For the sixth WEPs deep-dive session “WEPs in the marketplace: Removing gender stereotypes in marketing and advertising”, the WEPs Secretariat invited two WEPs signatories – one B2C and one B2B company – to explore how gender-responsive marketing and advertising strategies can be tailored to different types of companies. The webinar also featured a speaker from the Unstereotype Alliance, a thought and action platform that seeks to eradicate harmful stereotypes in all media and advertising content, convened by UN Women. The session provided valuable insights into the importance of diversity, and recommendations to help WEPs signatories avoid the pitfalls of traditional stereotypes in advertising, overcome the challenges of creating inclusive campaigns.
Anna Falth, Global Head of the WEPs Secretariat at UN Women, emphasized the importance of understanding one’s counterpart, whether they are consumers or business partners. This understanding helps companies position themselves effectively and build long-term relationships. She highlighted the diversity of audiences in terms of perspective, presence, and personality, stressing that advertising has historically reinforced harmful stereotypes and social expectations. She pointed out some negative impact of social media on young girls, leading to issues like eating disorders and depression. Anna stated that good advertising should avoid reinforcing specific gender norms, not depict one gender as superior to the other, and aim to bring a positive influence.
The B2C Perspective - “Advertising should portray authentic voices” – Mondelez India
Arpita Kalubarme, Senior Brand Manger at Mondelez India, gave an overview of the advertising industry in India, and how it has been shifting over time. She pointed out that how unconscious social beliefs often drive product sales, with stereotypes serving as powerful shortcuts to create marketing campaigns. These stereotypes include examples of how care roles are typically assigned to women, beauty ads feature young and attractive models, and male characters often assume authoritative, leading roles.
These stereotypes, however, are a “double-edged sword” that both challenge and reinforce gender norms, according to Arpita. For instance, ads in the food and home care sectors often depict women running a “happy family” with no leisure time, seeking approval from male figures. Similarly, ads of the financial industry frequently exclude women from financial decision-making by portraying them as a submissive listener to males in the households. In technology and automotive ads, women are often objectified.
The B2B Perspective – “Gender responsive marketing as a smart business strategy” – Intellias Ukraine
Representing Ukraine’s largest IT services company, Maryna Dudnyk, D&I Coordinator from Intellias highlighted the crucial need for gender equality in the IT industry. She emphasized that gender inequality leads to missed opportunities and her company has taken steps to address this through initiatives like the “She is Tech Conference.”
This event aims to promote gender equality in the tech industry, enhance the company’s reputation as an employer, and build stronger client relationships. By addressing workplace and leadership issues and inspiring others, Intellias engages with its audience to spread messages about gender equality. Partnerships play a key role in their strategy. Her examples shed light on how B2B companies are using gender responsive marketing to strengthen their positioning in the market to attract talents and customers.
“Advertising can transform the society” - Insights from the Unstereotype Alliance
Sthu Zungu-Noel, National Expansion Programme Lead at the Unstereotype Alliance, underscored the importance of addressing stereotypes in advertising. When we look at society and think about what influences our view of the world, advertising and the media play a powerful role in shaping the world we imagine for ourselves and others. Advertising is a far-reaching ecosystem that has always been about influencing behavior – whether it is the dishwashing liquid we use, the car we drive, or who we vote for.
However, and unfortunately, a majority of the ads often portray a sexist, unequal, and unrealistic world thus reinforcing harmful gender stereotypes and norms. According to the Ipsos Global Survey (2018), 63% of women worldwide say they do not see themselves represented in most advertising and almost half of the consumers (45%) still see sexist ads that offend them.
She highlighted that inclusive marketing campaigns can significantly benefit companies bottom line in both the short and long term. In fact, a recent Unstereotype Alliance Study reveals that inclusive campaigns - specifically ads with higher positive gender representation get, on average, 3.46% higher sales in the short-term, with a longer-term sales lift of 16.26%.
Challenges
While there are many benefits to pursuing gender-responsive marketing, it is not always easy. The speakers also discussed the challenges associated with gender-responsive marketing.
Maryna mentioned that pursuing gender-responsive marketing is a continuous process requiring regular updates and improvements. Changing the mindset of the internal team has been particularly challenging, as has creating inclusive content. Arpita highlighted that producing an ad is time costly and expensive process; and thus, she often faces constant questions about whether the ads align with a moral compass and struggles with ensuring the right messages are conveyed given high investment. Sthu pointed out the difficulty of securing senior management buy-in for progressive and inclusive ads. She argued that empowerment of decision-makers at all levels is essential for these initiatives to succeed.
What can companies to do to embark their gender responsive marketing journey?
Understanding and embracing diversity, avoiding harmful stereotypes, and striving for authenticity and inclusivity in campaigns can lead to better customer relationships and improved business outcomes. Despite the challenges, the benefits of progressive and inclusive advertising are clear, making it a worthwhile endeavor for companies committed to positive social impact.
Sthu shared tools and tips to create progressive and inclusive campaigns. Companies should consider the ’3Ps Framework’ when creating ads - a set of guidelines that can be easily applied to all marketing communications in order to create progressive portrayals of all people.
- Presence: Who is portrayed in the communication? Who is not?
- Perspective: Who is framing the story and from whose perspective? Does the creative challenge outdated perspectives in society about people/ communities/ relationships/ norms?
- Personality: about the depth of character. Do the characters come across as empowered and in control of their lives and are they shown as multi-layered with 3-dimensional personalities?
Additionally, the ‘3 Bs Framework ’ provides an approach to media planning and encourages brands to be inclusive in who sees the creative output.
- Brief – Who are we targeting? Are we leaving people out because we haven't thought about who we're planning against?
- Block – Brand safety is really important and so are block lists, but there can be unintended consequences. Avoid blocking certain publications or titles and consider what audiences are unintentionally blocked out.
- Buy – Who are we spending our money with? Can we support minority and women owned companies in media buying?
Start today by assessing your companies advertising and marketing practices!
Click here to watch the recording.