Introduction
The primary function of advertising is to attract a potential client. These days, capturing a person’s attention is a challenge for companies. However, not all methods can be regarded as appropriate ones. For instance, in 2011, the employees of Dr. Pepper found that men ignored diet drinks as feminine, which led to an ill-conceived ad for a 10-calorie soda. The campaign was considered sexist, which led to reputational damage to the company. This example should be analyzed in terms of social concerns and possible steps addressing the issue. At present, it becomes necessary for businesses to review ethical aspects before creating and launching campaigns.
Brief Overview of the Campaign
Dr. Pepper is a non-alcoholic beverage widespread in the United States and European countries. In 2011, in support of the company’s new drink called Dr. Pepper Ten, the beverage company launched an advertising campaign with the controversial slogan “It’s not for women” (Grougiou et al., 2020). The brand aimed to gain a share in the men’s goods sector. A study by Dr. Pepper Snapple Group in 2011 found that most men are reluctant to drink diet drinks that they believe are purely feminine (Grougiou et al., 2020). In contrast to Diet Dr. Pepper, the new soda contained calories and sugar and had a more masculine packaging design (Grougiou et al., 2020). Thus, the targeted audience for introducing the new 10-calorie drink mainly consisted of men.
The company created a particular male Dr. Pepper Ten Facebook page. It had a manly shooting gallery game so that men had “23 seconds to take out all the girlie stuff”, with phrases like “If it’s girlie shoot it— if it’s manly avoid it” (Grougiou et al., 2020, p. 2). An accompanying action movie commercial showed a robust man armed with a laser gun running through the jungle. The male asks, tearing the snake’s jaws, saying that this is a men’s movie and men’s soda (Grougiou et al., 2020). The ad ends with a voiceover stating that women are left with romantic comedies and ladies drinks (Grougiou et al., 2020). It was assumed that the campaign to promote Dr. Pepper 10 would take place on television and in so-called testosterone zones – at stadiums and car shows.
Social and Ethical Concerns
Advertising as a piece of art reflects all the main processes taking place in society, including feminization. Gender advertising broadcasts a particular role model and exaggerates prevalent behaviors (Belch & Belch, 2021). For instance, in the early twentieth century, all advertising was overtly sexist by modern standards (Akestam et al., 2017). The reason is the passive role of a woman in society, a wife, mother and housewife standards (Nichols, 2021). Therefore, the marketing industry remains focused on generally accepted female responsibilities.
Even though women are the core of the target audience of advertising, sexism has not disappeared from the brand promotion. According to the global marketing survey conducted by Kantar (2019), women are the primary consumers; they make the most purchasing decisions. However, improper gender representation is caused by the fact that the overwhelming majority of creative directors in the advertising industry are still men (Akestam et al., 2017). Accordingly, there is an ongoing dispute in society concerned by the ethical issues of using female-disparaging messages and the potential need for tighter regulation (Nichols, 2021). Thus, companies should follow the rules regarding gender depictions in advertising.
What Stakeholders Have Been Impacted?
After the start of the campaign, many wondered if the pronounced anti-feminine line would affect women’s attitudes toward other Dr. Pepper drinks. Stakeholders accused the company of sexism; there was a launch of the campaign on Facebook when people wrote their opinions on the product page on the social network (Grougiou et al., 2020). The main ideas of people included the wrong character of the message; the company was recognized as not creating ads for men but against women. The main question was why, having chosen men as the target audience, it is impossible not to insult women (Grougiou et al., 2020). It might be perceived as a method used in reverse psychology to stimulate women to buy a drink out of a sense of contradiction.
Therefore, the company’s top management emphasized that the idea of the campaign was not at all to offend women. The mistake was that leadership was confident that such campaigns attract both men and women who also become interested in trying the product (Grougiou et al., 2020). The promotion might not affect women’s interest in Dr. Pepper’s products. Furthermore, the company claimed that women should have understood the joke (Grougiou et al., 2020). Nevertheless, people did not see the advertisement as a subtle satire; instead, they considered it unfunny and tasteless.
Conclusion and Recommendations
A gender stereotype is a set of memorable images that pop up in consumers’ minds. They are primarily built on the public perception of the roles of men and women in society. At present, in terms of movement towards gender equality, such biases can significantly damage the company’s reputation. Hence, there are a large number of strategies that allow management to combine male and female audiences. Therefore, it is suggested to adhere to gender neutrality, avoiding targeting external triggers and stimuli like a person’s status or appearance, but instead focusing on functionality.
Thus, one of the creative ways to handle the issue is to mix gender roles. In the case of Dr. Pepper, it can be emphasized that some males drink zero-calorie beverages and coffee with skim milk, and some women prefer extreme sports and camping. As a result, companies that are capable of encouraging and highlighting atypical behavior established by society and non-stereotypical social roles are more likely to increase audience loyalty.
References
Akestam, N., Rosengren, S., & Dahlen, M. (2017). Advertising “like a girl”: Toward a better understanding of “femvesting” and its effects. Psychology & Marketing, 34(8), 795–806. Web.
Belch, G. E., & Belch, M. A. (2021). Advertising and promotion: An integrated marketing communications perspective (12th ed.). The McGraw Hill.
Grougiou, V., Balabanis, G., & Manika, D. (2020). Does humour influence perceptions of the ethicality of female-disparaging advertising?. Journal of Business Ethics, 164(1), 1-16. Web.
Kantar (2019). AdReaction: Getting gender right. [PDF-file]. AdReaction. Web.
Nichols, A. M. (2021). Converting the masses: Advertising nature and gender in the post #MeToo movement era. Journal for the Study of Religion, Nature & Culture, 15(1), 83-113. Web.