently. Taking four male advertising of Estée Lauder as examples, this article uses semiotic approach to detect the motivation behind the male ambassadors’ advertising. The results show that the rising social status in discourse for women and the acquiescence of men as the first sex makes the reverse endorser advertisements of women's cosmetics becoming possible.

KEYWORDS

Celebrity endorsements, advertising, semiotic triangle, gender