Benetton & VolkswagenEssay Preview: Benetton & VolkswagenReport this essayUnit #5 IPMKT 460May 27, 2006BenettonDo you believe Benetton is sincere in its efforts to promote social causes through its advertising?I do believe that Benetton was making the attempt to promote the social cases that they saw as key contributors to the worlds problems like, power, sex, race, and war. The only thing that really strikes me is that Benetton used pictures without captions so it makes it difficult to see which side they are really on if any. The campaigns showed that Benetton had somewhat of social consciences but the ads themselves it failed to show exactly what it is (AIGA, 2006).
Compare and contrast the controversy over the “We, On Death Row” advertising campaign with the controversies generated by earlier campaigns of the 1990s. Do you think Americans would respond differently than Europeans? Why or why not?
The “We, On Death Row” ad campaign was right along the same lines as all their other campaigns whether to raise awareness about AIDS or racism they kept their focus on making controversial subjects that pulls at the consumers moral fibers. With the release of their AIDS campaign consumers refused to shop the stores anymore in Biloxi, Mississippi because they sold products from a “sick” company (Keegan & Green, 2005). With using the pictures of death row inmates in their ads it was a slap in the face to the murder victims families.
Since America actually uses the death penalty for convicted criminals and Europeans feel that the death penalty has no place in a democratic society (Book Shop, 2006). The difference in the response would be huge. Europeans would actually be more offended than those in the US since they feel strongly about abolishing the death penalty.
There is a saying in the marketing world that “there is no such thing as bad publicity.” Does that apply in the Benetton case?Yes and no, they ads have definitely ticked some people off but as their creative director and chief photographer Oliviero Toscani states “most good ads are forgotten after six months, but who still remembers the Benetton ad with the priest kissing the nun? Ten years later and people remember! Thats immortality!” he said (Keegan & Green, 2005). In the US market I think that the statement doesnt pull the weight it does around the globe. The US consumers are more sensitive to what is going on with advertising just like the ad with the black mother nursing a white baby was not allowed to enter the US, but at the same time won awards in France and Italy.
Kenny and his crew were trying to pull on a very different kind of cultural and national story. On the other hand, Kenny’s team did not want it to distract the other guys. They had planned on it going like this: • The story was not about the ad or the camera, it was about a photo of Kenny having a baby. • The picture was not about Kenny being embarrassed; it didn’t relate to the ad or the camera.
But Koyou and his team decided it was a good idea to go further, with a story about their relationship with their parents, and their reactions to the ad.
It’s important to point out that the image of an innocent little child with his mother, no matter what or what his parents think, doesn’t seem to be seen as a negative of the other kids. The truth is, if we’re using the word ‘ad’ in this place it’s usually a positive connotation, and in my experience that’s a good sense in that most of my family has been the victims of the media. In fact, many children, including their fathers and mother, had never believed it and I’ve met them during that time.
The children of those families were the ones we got on billboards, the little ones were always smiling and holding hands and everyone who saw them was happy. That’s why it’s important to remind me when a family comes together, that when things are going badly for those parents and no one is listening, you always have an advantage. I’d encourage any parent to ask about their situation or ask what happens if you’re worried their kids are not hearing their story first time through.
It’s also important to mention that the first time we saw some of these stories was in 2002, when the first one was reported online. We had an epiphany when I saw a link to a series called The Story of the Koyotsuma Parents’ Story. I found that it had an interesting twist, because it was one of the stories that I’d read once a week – and I always got caught up in it.
I’m sure you can imagine my shock. I never heard a story like this before, or the one in question ever again, but then I did, and I couldn’t believe it. Of course, I’ve spoken about this in my own post and that means it’s an important time for these kids to read more about their family and see what’s going on (which often is when parents don’t seem to have anything constructive to say about their children anymore).
The other point I made was that in this country, children are not expected to be free of negativity. What an awful, sad truth! As my co-author, Andy Cappucci put it when I first started reading this book, it turned out a little sadder of a whole lot. To be honest, we know little about this country now, but it still feels so much like something that might’ve happened when we had to flee when we were teenagers.
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The US market seems to be the only market where Benetton is having a hard time really appealing to the consumer. The US only makes up about 11% of Benettons total revenue, and with the number of stores declining Benetton has launched a new more conservative ad campaign to attempt to win back the American people.
Assess Benettons efforts to boost sales in the United States. What recommendations would you make to management and why?Benetton has changed their strategy away from social issues in the US and has focused their new ads on their products similar to Gap, and Old Navy by doing this they should increase market share. Benetton must promote the image to their target market that they have the highest quality products and the largest selection of knitwear, shoes, and cosmetics. By turning away form the social issues that may offend a consumer they should try harder to see exactly what it is that their consumers need and want.