White bears, in practice Polar bears, are much more popular than brown bears. Polar bears appear in almost three-quarters of all bear commercials, and they are capable of a wide variety of roles.

The Polar bear
• suggests winter season
• stands for nature and the environment
• stands for the polar regions in need of protection
• is chosen because of its behaviour
• is chosen because of its strength or robustness
• suggests cold and inverse conditions
• stands for Art Deco
• stands for Russia
• is chosen for a reason we don't see.

 Usage type:  Polar bears suggesting winter season

They like to stress that the quality of the service is top-notch and that is why the expression Beresterk is used which translates as strong as a bear and is often used to indicate very good, or best in its kind and also performing exceptionally well.

(3) the polar bear is only chosen because the advert was published during the local winter season. There is nowhere any mention of anything relating to the bear.

In № 4 we see the famous Coca Cola Polar bears wishing us the best for the new year (in Italian). The polar bear appears for the first time in the brand's commercials in 1922 (in France, ‡). The animal became very popular with the campaign of 1993 where it appears in an animated version inspired by the dog of one of the campaign's creators. I think we can safely say that the appearance of the polar bear is a coincidence and has nothing to do with any characteristic of the bear.

 Usage type:  Polar bear stands for nature and the environment

the polar bear or the Arctic. They always write about nature or the environment. But it is almost certain that the choice of the polar bear is no coincidence, at least not in the №s 5 – 7. After all, the telecom operator (5), the producer of soy-based products (6), and the seller of framed nature photographs (7) all donate part of the purchase price to WWF.

In № 8, an advert for an LCD TV, Nature, in the person of the polar bear, calls on us to save the environment. It goes like this (from Dutch): … People love watching nature on TV. But nature also watches people. With the urgent call to live greener. … award for low energy consumption … You protect the environment and save on your energy bill. There is no mention of the production process for that green screen, even though the manufacturing presents significant environmental challenges.

 Usage type:  Polar bear stands for polar regions in need of protection

by an urban transport company (1, 2) where the polar bear stands for the cold season. № 9 is also for urban transport but this time the bear is the link to the environment. The bear plays himself and thanks the user of public transport for protecting the environment were the polar bear lives (from Dutch): Thank you. With [public transport company], you protect a piece of polar ice every day.

The food packaging company of № 10 also uses the bear to remind us of the environment and the planet even. The text is full of triggers to attract the environmentally conscious consumer with references to health, nature, environment, climate, CO₂, and more, and closes with Good for us. Good for you. And good for the polar bears.

But unlike the previous example, neither the polar regions are mentioned, nor anything specific to the bear, and therefore any other iconic animal species could also be shown.

says № 11, about how you can protect the environment and combat climate change while doing so. We see how the heat escaping through the chimney melts a large hole in a snow-covered landscape inhabited by polar bears. They keep quiet about the space occupied by the new constructions

(12) is from a bank that only uses your savings positively, for example, to solve the climate crisis or for fair trade, for example, but not for fossil fuels, weapons, tobacco, or animal testing, etc., as explained in detail on their website. So the choice of polar bears on a melting ice floe to refer to the climate crisis at the time of the 2008 financial crisis is not bad and even a little humorous. But just like in № 10, any other iconic species could have been chosen here as well.

(13) is very clear (from Dutch): The polar bear is strong, but it symbolizes the fragility of our planet. Knowing that our planet has its limits regar­ding natural resources … So that makes it clear why the species was chosen. Note that no attempt is made to refer to climate or the poles.

by a travel company (14) who goes to the Arctic. The advert tells us about discovering breathtaking icebergs, spotting polar bears and whales, encounters with the Inuit, ... There is no mention of a vulnerable or protected environment: the polar bear simply means polar region without additional meaning.

 Usage type:  Polar bear is chosen because of its behaviour

(15) starts with a play of sounds in Dutch (Ice bears are wise bears) and goes on with a long text around their diet. Polar bears are really sound of mind. They know better than anybody else the advantages of fish oil, the ultimate weapon of nature … And precisely like Polar bears choosing only the best of fish are we using only the purest fish oil … The product then enhances your memory, is good for a stable mind, strengthens your immune response.

A clear example of the popular theme learned from Mother Nature. There is one problem though. The whole thing is based on the wrong assumption that Polar bears consume a lot of fish †. In reality their diet consists mainly of different species of seals. They only occasionally eat some fish. The product may then very well give you the best of nature at the sharpest price, the advertisement, however, is sloppy work.

№ 16 with Next month … sleep (Zzz). The advert was published in April in the Northern Hemisphere. Next month therefore must be May and the bear can't be taken to represent winter season. The important thing then must probably be that the bear is sleeping. But then they could have chosen any sleeping animal. Or perhaps they thought polar bears hibernate? Which they don't.

