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A look at the brand's new spot titled #UnitedByHalf, which promotes equality of the genders.
'Gender Equality' seems to have grabbed the limelight lately with several brands launching ad campaigns based on women's issues, honouring their courage and empowering them. Joining the bandwagon is United Colors of Benetton (UCB). The global fashion brand has recently released an ad film called '#UnitedByHalf'. While UCB talked about women's safety and well-being in its '#UnitedbyDonts' (a print ad campaign that was launched last year), this time it has taken up 'equality of women' in its latest integrated campaign.
The brand has previously launched '#UnitedByPlay' on August 15, 2016, '#UnitedByHer' which addressed Breast Cancer, '#UnitedByChange' which was launched on January 26, 2017 around the Indian flag and what kids feel about the Tricolour.
"#UnitedByHalf is about women's right to equality when it comes to funds for education, food and nutrition, taking decisions and sharing responsibilities. We wanted to launch the campaign around Valentine's Day because close to, and especially on that day, every communication on any medium celebrates love and relationships. We decided to start a dialogue about what matters most in any relationship - respect, be it between a parent and a child, siblings, partners or colleagues," says Raj Kurup, founder and creative chairman, Creativeland Asia.
Although, UCB has tried to portray itself as a crusader for the cause of women through various initiatives, ad campaigns launched by other brands (national or international) based on woman empowerment have been doing the rounds for quite some time. Vogue's 'Empower' campaign, launched in 2015, featuring Bollywood actor Deepika Padukone, had created quite a stir on social media. In the same year, Vodafone India launched 'M-Pesa' campaign to empower women living away from their husbands in the villages of Uttar Pradesh with self-defence umbrellas.
Making a Statement?
With so many brands releasing ads based on similar themes in the recent past, gender-themed communications may involve the risk of becoming a blind spot for consumers. So we asked the experts 'will this ad film stand out from the rest?'
"The fact that UCB chose to continue the narrative from last year proves their passion for this cause. Additionally, unlike similar campaigns done by FMCG brands such as Ariel and Dove, UCB has attached a clear call to action by asking people to pledge for 'United By Half' via a microsite, and featuring real stories of discrimination shared by women from all stratas of society. This amplifies the impact of the campaign, and makes it more interactive and less passive as compared to the rest of the campaigns in this space," she adds.
According to Pooja Jauhari, CEO, The Glitch, any topic if over exhausted has the risk of becoming a blind spot. She, however, says that gender-based conversations, if tackled well, are always needed.
"There have been many films that we look at and go saying, 'oh not again' or 'enough about this'. What I like about this film is that it didn't talk about giving women everything, but just the equal half. Neither do we need to put men or women on a pedestal nor give any one preferential treatment. This film tackled the issue in a good manner. It exudes strength, and is produced well," Jauhari says.