Client | Gillette |
---|---|
Language | English |
Country | International |
Official website | gillette |
"The Best Men Can Be" was a corporate social responsibility advertising campaign from the safety razor and personal care brand Gillette of Procter & Gamble. The campaign launched on January 13, 2019, with the digital release of a short film entitled We Believe: The Best Men Can Be.
The campaign title is a play upon a notable past Gillette ad slogan "The Best a Man Can Get", which dates back to the 1980s. The Best Men Can Be is an attempt to address negative behavior among men, including bullying, sexism, sexual misconduct, and toxic masculinity. The campaign includes a three-year commitment by Gillette to make donations to organizations that "[help men] achieve their personal best". [1]
The initial short film was the subject of controversy. While it was praised by some, such as Bernice King, and defended by others, such as Mona Charen, it was generally received negatively by various online commentators, particularly males and conservatives, becoming one of the most disliked videos on YouTube. [2] [3] The campaign has led to calls to boycott Gillette and Procter & Gamble. [4] [5] [6] A successive campaign, #MyBestSelf, was generally praised for its acknowledgement of the transgender community. [7]
The introductory short film for the campaign, We Believe: The Best Men Can Be, directed by Kim Gehrig, begins by invoking the brand's slogan since 1989, "The Best a Man Can Get", by asking "Is this the best a man can get?" This is followed by scenes demonstrating supposed negative behavior among males, including bullying, sexism, sexual misconduct, and toxic masculinity; acknowledgement of social movements, such as #MeToo; and footage of actor Terry Crews stating during Congressional testimony that "men need to hold other men accountable". The ad continues to explain that "we believe in the best in men: To say the right thing, to act the right way", since "the boys watching today will be the men of tomorrow." As a result, the original slogan is re-worked to reinforce this message, becoming "The Best Men Can Be". [2] [3]
This campaign includes a companion website, and a pledge by Gillette to donate $1 million per-year over the next three years to organizations, such as Boys & Girls Clubs of America, that "[help men] achieve their personal best". In the aforementioned website, Gillette explains the campaign by stating that "as a company that encourages men to be their best, we have a responsibility to make sure we are promoting positive, attainable, inclusive and healthy versions of what it means to be a man." [8] [9]
Upon its introduction, the advertisement received overwhelming criticism on social media while quickly becoming one of the most disliked videos on YouTube. Gillette was applauded by some for addressing current social issues and promoting positive values among men. Bernice King, daughter of Martin Luther King Jr., described the "We Believe" film as being "pro-humanity" and demonstrating that "character can step up to change conditions". [10] At the same time, the advertisement faced criticism and threats of boycotts from critics who said that it emasculated men, [2] [3] and who disagreed with its message. [11] [12] British journalist and television personality Piers Morgan described the campaign as "a direct consequence of radical feminists" who he said are "driving a war against masculinity". [13]
Regarding their perceived embrace of woke culture and corporate responsibility, Josh Barro of New York magazine compared the ad unfavorably to a recent Nike campaign featuring Colin Kaepernick, arguing that Nike's ad was successful since it was "uplifting rather than accusatory", and consistent with Nike's values as representing "bold action — on and off the field". In regards to Gillette's ad, he said "the viewer is likely to ask: Who is Gillette to tell me this? I just came here for razors. And razors barely even feature in Gillette's new campaign." Barro added that the market for razors was different from that of sporting goods", and that consumers "may be less likely to abandon a product because they feel accused by the brand when their emotional relationship to the brand wasn't the point to begin with." [14]
