Woke and shaved - Gillette ad and the people who hate it.

Agreed. Consumers expect social responsibility from the brands they deal with.

 

One person's "virtue signaling" is another's "authenticity" and "transparency."

As somebody running a marketing department, I can tell you the hook-and-bullet folks respond better to messaging about how we're helping protect their hobbies than about the widgets we sell.

 

Think about it. People are upset about Gillette "taking a stand" on toxic masculinity. Suddenly anyone who doesn't buy their stuff is suddenly suspect. I do imagine some brand with marginal market share might start touting itself as "for men who are proud to be a man" - I just don't think it is a long term play.

 

Yes, I would agree with this.

My sense - and if I'm wrong, I'm glad I'll be wrong, though it won't be for awhile - is we moving toward far more rigid definitions of acceptable and unacceptable "authenticity."

Since you run a marketing department, did anything stand out to you about the ad? Or was it really as straightforward as "be less terrible, men."

 

I don't think the ad has much to do with selling shaving products. I'm not sure it'll work financially. I think we're potentially moving beyond that in culture - beyond efficacy. The morality of the ad is the point. As in, if you don't agree with Gillette's ad, Gillette does not want you buying its razors.

I mean, ESPN, as an example, made, for several years, decisions that it had to know wouldn't work for ratings and its brand. The former leadership just didn't care.

 

We were talking about it today in the pit with the graphic designers and social media team. Nobody really picked up on anything remarkable (except for the debut of that messaging).

The most cynical of the group (not me!) questioned whether Gillette was actually targeting women with that ad more than men.

 

If Tim Tebow gave a speech telling young men to be good people, treat women with respect and help strangers in the ad, the right would have given thunderous applause. The left would be roundly condemning Gillette for using Tebow.

 

I had that thought, too.

 

colin kaepernick using a gillette to shave his knees before protesting the anthem in this house we use dollar shave club razors and shave standing up during the anthem like and share if you agree

 

But you shave your legs? Not too manly.

 

True as that might be, Mr. Tebow sort of loads the hypothetical question with his well-known religious beliefs. Gillette would be getting scalded for Tebow's position on abortion, not because he suggests keeping your hands off the interns.