Recently, singer-songwriter Taylor Swift released a series of fun commercials in collaboration with Apple Music. The ads feature songs by Drake & Future (Jumpan) and Jimmy Eat World (The Middle), both of whom saw their sales explode after the premiere of the Apple Music ads (Simmons, 2016). While it's not yet known how many people subscribed to Apple Music after the ads, it's safe to say the campaign reached millions of Taylor Swift fans; 3.8 million, to be exact, and this figure is almost doubled on Facebook (Swant, 2016). In this article, I argue that the implied story and sequential quality of the ads explain to a large extent – ​​if not only – the success of the campaign. This is due to the marketing team's use of standardization and a sequential strategy. I will cite Abbot and Berger's chapters on storytelling, closing, and marketing to support my argument. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get an original essay The story and implied meaning of advertisements are central because of what they imply; showing a popular and respected industry figure like Taylor Swift, who has openly rejected other music streaming providers like Spotify, endorsing Apple Music suggests to the consumer that there is something special about Apple Music, something that makes it better (Peoples, 2015). Berger's chapter on marketing explains "we are...under the illusion that all of our decisions are based on logic, rationality, need, or our own notions of what is best for us" (Berger, 2004, p 141). Although the average consumer believes they chose Apple Music over its competitors for logical reasons, it's more likely that Taylor Swift's collaborative efforts with the company attracted an untapped demographic of consumers (i.e. say TS fans who didn't have access to his music on Apple Music). Spotify, but could on Apple Music). This persuasive message is conveyed in a subtle way, giving the consumer a feeling of power over their decision, which does not necessarily exist. The implicit political message is not the only meaning conveyed by the advertising narrative. The viewer is further drawn to the depiction of Taylor Swift performing uninteresting everyday activities, such as running on a treadmill. Taylor recounts her thoughts and states in a commercial "I hate cardio" ("TAYLOR vs. TREADMILL). This general opinion resonates with consumers and makes them feel like they have something in common with a popular icon. Abbot explains how this type of advertising works in his chapter on narrative rhetoric; he explains normalization as follows: …our need for narrative form is so strong that we don't really believe something is true unless we can see it as a story. Bringing a set of events into narrative coherence can be described as a way of normalizing these events. This makes them plausible, which allows us to see how they all “belong” (Abbot, 2002, p. 44). Let me explain this to you in the context of the advertising campaign studied here: Abbot explains that the standardization of a story relies heavily on whether we, as viewers, believe the events being told and can imagine them under the form of a story. Although Taylor Swift's ads don't necessarily convey a linear story, we are exposed to the story of Taylor Swift's daily life and the role that lists playApple Music playback to make those moments exciting. It's reasonably plausible that Taylor Swift works out on a treadmill, even if she doesn't like cardio. It's also reasonably plausible that she uses Apple Music playlists to help her prepare for cardio. And the fact that she falls off the treadmill, in what appears to be a very painful way, further elevates her from icon status to normal human being. The same logic applies to the second ad, dissected below. In "Taylor Mic Drop", she gets ready to go out (even though she's already in full makeup) and listens to an old man to make the moment more fun. The song chosen is significantly different from the song in the first commercial. The significant action in the commercial that I would like to focus on is when Taylor says in the second commercial "I used to listen to that in middle school" ("Taylor Mic Drop"). Once again, Taylor Swift normalizes herself, making audiences think of a young Taylor in middle school, before fame, jamming out to a popular song, just like us "normal" people. The normalcy displayed in advertisements, especially when the subject is someone the general public considers "above average" due to their celebrity statues, attracts viewers and consumers, making the advertisement a success for the company. To further analyze what makes the ad successful, in terms of storytelling, I will discuss the use of closure in the series, best explained by Abbott: “Closure is…best understood as something we look for in a story…” (57). This may seem vague, but let me explain: Abbot means that the conclusion is best understood as the satisfaction that viewers desire from the end of the narrative; Whether we are satisfied or not is another question (Abbot, 58). Regarding the Apple Music ads studied here, we are satisfied, and therefore close. What's satisfying about the commercials is the conclusive ending. While we can expect or hope that more Taylor Swift ads will be added to the campaign, the individual ads that already exist possess a degree of beginning, middle, and end that satisfies the viewer. The first commercial, for example, begins with Taylor preparing to do cardio, even though she doesn't enjoy it. The middle is when she finds Apple Music playlists for running, and the end is when the playlist she chooses is so good that she falls off the treadmill, and the commercial ends with the appropriate tagline “distinctly good” which sums up the main message. , perfectly (“TAYLOR versus TREADMILL”). The coherent story told, although admittedly in a very short period of time, gives the audience a feeling of satisfaction that attracts them to the brand, which makes the advertisement successful. The second ad also gives the audience a sense of closure, but not in the same way as the first. "Taylor Mic Drop" also has a beginning, middle, and end, but the tagline is different ("Every song for every moment"), which makes the message of this commercial different. This begs the question: Isn't it a serial campaign if the message of each ad is different? Not necessarily. Other serial ads, like Geico's "Unskippable" campaign, carry the same slogan throughout, clearly classifying the campaign as a series. Even though the Taylor ads don't do this, it's still a serial ad because the central message of the campaign itself is still present (i.e. Apple Music playlists can make any moment extraordinary, even for someone who is already as “extraordinary” as him)..