Semiotic Analysis of “Mau Kemana” Advertisement in Youtube As Tiket.Com”s Branding Strategy

Semiotic Analysis of “Mau Kemana” Advertisement in Youtube As Tiket.Com”s Branding Strategy

1Amanda Venska Pratiwi,

1Communication Department, BINUS Graduate Program, Master of Strategic Marketing Communication, Bina Nusantara University, Jakarta, Indonesia 11480

2 Rahmat Edi Irawan,

2Communication Department, BINUS Graduate Program, Master of Strategic Marketing Communication, Bina Nusantara University, Jakarta, Indonesia 11480

Abstract:- Technological developments change all aspects of marketing a product. The use of technology for marketing travel agents is also widely used because it makes it easier for buyers to access anywhere. Travel agents are competing to make the services they offer attractive by making promotions that can be remembered by the wider community. One of them is Tiket.com which made two very interesting and famous advertisements in 2017. This company well known for their unique and fun advertisements in public. In this research we choose ttheir two famous advertisements in 2017 called Mau Kemana? which have two version Raja Ampat and Bromo. In this both advertisements, a message in the form of a tagline was conveyed by considering the location of the video ads, the dialogue, adding ornaments, timing, selecting music, character actors or actresses. , company image, and selection of sentences that can convince the public to choose this travel agent. The purpose of this research is to find out how these advertising elements form messages in society by using Roland Barthes' semiotic analysis to see the meaning of denotation, connotation and myths or messages in both advertisements to build Tiket.com's corporate image and make the tagline " Mau Kemana?" which mean where are you going? became a strong tagline and known in society. The meaning of denotation, connotation, and myths contained in these advertisements is depicted with characters and scenes that can be interpreted to describe the potential customers the advertising market is targeting by using the sentence "Mau Kemana?" which has the meaning of a question sentence for someone who wants to travel according to this travel company and becomes a strong meaning in forming the mindset of buyers who hear the sentence will remember the Tiket.com company and to attract customer attention from this both advertisements.

Keywords: Semiotic analysis, Tiket.coms advertisements, Message, Branding Strategy, Social Media Marketing

1. INTRODUCTION

   Internet rapid development in Indonesia is utilized by many travel entrepreneurs to develop their offline enterprises and moving it into online platform, including traveling ticket purchases. With this facility, buyers can purchase tickets anywhere. One of the biggest online travel agents is Tiket.com. In 2011, Tiket.com was established to be the first online travel agent in Indonesia, when the internet had just been developed in Indonesia. Tiket.com observed a chance where people can purchase their traveling tickets easily. [1] By

   focusing on online sales in website and application, customers are invited to use an easy and practical way of conducting a transaction to fulfill their traveling needs anywhere and anytime. Special promos are also provided in the Tiket.com application along with lower prices compared to transacting on the website. Customers can also see their points and exchange them through the Tiket.com application [2]

   Tiket.com has established many promotions from advertisements on YouTube, television, printed media, emails, and other internet media. Promotion is a crucial variable in a marketing mixture conducted by the company in marketing their goods or services. As one of Indonesia's biggest online travel agent, Tiket.com should discover a branding strategy that differentiates its company from competitors. Not only depending on the marketing, but Tiket.com also develops its mobile telephone application. Tiket.com also created a very memorable advertisement The mau kemana? tagline used in the Tiket.coms online marketing was due to its relationship with responses when a person is invited to travel in real life. This brand campaign even made it to the top 10 successful campaigns since 2016 on Facebook. In this platform, the Tiket.com campaign has managed to reach a transactional growth for two-fold and six-fold of airplane ticket purchases, and an increase of 41% in Tiket.com websites traffic from February to March 2017. Behind this advertisement was a branding message from Tiket.com when the people said, Mau kemana?; hence when people want to travel, they will remember Tiket.com as an established brand association. This campaign was selected because Tiket.com is not merely a platform to sell transportation tickets but caters to a broader field [3].