Writing for the National Review , Mona Charen said that despite criticism to the advertisement coming from other conservatives, and what she described as "undercurrents ... that suggested feminist influence", such as toxic masculinity, she found its imagery to not strike her as "a reproof of masculinity per se but rather as a critique of bullying, boorishness, and sexual misconduct", and argued that "by reflexively rushing to defend men in this context, some conservatives have run smack into an irony. Imagining themselves to be men's champions, they are actually defending behavior, like sexual harassment and bullying, that a generation or two ago conservatives were the ones condemning." [3] Journalist Andrew P. Street expressed a similar argument, considering the negative responses to the ad to be "a living document of how desperately society needs things like the [ad]", and that "if your masculinity is THAT threatened by an ad that says we should be nicer then you're doing masculinity wrong." [2]
Anne Kingston of Maclean's felt that Gillette's parent company Procter & Gamble should have instead focused on addressing gender equality within its board, and pink tax and related gender-based price discrimination, concluding by hoping that "by the time both the boys and girls of today grow up, we'll have exposed and shaved away the pernicious inequities in full display on drugstore shelves. Gillette missed its opportunity. Someone smarter won't." [15] Defending the campaign, Procter & Gamble CEO David S. Taylor stated that "the world would be a better place if my board of directors on down is represented by 50% of the women. We sell our products to more than 50% of the women." The Wall Street Journal cited how the company's board of directors has more than twice as many men as it does women. [16] Marketing Week said the ad backfired on the brand and affected sales metrics. [17] In his video "WOKE BRANDS", YouTuber and cultural critic Harry Brewis argued that the advertisement's intention was in fact to generate controversy as a form of outrage marketing. [18]
In July 2019, six months after the advert was released, the parent company of Gillette, Procter & Gamble announced that while it had record sales for other products, it took an $8 billion write down on its revenue for Gillette. The company said that the write down was due to currency fluctuation, greater competition and a shrinking market as men shave less frequently. [19] Critics of the campaign, however, said that the boycott had hurt the company, and this campaign has since been cited as an example of "go woke, go broke". [20]
Shaving is the removal of hair, by using a razor or any other kind of bladed implement, to slice it down—to the level of the skin or otherwise. Shaving is most commonly practiced by men to remove their facial hair and by women to remove their leg and underarm hair. A man is called clean-shaven if he has had his beard entirely removed.
King Camp Gillette was an American businessman who invented a bestselling safety razor. Gillette's innovation was the thin, inexpensive, disposable blade of stamped steel. Gillette is often erroneously credited with inventing the so-called razor and blades business model in which razors are sold cheaply to increase the market for blades. However, Gillette Safety Razor Company adopted the business model from its competitors.
Pringles is an American brand of stackable potato-based chips invented by Procter & Gamble (P&G) in 1968 and marketed as "Pringle's Newfangled Potato Chips". The brand was sold in 2012 to Kellogg's.
Old Spice is an American brand of male grooming products encompassing aftershaves, deodorants and antiperspirants, shampoos, body washes, shaving cream, and soaps. It is manufactured by Procter & Gamble.
A razor is a bladed tool primarily used in the removal of body hair through the act of shaving. Kinds of razors include straight razors, safety razors, disposable razors, and electric razors.
A safety razor is a shaving implement with a protective device positioned between the edge of the blade and the skin. The initial purpose of these protective devices was to reduce the level of skill needed for injury-free shaving, thereby reducing the reliance on professional barbers.
Gillette is an American brand of safety razors and other personal care products including shaving supplies, owned by the multi-national corporation Procter & Gamble (P&G). Based in Boston, Massachusetts, United States, it was owned by The Gillette Company, a supplier of products under various brands until that company merged into P&G in 2005. The Gillette Company was founded by King C. Gillette in 1901 as a safety razor manufacturer.
Charmin is an American brand of toilet paper owned by Procter & Gamble. It was launched in 1928.
CoverGirl is an American cosmetics brand founded in Maryland, United States, by the Noxzema Chemical Company. It was acquired by Procter & Gamble in 1989, and later acquired by Coty, Inc. in 2016. The Noxell Company advertised this cosmetics line by allowing "cover girls", models, actresses, and singers who appear on the front cover of women's magazines, to wear its products. CoverGirl primarily provides a wide variety of consumer-grade cosmetics.
