Good Advertising Dialogues With Culture
But it can go terribly wrong
Good adverts dialogue with culture and are aware that they don’t exist in a vacuum. As a result, socially responsive adverts often generate interest.
What is a socially responsive advert? In short, those that tap into cultural veins and capture the zeitgeist. Nonetheless, the stakes are high when product advertising pushes a message alongside it’s product.
Done right, an advert informed by culture will galvanise people to pay attention and ideally buy the product. Done wrong, it can alienate buyers and actually lead them to boycott the product.
Adverts for charities and message-based organisations have it the easiset because they don’t have to package a product alongside a message which can be seen as insincere or didactic; the message is the product. Whilst charities, non-profits and multinationals can use advertising to push an important message without any backlash (domestic violence, male suicide and systemic racism for example), product based adverts run the risk of suffering criticism for engaging cultural issues, and a heavy message is vulnerable when a product is hiding behind it.
Gillette’s We Believe: The Best Men Can Be commercial is a prime example of a product-focused advert trying to embed a deeper message within. The advert engaged with the #MeTooMovement by exhorting men to do better. The 2 minute commercial showed scenes of toxic masculinity in action which illicited mixed opinions and sparked a heated debate. Whilst some praised it as a progressive step towards tackling toxic masculinity, others said they felt patronised and vilified. Piers Morgan, who is in all fairness an actual villain, came out to say he would boycott the product. In short, there are arguments for why the ad was a success and why it was a failure; I’ll leave it to you to make up your mind. One thing is for sure; it put the brand in the spotlight.
Moreover, Pepsi and their Kendal Jenner advert sparked controversy as they clumsily tried to push their product in an ad referencing BLM protests and tensions with police. So distasteful was the adverts nod to the flower power protests and the image of Ieshia Evans at the Baton Rouge protests, the ad was removed in less than 24 hours after public outcry. This tone deaf and ham-fisted ad was a 101 on how not to engage with the culture. The company’s perception levels among Millennials suffered and took nine months to fully recover. It’s purchase consideration slide was hit even harder.
Lastly, adverts don’t have to dialogue with culture in a serious or grave tone; cheeky winks or subversions can be just as effective as poignant campaigns. Specsavers “Should Of Gone To Barnard Castle” ad furthered the brand by referencing significantly. The meme was created by the wider public and referenced the political fallout after Dominic Cummings drove to Barnard Castle to test his eye sight. The ad struck whilst the iron was hot and its skilful twist on the iconic “Should off Gone To SpecSavers” tagline hit home, bringing welcome attention to the product online. Though it was created by the public, Specsavers ackowledged the ingenuity and entered the doctored image into an ad award alongside their own campaign.
Similarly, Brew Dog played on Aldi’s shameless mimicry in their product range by releasing a beer called Yaldi. It blew up on social media and had many- myself included- sharing the joke and the beer simultaneously. A fan suggested a new name: ALD IPA. The Brewdog founder quickly rebranded receiving further publicity.
Another ad which artfully tapped into the culture was Expedia’s print campaign directed by ad giants Saatchi & Saatchi. The ad for Canadian Tourism played off of Megan and Harry’s cessation from the Royal household, and was strategically placed underneath articles discussing them quitting their Royal Duties. Displaying vast, scenic Canadian wilderness, the text says: “Canada: Escape The Family’’. This playful nod towed the perfect line and showed how humour and playful reference can combine to powerfully sell a product. Unsurprisingly, it garnered plenty of attention on social media.
In conclusion, good adverts are aware of the space in which they circulate, and speak to the culture. Whether this be in favour of an important cause, or mere playful nods to prominent cultural happenings, it pays to be socially responsive in advertising. Nonetheless, this can go horribly wrong, as demonstrated by Pepsi’s appropriation of a noble movement.
