The announcement earlier this year of a potential new rule in the UK aimed at cracking down on offensive stereotyping in advertising heralds a new dawn in the way companies address gender bias.
The new rule, currently being considered by watchdog the Committee of Advertising Practice (Cap), would steer advertisers away from creating ads overtly portraying, say, a “typical family” scene, with gender-specific roles depicted such as a wife working hard in the kitchen while her husband reclines in the living room, feet on the table, beer in hand, watching the telly.
So too would commercials found to be guilty of pigeonholing around body type and ethnicity. If the regulation is to come into play – Cap’s evaluation will be determined by a public consultation first – advertisers will be required to demonstrate greater sensitivity to the harmful societal effects of stereotyping.
In the eyes of Marc Pritchard, chief brand officer at Procter & Gamble, brands and companies have a responsibility to reinvent themselves and become “good citizens of the world”. Speaking at the VivaTech CMO Forum, held in May in Paris, Pritchard argued that never before had marketing mattered as much “as a force for good”.
“The time is right, because people want to know what brands believe in, the people behind them, our values and points of view on relevant issues such as gender equality, racial equality and the environment,” said Pritchard.
As the world’s largest advertiser, P&G’s global reach extends to an estimated 5 billion people. This year, one of its ad campaigns, a short film called The Talk, picked up nine awards at Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity – the biggest date in the advertising calendar – including the top gong, the grand prix for corporate image.
The film – which forms part of P&G’s My Black is Beautiful drive to encourage and enable constructive dialogue around diversity – shows various scenes of black parents from across recent history preparing their children for some of the prejudices they will face as they grow up.
In one scene, for instance, a mother warns her young daughter, who has just passed her driving test, about being pulled over; in another, a mother anxiously ensures her son has his ID when going out “in case they stop you”.
It’s hard-hitting stuff, and as P&G spokesperson Damon Jones admits, represented a “bold step” for the company.
“We focused on the talk that many black parents in America have to prepare their children for challenges they may face in the world, and importantly to encourage them to achieve despite these obstacles,” says Jones. “It shows that while society and times change, bias still exists.
“We believe that dialogue about bias, both conscious and unconscious, leads to greater understanding and ultimately provides a path to ending its harmful effects and creating a more equal world. We know that discussion alone is not a solution, but an important step in the process, and an area where we can help.”
But while The Talk received numerous plaudits, they weren’t unanimous, reveals Jones.
“It has not been without controversy,” he says. “Most responses were positive, but some reactions were negative, denying that the issue exists. Some were very negative, angrily questioning why companies are involving themselves in social and political issues. We have an answer to that: If not us, then who? If not now, then when?”
Rather than cave in to these criticisms, P&G’s response has been to increase its spend on both advertising and PR with the key message, says Jones: “that this film has an important purpose, to promote conversation.
“That’s because conversations lead to understanding. Understanding leads to changing attitudes. Attitude change leads to behaviour change. And behaviour change leads to positive action.
“Was it difficult when louder voices shared opinions that we felt sat against the direction we were taking? Of course. However, we took a very deliberate decision not to step in each time. We didn’t want to dictate the dialogue but instead utilise our voice to start the conversation. And that’s exactly what happened,” says Jones.
“Conversation involves all sides. You might not always agree with them, but they need to come together to reach a common ground. What we saw as a result was the wider community – on and offline – uniting, and when or where those negative opinions were voiced, coming together to come back and correct the direction of the conversation.”
Earlier this year, in conjunction with the 2018 Winter Olympics in South Korea, P&G also ran an ad featuring the Pride flag, showing US Olympic freestyle skier Gus Kenworthy – who came out in 2015 – proudly lifting the famous rainbow-coloured banner while endorsing the group’s Head & Shoulders shampoo brand.
This followed the P&G Love over Bias ad, which was launched ahead of the same games. Forming part of the group’s Thank you, Mom campaign, centred around diversity and inclusion, it shows children in a set of vignettes overcoming adversity through maternal support to become champions in their chosen fields.
Given that a survey before the games by the International Olympic Committee – conducted on behalf of P&G – revealed that 55% of respondents felt prejudice or discrimination growing up, the ad couldn’t have been more pertinent.
The challenge now is for more advertisers to follow suit in further shattering stereotypes. While brands and companies might well be in competition with one another when it comes to innovation and creativity, they should, to reiterate the words of Marc Pritchard, “unite behind a common brief to use our brands and companies to be a force for good”.