2. LITERATURE

2.1. Corporate Branding

Corporate branding includes names, terms, signs, symbols/designs, or combinations from those elements to identify or differentiate a companys product from competitors in the related subjects mind [4]. An image illustrating the company is created to be the companys characteristic. Corporate branding consists of visions,

core values, image, and corporate actions to increase profitability and sales, reduce costs, and create a unique position in th market based on a promotion campaign conducted following the effective company branding strategy [5]. Branding is a marketing tool with a competitive advantage that is strategic and sustainable in marketing. It is not uncommon for a company to formulate and implement strategic and interesting branding. In each marketing activity, branding plays a vital role because it is needed to create a beneficial business, and as a means to communicate with customers. The brand name gives information to customers on the product quality, and at the same time, also becomes a driving force for producers to achieve a high and consistent quality standard not to lose customers [6]

1. Roland Barthes Semiotic

   Semiotic is a science discussing signs. This science considers that social phenomena occur in society and culture have semiotic signs. Learning about systems, rules, and conventions enable the sign to have meaning [7]. One of the figures contributing to modern semiotic is a Swiss linguistic expert, Ferdinand de Saussure. Saussure put signs in a communication context by separating signs where sign form can be a voice or scribble in a material form. A sign is an illustration of the thought and concept of language [8].

   Most travel agency advertisements offer a variety of concepts such as fun, style, and self-confidence where these concepts are a series of buildings articulated in the advertisement to change the appearance of the message conveyed by the product. Advertising, in the context of this research, is seen as an arena used to resolve social contradictions, offer models of identity, and determine existing social orders. The advertisement concept made by Tiket.com using the Mau Kemana? tagline was presented by a person with a unique appearance in a condition that mismatched the appearance concept, hence expressing the Mau Kemana? question by the surrounding people. The Mau Kemana? concept also expressed to which destination, for what purpose, such as tickets, hotels, and accommodations acquired in a sole travel agent. The Mau Kemana? tagline was created modestly and attracted customers to remember and become the companys image. This study used the Roland Barthes semiotic to analyze two advertisements of Tiket.com to discover and elaborate implicit messages contained or to be delivered from those avertisements.

   Semiotic utilization in analyzing an advertisement, according to Roland Barthes, comprise of denotative and connotative meanings. In the denotative itself, two aspects are present, i.e., marker and marking of an object. Connotative clarifies enormously on the object. The semiotic analysis utilization, particularly in connotative, is to seek the advertisement meaning in an advertisement. For instance, an advertisement from Indonesian e- commerce, i.e., Bukalapak, with its agate advertisement where the connotative meaning of such a scene is that

   the buyer buys something from an online transaction that does not enable the buyer to directly view the goods, hence when the buyer gets the order, it becomes a beautiful moment [9].

   A myth or message contained is not only an evidence- less sentence, but contains a message, impression, goal, and specific meaning. Barthes extends the myth perception by entering each symbol that conveys a meaning. The myth itself is treated as a metaphor that helps people in perceiving experiences related to culture. According to Barthes, to naturalize a culture, one has to create dominant cultural and historical values, attitudes, and beliefs look entirely natural on its own, and therefore, an objective and accurate reflection of its own [10].

   In a study titled Text Of Cigarette Advertisement: A Semiology Study Of Roland Barthes [11], stating an advertisement examined using the Roland Barthes semiotic analysis consisted of two stages, i.e., marker and marking. This case study discussed a cigarette advertisement where the denotation stage was only expressed in sign language to illustrate it. In a cigarette advertisement creation, the cost expensed to replace the product illustration becomes a story directed to give customers a deep impression. Insight, in marketing terms, is an advertisement that directly touches customers psychology where when the customer watches the advertisement, they will be associated with the subject and topic within the advertisement. Customers will perceive the same thing as presented in the ad. The self- actualization concept in the advertisement of happiness, enjoyment, pride, and confidence are myths over life reality. The myth is constructed to make customers believe what the ad illustrates if they buy the product. The construction in an advertisement is a set of ethereal concept and attracts customers to the advertised product.

