Three things we can learn from the anti-Cadbury Crème Egg ad petition
The world needs more brands to take risks in order to spur on much needed change, argues Christopher Kenna, founder of Brand Advance
Another brand reaching a diverse audience; another backlash for its creativity. Cadbury is the latest brand to fall victim to criticism – 58,000 people in fact (and counting) – who signed a petition to ban the recent Crème Egg advert for its gooey ‘gay kiss’.
I’m not at all surprised by this reaction. Cadbury took a risk by making an advert that is a true reflection of society. It even seems ridiculous to call it a risk, but it was.
We know the media industry has issues with stereotyping, focusing on white, straight, idealised society representations. So when a brand pushes those boundaries, it breaks the typical ‘norm’ – and some people don’t like it, for whatever their reasons might be.
I applaud Cadbury for taking a shot at reaching diverse communities authentically, especially outside of a cultural moment. It’s inspiring to see this advert shine, despite the haters, and illustrate what more brands should be doing to redress the diversity imbalance.
As more brands follow suit and create diverse campaigns, naturally the more marketers can learn about how to prepare for a potentially negative reaction.
Stand your ground
In this instance, what Cadbury has done so well is to stand its ground. For a brand receiving backlash over a campaign and even petitions to have it banned, it can be challenging to know how to respond and how to protect the brand identity.
My advice for any brand would be that as long as your campaign isn’t genuinely offensive, back it; you put it out there for a reason and it represents your brand values, reinforcing your authenticity.
What’s even more powerful is when the industry backs your brand campaign too. The ASA has rejected attempts to ban Cadbury’s advert and insists it won’t be taking it off air, as rightly so, it’s not broken any rules. This is the solidarity and consistency that is needed to drive change.
Take responsibility
Media businesses have a profound impact on markets and societies through their power to influence audiences, and equally so do the platforms that host content and advertising.
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In an increasingly digital world, there are many online platforms available which act as an open space for people to speak freely, but there is a need for greater regulation.
We’ve seen this several times with Facebook, Twitter and YouTube becoming platforms to spread hate and misinformation. Just last year major advertisers pulled their spend from Facebook over concerns with hate speech.
The same could be argued for petition platforms. Like other forums that draw in real people with real opinions, questions should be raised over where the line is drawn for the topics they are petitioning for or against. What we can learn here is that the scale of responsibility lies with everyone involved.
Be brand safe
Finally, there’s a moral obligation from brands to ensure their adverts aren’t appearing next to content that is the exact opposite of what they stand for. Brands could be spending their ad dollars literally funding anti-LGBTQ content without even knowing it.
It can be a difficult subject to broach and one that must be handled correctly. A brand is responsible for thinking about the issue, but it is up to the agency to put it into action and blocking the right terms is essential. You want to make sure your ads appear next to stories that support and elevate your message, rather than putting your brand in a precarious position.
This issue around keyword blocking has been around for some time. However, during the pandemic blocklist technologies prevented advertising appearing against coronavirus related articles, meaning advertisers were losing out on eyeballs.
In turn, publisher revenues were hit hard and we saw the launch of Newsworks’ #BackDontBlock campaign to drive awareness of the issue. Since then, it’s highlighted the need for technology that can analyse sentiment and keywords effectively to ensure a campaign is reaching the right audience, with the right message.
I hope brands will not be deterred by the backlash Cadbury received. It’s campaigns like this that we need to see more of to spur on needed change, and as long as those brands that do take the ‘risk’ choose to stand their ground, take responsibility and be brand safe, they will be successful in reaching diverse audiences at scale authentically.
Christopher Kenna is CEO and founder of Brand Advance