№ 17 we also see a mother with her child, just like in № 16, but here the adult bear is awake. The advert is about network security and the text goes (from Dutch):

If securing your company data can be this simple, why make it difficult?,
continues with Instinctively the best solutions for your company,
and concludes It is that simple: follow your instincts.

The image clearly radiates maternal care and the adult bear represents your company, which takes care of its data symbolized by the small one. So there's absolutely no reason it had to be this particular photo. Photos 16 and 18 would work just as well, as would any mother-and-child image (e.g. Elephant, Horse, or Penguin).

It is remarkable that two times in the short text reference is made to instinct. It is not clear why that instinct suddenly appears, because nothing in the text refers to the bear. We also see references to instinct in various other animal species, and we almost never understand why. It seems like a last resort by the writer to suggest some connection to the image.
See more references to instinct (with bee, cat, crab, dolphin, pinguin).

 Usage type:  Polar bear is chosen because of its strength or robustness

says № 19, in order to prevent respiratory infections. The same brand also provides resistance (20). Although there is an implicit reference to the cold climate, the choice of a polar bear is not optimal. Is not precisely the cold air of the north the least seeded with infectuous material? A polar bear in particular has no need for pills to fight infections.

(21) is about pumps designed for heavy work in a harsh environment. Just like the bear is adapted to the harsh polar conditions. Nowhere in the text is there any reference to specific cold conditions. Consequently, any other animal adapted to a hostile environment (e.g. desert, mountains) could have been chosen just as well.

 Usage type:  Polar bear suggests cold and inverse conditions

it is no surprise that the animal is often called upon when dealing with cold or harsh conditions, especially when it is about protection against those conditions. In most of the examples, the bear actually represents the reader, that is you, who will no longer be bothered by the hostile outside world.

№ 22 with (from Dutch) Tired! Empty! Exhausted! Not surprising after a flu-ridden, long and very cold winter. is a typical example, as are the №s 24 – 26. In all of them the reservation made at № 19 is also valid.

(23) is about maintenance of home heating systems. Here too, the bear is you and the animal reminds you of the cold winter that you will survive without any worries if you keep your installation properly maintained. We see roughly the same reasoning in № 27. But here the advice is to have a new environmentally friendly system installed. № 28 is also about maintenance: Without maintenance nothing works!. Now the intent is to keep you cool instead of warm. It is about airco systems for vehicles. If the polar bears feel comfortable, so will you.

(29) is about thermal underwear. The trio of bears brings to mind the icy cold of the Arctic (the thermometer reads -20°C labeled Alaska), but the thermals bring that up to a pleasant 24.

optimal thermal insulation (30) do the same thing. The text doesn't mention the polar bear but I understand that the animal evokes the outside world and its hat with earflaps probably signifies the windows that keep the cold out.

 Usage type:  Polar bear stands for Art Deco

king in the immense blue and whiteness of the arctic. He symbolizes … uncompromized power and serenity. In this world of pure air and water where everything stands for beauty and perfection, he is life itself. (№ 31 translated from French).

Nothing in this text points to any connection between the bear and the windows. But there is a connection with Art Deco! The genre called animalier sculpture was very popular in France in the 19th and well into the 20th century. Polar bear was a favorite model of the famous decorator Ruhlmann (1879 – 1933) who featured it prominently in many of his interiors.

 Usage type:  Polar bear stands for Russia

(32) is atypical because the role of Russia is usually played by a brown bear. The advert announces a series of articles about the former Soviet Union. The long text also tries to play with words (from Dutch): … The Russian bear is at least trying to sell its skin dearly. and also … We pace extensively back and forth ¥ through the redesigned cultural landscape.

 Usage type:  Polar bear is chosen for a reason we don't see

form a strange couple. Both come with the words Activity, Tolerance, Therapy compliance forming a triangle. From the small print of the first we learn that it is an advert for a product against respiratory infections (see our remarks about № 19). Advert № 34 announces a seminar about Women, social inequality and health. I don't understand why the same title and image were chosen in both cases. I also don't see the connection with the polar bear; certainly not for the latter.

relief! (35) belongs to a series about an ointment for haemorrhoids. It does not look like this polar bear is very happy with the results. The advert with the elephant is much better. It relates better to the habits of an elephant and the animal shown has a happy look.

This is made even clearer by the fact that the same agency also published a version with giraffes standing on an iceberg. The method, of taking a species of a tropical habitat and place it in a cold environment —or the reverse— (f.e. Camels, Penguins) appears to be more common with companies who deliver services instead of goods.

Brown bears