2. Advertisement

   Advertisement means news or message to encourage, persuade the public to be attracted to the goods and service offered and a notification to the public regarding the goods or service on sale in the market, put in the mass media (such as newspaper and magazines), or in a public place [12].

   Besides being used as a marketing activity, advertising can also be used as a communication activity. A marketing activity consists of a marketing strategy that can be masked as a marketing logic that can be used by business units to achieve marketing goals [13]. The purpose of advertising is to influence consumer attitudes by introducing products and services to consumers so that consumers are provoked or influenced to buy or use the advertised products.

   Advertising also has specific objectives, including to form awareness of a new product or brand, inform consumers of the features and advantages of the product or brand, form an individual perception of the product or

   brand, form a taste for the product or brand and also persuade consumers to buy the product or brand advertised. This objective is an attempt to increase consumer response to company offerings, which generates long-term sales profits [14].

   In a study entitled Effective Advertising as a Marketing Communication Strategy [15] explain the importance of advertising for a company in the marketing process, making advertisements must be made carefully and planned by considering the components in the advertisement to make the information effective and easily understood by the public. A positive response from the community is the company's main goal in offering its products to be accepted in the market. In advertising, producers or advertisers can choose more than one medium to convey the message they want to convey through the ad.

   These media are divided into two, i.e., top-line media, advertising media that uses electronic media and printed media, and top-line media. Top-line media is advertising that uses primary media such as electronic media and print media that can reach a broader range of consumers. Meanwhile, other media are bottom-line media, which are minor media or those rarely used by products to advertise products. To create a creative and attractive advertisement requires a strategic plan in advertising processing, from message planning, media planning, and how to convey the intended message.

3. Online Travel Agent

   The use of the internet revolution as a travel agent industry is currently competing with travel industries that still use traditional methods [16]. Online travel agents are travel agents that act as promotional media and online sales through websites or applications. The website or application is intended to distribute and facilitate booking ticket and hotel accommodation to tourism business providers [17].

   There are six benefits or online travel agent utilization for customers and the company, i.e., [18]:

   1. Convenience is a condition where the decision process made by consumers to make decisions to look for, compare and finally buy a product can be done comfortably and can be done anywhere

   2. Information, which is where consumers will get a lot of information including products and prices that are sold clearly in a short time when making transactions.

   3. Respond to market, where consumers will get everything easily and in control.

   4. Condition, where the real condition obtained by consumers or following their desires

   5. Reduce printing & postage costs, where the state of cost savings for promotion through printed media, leaflets and other physical forms,

   6. Reduce labor cost, which is where the cost of paying employees can be reduced or suppressed

4. YouTube

Social media is a medium for socializing with each other and is performed online, allowing humans to interact without being limited by space and time. Social media can be grouped into several major sections, namely:

1. Social Networks, social media to socialize and interact such as Facebook

2. Discuss, social media that facilitates groups to chat and discuss such as Google Talk)

3. Sharing, social media that facilitates people to share files, videos, music, and a place to promote advertisements in a visual form such as YouTube.

4. Publish, a place to write such as WordPress

5. Social game, social media of games to be conducted or played together such as PUBG Mobile

6. MMO, a more massive game place such as Warcraft

7. Virtual worlds (e.g., habbo)

8. Livecast (e.g., Live)

9. Livestream (e.g., Streamcraft)

10. Micro blog (e.g., Twitter) [19]

    In its development, social media has beaten conventional or traditional media, such as television, radio, or print media. This advantage can occur because social media does not require a lot of labor, large capital, and not bound by massive production infrastructure facilities such as offices, buildings, and other reporting equipment. Social media users can even be active, take a role and be independent in determining content on social media anytime and anywhere [20]

    Social media is part of a system of relations, connections, and communication; hence we must respond to the functions contained in the theory of relations, connections, and community communication. Attitudes that must be developed related to the role, benefits, and functions of social media can be such as a means of learning, listenng and conveying, a means of documentation, administration, and integration, as management, and as a means of control, evaluation, and measurement [21].