Noxzema is a brand of skin cleanser marketed by Unilever. Since 1914, it was sold in a small cobalt blue jar; but is now sold in a blue plastic jar. Noxzema contains camphor, menthol, phenol and eucalyptus, among other ingredients. Originally developed as a sunburn remedy, it is a type of cold cream or vanishing cream which is used as a facial cleanser and make-up remover.
The Procter & Gamble Company (P&G) is an American multinational consumer goods corporation headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio, founded in 1837 by William Procter and James Gamble. It specializes in a wide range of personal health/consumer health, personal care and hygiene products; these products are organized into several segments including beauty; grooming; health care; fabric and home care; and baby, feminine, and family care. Before the sale of Pringles to Kellogg's, its product portfolio also included food, snacks, and beverages. P&G is incorporated in Ohio.
Smell Like a Man, Man is a television advertising campaign in the United States created by ad agency Wieden+Kennedy for the Old Spice brand of male grooming products, owned by Procter & Gamble. The campaign is commonly referred to as The Man Your Man Could Smell Like, the title of the campaign's initial 30-second commercial. The campaign was launched to market Old Spice's Red Zone After Hours Body Wash, but was subsequently expanded to include other products, following its success. The campaign targets female viewers, despite the product's intended market being male, as the company determined that women frequently make purchasing decisions for hygiene products even for male household members.
Dollar Shave Club, Inc. is an American company based in Venice, California, that delivers razors and other personal grooming products to customers by mail. It delivers razor blades on a monthly basis and offers additional grooming products for home delivery.
David Scott Taylor is an American business executive who is executive chairman of Procter & Gamble, having previously served as chairman, president and CEO.
Patrice Louvet is a French American business executive. The CEO and president of the Ralph Lauren Corporation since July 17, 2017, he began his career at Procter & Gamble (P&G) in 1989, where he held numerous executive roles across Northeast Asia, North America and Europe. In 2015 he became group president of P&G's global beauty and hair care units, a role he held until June 30, 2017. He currently serves on the board of Bacardi Limited.
The Art of Shaving is a United States retail business of high-end men's shaving and skin care accessories. The first store was founded by Eric Malka and Myriam Zaoui in Manhattan in 1996.
Purplewashing is a compound word modeled on the term whitewash. The prefix "purple" is associated with feminism while the verb "wash" refers to the co-opting strategies that use minority rights to maintain or enhance structural forms of discrimination.
Kim Gehrig is an Australian director whose body of work spans television shows, commercials, music videos, documentaries, short films and branded entertainment. Gehrig directed “The Woman Who Ate Photographs”, an episode of Apple TV+ series, “Roar”, starring Nicole Kidman. Her notable commercial works include Run This Town and Stay for Rihanna’s Super Bowl LVII Halftime Show,The Greatest for Apple, Viva La Vulva for Libresse, Life Needs Truth for The New York Times, the This Girl Can campaign, and work for many more for brands including Airbnb, Google, Lyft, Nike, IKEA, GAP, and Amnesty International. In music videos, Gehrig has collaborated with artists such as Chaka Khan, Brittany Howard, Wiley, Calvin Harris, and Basement Jaxx. In 2023, Gehrig became the 2nd woman of all time to win the DGA Award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Commercials and her films have won a plethora of awards including Cannes Lions, D&AD pencils, BTAA Arrows and UKMVA's.
Corporate sociopolitical activism (CSA) refers to a firm's public demonstration of support or opposition to a partisan sociopolitical issue. CSA has become increasingly prominent in recent years, as firms have taken stances on issues such as climate change, racial justice, reproductive rights, gun control, immigration, LGBTQ+ rights, and gender equality.
Go woke, go broke, or alternatively get woke, go broke, is an American political catchphrase used by some political pundits to refer to the actual or perceived stock value drops or loss in sales of companies or corporations that publicly support progressive causes, such as the rights of women, LGBT people and people of color.
The world would be a better place if my board of directors on down is represented by 50% of the women. We sell our products to more than 50% of the women' ... the company's website suggests that the potentially toxic males outnumber the females by more than two-to-one.
One of the examples often cited is Gillette's 2019 toxic masculinity advertisement