25 years ago, it was rare to see brands take a stance on social issues. Only over the last couple of decades have they started making their voices heard on political and social matters — and now, advertising has become an agent for social change. 

Before the 21st century, advertising was not much more than a profit-making mechanism, and brands didn’t care deeply about consumers beyond the revenue they provided. Moreover, it was commonplace for corporations to take a neutral approach to issues. There seemed to be little to gain by activism on potentially divisive issues, especially for consumer brands.

Fast forward to the 2000s, brands rapidly began to make more bold social statements. However, they were still worried about the costs of taking a more liberal stand on such issues. Now, many corporations have diversity and inclusion measures in place to increase brand strength and perception. Moreover, companies face increased pressure to adapt due to a young, diverse, and high-spending generation fed up with overt racism.

In this article, we’re discussing how advertising has changed over time, and how branding will move forward being built upon less harmful stereotypes.

Brand Management-Driven Initiatives

In our current social climate, it’s increasingly more important for brands to conduct reviews of their brand identities and evolve them. In previous times, this was not so much the case.

In the wake of the Black Lives Matter protests and other recent issues, brands are swiftly taking account of the harmful stereotypes they once inflicted. Take Quaker Oats, for instance, who recently announced they would be changing the Aunt Jemima brand name to “make progress toward racial equality.” The 131-year-old brand, who had capitalized on a romantic view of antebellum American slavery, realized they needed to alter their brand perception.

Just days after Quaker’s announcement, other brands with African American stereotypes followed suit. The Uncle Ben’s rice brand, after years of having its logo criticized for acting as a racial stereotype, will now take on the name, “Ben’s Original.” Mrs. Butterworth’s pancake syrup, who’s bottle shape resembles a racial caricature of stereotype for Black women, began a complete brand and packaging review.

Finally, parent company of Cream of Wheat, B&G Foods, announced that they will be removing the smiling black chef from the box packaging. New Cream of Wheat packaging is expected to be unveiled in early 2021.

Talent Management-Driven Initiatives

If your internal brand is weak and lacks credibility, it diminishes the value of your corporate brand.

While Nike has a history of public-facing ads addressing racism, it is equally as conscious of mimicking these views within its internal brand. In an internal memo to the company’s employees, Nike CEO John Donahoe explained the importance of getting their own company in order. 

“Let me be as clear as I can: Nike is opposed to bigotry. We are opposed to hatred and inequality in all its forms, indirect and overt. While Nike cannot solve injustice, I believe we have a responsibility to work toward addressing it to the best of our ability,” the letter stated. 

Similarly, Adidas announced a three-step plan for addressing the #BlackLivesMatter movement after a coalition of employees sent a 32-page deck to North American leadership on June 2. In the plan, Adidas pledged to invest $20 million in Black communities, invest in university scholarships for Black employees, and increase the number of Black employees so that a minimum of 30% of new positions will be filled with Black and Latinx people.

Conclusion

Advertising has a long history of racism. In the rare instanced black people were featured in ads, they were frequently depicted as subservient, ignorant and unattractive. Companies are clearly trying to remedy America’s painful history of advertising and mitigate the use of racial stereotypes to sell products. We’ve entered an era of branding for black lives, and along with public-facing statements addressing social issues, brands are ensuring they foster an inclusive, equal workforce.