    In this case study, the advertisement was broadcasted on television and uploaded to the official YouTube Tiket.com channel as a marketing strategy. YouTube's use was to cover a broader market and can be accessed at any time, not limited by existing viewing slots such as on television. YouTube is a video sharing site that companies and individuals often use to promote products or services that will be sold in an attractive video form and have a unique storyline to compete to make unique promotional videos.

    1. METHODOLOGY

       1. Research design and method

          1. Research Design

             The study type employed in the Semiotics Analysis of Mau Kemana? Advertisement in YouTube as the Tiket.coms Branding Strategy study was descriptive

             with a qualitative approach involving qualitative data collection. The study was a semiotic study type. Semiotics fundamentally aims to understand the signs with particular goals. Semiotics can be classified into three investigation classes, i.e., syntactic, a research branch in semiotics that examines the formal relationship between one sign and other signs. The second branch is semantics, a research branch in semiotics that studies the relationship among referred signs or objects. The last one is pragmatic, a research branch in semiotics that studies the relationship between signs and sign usage [22].

          2. Research Method

       The research method utilized was Roland Barthes semiotics analysis method. Semiotics is a collection of theories regarding how signs represent an object or idea into another shape. In Roland Barthes semiotics analysis, denotative, connotative, and myth concepts are present as the analysis center.

       Fig 1: Roland Barthes Semiotics Map [23] Denotative comprises markers and signs, where denotative is the primary illustration of signs to be explained connotatively. Connotative is the explanation of a sign, easily observed to understand a sign. Then, myths or messages function to explain the message illustrated by a sign.The semiotics study method was employed in this study to examine Tiket.coms advertisement titled Mau Kemana? aiming to illustrate that semiotics reveal denotative, connotative, and mythical meanings in the ad. Semiotic is a science or analytical method for studying signs. Semiotic is basically about studying how humanity interprets things; in this case, it should not be confused with communicating orally. Semiotic breaks down the content of the text into parts and connects them with broader discourses. A semiotic analysis provides a means of relating a particular text to the message system, which can operate to achieve that mark [24].

    2. DATA COLLECTION

       In obtaining the required data of the study, the researchers used several data collection methods. These data collection techniques were carried out using two data types, i.e., primary and secondary. The data collection methods used by the researchers were the following:

       1. Primary Data

          The data collection technique utilized in the study was an observation. The researchers observation was a

          direct observation on two Tiket.coms YouTube advertisements titled Mau Kemana? published in 2018. The observation was carried out using advertisement cutouts and applied an in-depth analysis on how the advertisements semiotics shape a Tiket.coms branding strategy.

       2. Secondary Data

       Secondary data was obtained from documents, books, e- books company data, news article and official sites discussing the study topic as the framework basis by analyzing the study's information.

    3. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

5.1 Results

5.1.1 Denotative, Connotative, and Mythical Analyses of Mau Kemana? Advertisements

Semiotics has continuity in advertising, packaging and brand logos for communication in the form of connecting consumption with the form of brands and goods to be advertised. Advertising is now considered not only as an occasional product information channel but also as a ubiquitous arena of communication that makes human perceptions creative and ambitious. It cannot be considered a subject in itself and persuades people to judge the brand and realize it. Advertising is considered not only as a tool to inform a product but also as an existing means of communication with the aim of making human perceptions creative [25].

The advertisement that will be analyzed in this research is Tiket.com ad "Mau Kemana? which is broadcast on Youtube as well as television. This ads has two unrelated series but has the same concept. This ads has a total duration of 61 seconds with each duration in one video, namely 30 and 31 seconds where the two ads also get a large number of viewers, almost 30 million viewers in total from these two ads and have a tagline that sticks in the minds of the public. In this advertisement, there are 4 core scenes in each series, in which there are sentences and scenes that emphasize the message, each scene in the advertisement is connected from one scene to another.

