Marketing and the black race
31 Friday Jul 2009
Written by Corve DaCosta in Entertainment, Thoughts & Commentary
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Marketing for any business operating in today’s harsh business world isn’t easy. Getting the right campaign to the target market is a huge task. Hitting the nail on the head can be a massive gamble. Companies who use the services of marketing/advertising agencies most times are not in control of what the agencies produce. Somehow, companies even accept anything that the agency produces without contesting or even make suggestions to improve on the advertisement. It is sad when companies have to withdraw ads that offend a segment of the target market even sometimes offending the society. Advertisements are not only produced for the intended market. Because they are viewed in the mass media, extending the reach of the ad, the advert may be offensive. Companies however have a huge role in ensuring that the ads that the company has on television, radio, print etc are comfortable and not offensive.
Recently, KGB a company that answers questions that they receive by text messaging released an ad that some people find offensive. Some even want the ad to be pulled. The ad portrays black females in a salon getting their hair done. A female talent in the ad asked the other ‘What kind of hair is this?’ The response of the hairstylists says natural. The discussion there continues with the quest to find out what natural hair means by sending a text message to KBG for the answer.
From the advertising agency and company’s point of view they have achieved their objectives. They produced an ad reflecting the company’s proposition (product), and they used talents which reflected in some way their intended target audience. Success huh?
But the issue is bigger than that. The issue is the portrayal of black people. Culturally, the black race is known for their sense of humour, survival, hardworking attitude, breaking the law etc. Generally in advertisements the black talent would always deliver that punch line of a joke, or be seen eating unhealthy foods like chicken (not that chicken is bad). There are both positive and negative images that are embedded in ads today. These images can be offending; some can be flattering while others can be motivating.
There is certainly nothing wrong with the advertisement of this company. People will find issue with the ad that most of the actors were black. Normally, companies with a huge target market would show diversity in the ad to show that all races accept their product. This advertisement borderlines offensive because it appears to be saying that only black people wear weaves and emphasizes the fact that they cannot explain where it comes from. The believe that black people wear the most weaves may be a lie, but this ad does not make it appealing.
But how did we get here? There are issues within the black community and it is sad that this company is highlighting that flaw to sell their brand. Majority of people believe that black people use weave as a way to change who they really are. They use all the hair products and chemicals to look like someone else. Weaves do compliment and enhance a woman’s features. There is nothing wrong with wearing a weave. There might be a problem when weave identifies your race.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_54smbVC3JQ&hl=en&fs=1&color1=0x402061&color2=0x9461ca&border=1]
4 comments
August 2, 2009 at 3:48 AM
I agree Corve. There is a bit of stereotyping going on here. There was a time when my African American sisters would wear a wig or a weave and shun away from the question, “Is that your hair?” Those days are behind us.
It is also a myth that all Caucasian women have hair that flows down their back; therefore, they have no reason to wear a wig or weave. Stereotype meets stereotype, however, they are rarely questioned in the manner that our sisters are.
The advertisers should have taken the higher road, i.e., diversity.
[Reply]
August 2, 2009 at 5:34 AM
@bydesign001
Feedback Appreciated.
I would agree that the advertiser should have used diversity. It would put to rest some of the concerns people have with the ad.
[Reply]
August 5, 2009 at 6:35 PM
DaCosta -
I am a student at UWM in Wisconsin. It is one of my assignments to engage a blog that talks about race in the media.
I think your blog about the KGB ad was really good! I feel you could have mentioned the fact that at the end of the commercial they compared to the weave hair to that of a farm animal. I think the ad was in really poor taste and was surprised you didn’t mention the comparison. I immediately thought – is KGB trying to say that Black women are are like farm animals too since their weaves come from them??? Maybe that is not what they were trying to say but either way the comparison was ridiculous.
I also wanted to point out that weaves are not worn only by Black women as you said. There are so many celebrities that wear them including Paris Hilton, Eva Longoria, and there are some guys that wear them too.
I hope we can get past racial stereotypes in the media. Best wishes blogging!
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August 10, 2009 at 4:40 AM
Thanks.
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