Taking a stand on a political platform is risky no matter the person. The stakes at taking a stand are even higher for corporate companies whose business is appealing to consumers for profit. Some companies have played their hand at taking a stand in hopes to win a larger client base, and sometimes, the sells proved to be beneficial for them, but that doesn't mean it always helps their overall image. It may prove to be a risk worth taking, but sadly, often the end results in the advertising campaign backfiring in a negative way. Appealing to the public and keeping positive relations is tricky to begin with, and companies hire teams of people to work tirelessly to stay on the public's good side. However, one small mistake or just one little advertisement taken the wrong way, and the company falls from the public's good graces.
Gillette, the razor company, saw the struggles that come with making a social movement as the main campaign of advertising. At the start of this year, Gillette released an ad that they wanted to reshape the company. After 30 years of sporting their slogan, "The best a man can get," the company felt it was time to redefine what that truly meant. They wanted to throw away old "toxic masculine" thinking that revolves around behavior of men and represent a more inclusive and positive image for men. Their goal was to elevate the standard of the best that men can be.
Though this advertisement appeared to have received a positive response on social media openly, there was more of a quiet dislike.
Just sell some damn razors and keep your social justice stupidity out of it. Looks like it's @DollarShaveClub from now on.
It does not matter the intention of the advertisement. The ad may meant to be a positive reflection of a political view, but it is taken as offense or insensitive. It is all about the public's perception, and that is something that no one, not even a team of hired advertising professionals, can predict. When it comes to public relations, the safest bet is always to be Switzerland. Keep your nose clean and appeal to everyone. Don't target a particular group because then you lose an entire of population of potential clients. Stay neutral and keep your nose out of social or political platforms; leave that to the politicians.
Gillette, the razor company, saw the struggles that come with making a social movement as the main campaign of advertising. At the start of this year, Gillette released an ad that they wanted to reshape the company. After 30 years of sporting their slogan, "The best a man can get," the company felt it was time to redefine what that truly meant. They wanted to throw away old "toxic masculine" thinking that revolves around behavior of men and represent a more inclusive and positive image for men. Their goal was to elevate the standard of the best that men can be.
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Though this advertisement appeared to have received a positive response on social media openly, there was more of a quiet dislike.
"At time of publishing, Gillette’s video has more than 3 million views and 265,000 “dislikes”—six times more the amount of people who “liked” the video." (source)
The ad was not received well even if there was not a lot of people outspoken by it. A few people seemed to express the overall disdain for the advertisement by saying they wished that Gillette would leave their social opinions out of ads.
Just sell some damn razors and keep your social justice stupidity out of it. Looks like it's @DollarShaveClub from now on.
— Mark Dice (@MarkDice) January 14, 2019 (source)
Many people felt annoyed by the fact that a razor company was trying to take a stand on social issues. They felt it was not their place and saw through the marketing strategy not appreciating it too well. Other popular opinion against the advertisement saw it as insensitive. Many people saw it came out around the time of the #metoo movement. They said that this company had no right to try to be involved in such a volatile social crisis.
"others assert that a shaving brand shouldn’t be involved with movements such as #MeToo."(source)
This is a prime example of how in attempts to sympathize with a group of people, it actually offends them. Some people feel that a company has no right to stand with them because they are removed form the situation and don't understand. Others are offended that a company would use a social movement as a means to advertise their product.
Taking a stand with a controversial topic always runs the risk of backlash. In fact, it is a guarantee to offend at least on group of people. This can help with sales, but it can also hurt a company's image. Nike felt this heat when it signed Colin Kaepernick.
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This ad campaign did well for Nike in the beginning, but research showed that Nike's stock dropped 3.2% within days of release. While some people jumped on board and stocked up on Nike after sale, a whole other group of people boycotted the brand. Even the current president of the United States tweeted bashing the brand. People began making videos of burning their Nike shoes in protest and outrage.
Nike can afford to make controversial stands in their advertising because they are such a mega brand that it is hard for them to lose a critical amount of money. Most brands cannot afford this luxury of greatly offending a group of people much less have them openly hate and boycott the brand. This may have not killed their sales, but it definitely hurt their image with many Americans.
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