This ads uses a background, clothing and property that supports the visuals displayed in the ad. In the visual aspect and the shooting of this advertisement is based on indoor and outdoor venues by telling the cast is doing opposite activities in the two sets. As well as the depiction of the costumes used also have a different background from the background of the place used. The two advertisements also show the background of the beauty of tourist sites in Indonesia, which illustrates that the advertisement promotes service products marketed by the travel agent.

Denotative, Connotative, and Mythical Analyses of Mau Kemana? Raja Ampat Advertisements

Table 1: Denotative, Connotative and Mythical analyses of Mau Kemana? Raja Ampat Advertisemet

The first analyzed video was advertisement of Mau emana? Raja Ampat uploaded on YouTube on 21 November 2017. This ad illustrates a meeting scene in an office. However, during the meeting, one of the employees enters the room wearing a diving suit that does not match the condition.

The Mau Kemana? sentence expressed in the dialog aims to question the diving suit usage in a meeting room. It can also be interpreted as Tiket.coms tagline of Mau Kemana? in its application and site when customers order a ticket or accommodation.

5.1.1.2 Denotative, Connotative, and Mythical Analyses of Mau Kemana? Bromo Advertisements

Table 3: Denotative, Connotative and Mythical Analyses of Mau Kemana? Bromo Advertisements

The second analyzed video was the Mau Kemana? Bromo advertisement uploaded on 16 November 2017. The Mau Kemana? tagline was employed to describe the question expressed as the mothers curiosity upon observing the grandmother who wears holiday clothes at home. The Mau Kemana? sentence can be defined as a simple question to depict ones curiosity about others to know where they want to go. Then, it is used as a particular tagline remembered by the community due to its simplicity.

1. Analysis Results of Tiket.coms Branding Form

   The lifestyle transformation of middle-class communities in Indonesia, particularly in selecting comfort in holiday, is utilized by Tiket.com to run its business. Tiket.com is known with the Mau Kemana? tagline utilized as the companys branding strategy by having two principles, i.e., an integration that provides various selections to fulfill customer needs and platform that provides opportunities for young users to have an installment payment for travel fees in the application. The utilization of a simple Mau Kemana? tagline commonly used in daily activities when one wants to travel somewhere was effective since the tagline is the companys image. This tagline succeeded in attracting societys interest and becomes the new mindset when customers want to travel using Tiket.com.

2. Analysis Results of Mau Kemana? Tagline Meaning

Both Mau Kemana? advertisements analyzed in this study revealed that this sentence was used in dialogs asking the actor who wants to travel according to the ad theme to promote Raja Ampat and Bromo as tourism attractions. The Mau Kemana? tagline is a commonly expressed sentence by society; hence, it was easily accepted and remembered. When one mentions this sentence, they will remember Tiket.com, and therefore, the companys image is easily acceptable. The utilization of the Mau Kemana? tagline as the ad highlight is simple. However, since the sentence is commonly used in daily activities when one wants to travel somewhere, it was effective as the companys image. This tagline succeeded in attracting societys interest and becomes the new mindset when customers want to travel using Tiket.com.

1. 2 DISCUSSION

   1. Discussion of Denotative, Connotative, and Mythical Meanings of Tiket.com Advertisements

      In the Raja Ampat advertisement, the denotative sign illustrated was employees feeling bored with their working routine and wishing to travel, explained by a connotative sign illustrated by an actor wearing a diving suit to visit Raja Ampat. The ad's myth or message is that if one wants to visit Raja Ampat, they can use the Tiket.com application to visit any destinations. In the Bromo advertisement, the denotative sign in the ad was depicted by four family members gathering in the house and feeling bored. It was reinforced by a connotative sign where one of the family members enters the scene wearing holiday clothes and riding a horse. The actor wishes to travel to Bromo. The ad's myth or message is that everyone, regardless of age group depicted by the grandmother in the ad, can use the Tiket.com application to order traveling tickets. It is in line with Tiket.coms vision as an accessible application with a complete feature in one phone application.

   2. Discussion of Tiket.coms Branding Form Analysis

      Tiket.com targets middle-class communities in Indonesia and thus requires an appropriate company imge for those who want to travel and prefer comfort in their holidays. It follows the company principles, i.e., an integration that provides various selections to fulfill customer needs and a platform that provides opportunities for young users to have an installment payment for travel fees in the application. Tiket.coms Mau Kemana? advertisements show that actors in both ads represent the market targeted by Tiket.com, i.e., middle-class communities such as employees and families. Both ads demonstrate that Tiket.com has low prices, is accessible for everyone, and has various tourist destinations.

   3. Discussion of Mau Kemana? Tagline Meaning Analysis

   Mau Kemana? is a simple sentence translated into a question of where one wants to go. Tiket.com employed this simple sentence in two marketing ads to promote services offered. The Mau Kemana? tagline used in

   the online marketing of Tiket.com was utilized since it is related to the ethics of seeing or being invited by people to travel in daily life. This tagline succeeded in becoming the companys image where, in 2017, it became one of the best campaigns, and people associated this sentence with Tiket.com. The Mau Kemana? sentence was used as the company tagline in the ad and a feature in its official site due to customer confusion to determine their tourist destination. This feature emerged to help Tiket.com customers find various tourism objects in various destinations, both domestic and international. This idea is attractive since the feature uses Bahasa Indonesia, suitable with Tiket.com as an Indonesian travel agent, and becomes the company's characteristic. In competing with other companies, a company should have its characteristics, and Tiket.com successfully utilizes the Mau Kemana? sentence as its characteristic.

2. CONCLUSION

In this advertisement also has a myth or message in the form of a scene where a scene is shown showing the Tiket.com application that can accommodate vacation needs such as train tickets, planes, hotels, buses to entertainment tickets that can be obtained only from one application and the description of the application is easily accessed by anyone including the grandmother in the ad. The use of the sentence Mau Kemana? can be interpreted as a simple question describing one's curiosity to ask others where to go but is used as a tagline that sticks to the community due to its simplicity.

Its not just creating advertisements to promote their products, Tiket.com inserts the message it wants to send to buyers in every second and every scene in the ad. Travel agent advertisements usually look like luxury and only show the beauty of the tourist location that is being promoted so that the message addressed to buyers is only to provide a choice of places to go for a vacation. Insight in advertising terms is advertising that aptly touches consumer psychology. Upon seeing the advertisement, consumers will immediately feel associated with the subject and topic in it.

Consumers will feel the same way as what is shown in advertisements. Tiket.com makes its product advertisements not only to promote tourism but also to show how convenience and benefits customers get when using the services they provide by means of a unique message that is displayed in the advertisement that they made. With various creative ideas embodied in the audio-visual media, the advertisement captures the message direction advertisers want to convey to their target consumers. Namely, anyone can need a vacation depicted with two characters wearing vacation clothes in a location that does not match the circumstances depicted in the ad, i.e., the condition of being in a meeting and family gathering. An advertisement must be different from other advertisements, which can be seen from a unique and different storyline. The ad theme

"Mau Kemana?" very close to sentences that the community often utters so that they can be accepted readily. The various depictions of the characters in the advertisement represent the potential customers the advertising market is targeting. Through this study, it can be seen that these advertisements convey the intended message well to the broader community.

This study is an introduction to using semiotic for the analysis of travel agent advertisements displayed on YouTube. Most of the myths or messages developed in Tiket.com advertisements are that it is straightforward to carry out vacation plans using an online travel agent application that can be accessed anywhere and anytime. Following the function of advertising to make people interested in the products or services made, each advertiser must create a unique attraction to instill a particular impression in the audience's minds.

Placement of ads on the YouTube channel is an advertising strategy to provide messages captured by a wider audience. The creativity stated in the advertisement must be short based on a limited duration, but the information must be formulated for the public to accept it. The use of the tagline Mau Kemana? is simple but attractive and has a strong message in the ad to be accepted by the public. This study is expected to be one of the literature reviews that discusses how an advertisement has a simple message but can stick with the consumer.

BIBLIOGRAPHY