Advertising to Black Women

If your address is not

Image Credits

Mr. & Mrs. Black People

2466 Under a Rock Street

USA

then you've heard the controversy being drummed up about the famed Carol's Daughter campaign featuring Solange, Cassie and Selita Ebanks. Part of the ad campaign is pictured here.

Image Credits

Many black women feel that the caption on the picture "Beauty in Diversity" is not reflected in the ad. Also because this limited view of "acceptable black women" chafes because in some light it perpetrates what black women have been trying to fight for a long time. Indeed ALL women have been trying to fight the standards of beauty put upon us. For white women it is the Barbie stereotype they fight, choosing to keep the natural color of their hair and embrace their body in whatever shape it comes.

This fight, however, seems to be a little more personal for many of Carol's Daughter's clientele who feel slighted because they don't feel represented in the "Beauty in Diversity" campaign. The blogosphere is a-buzz about the campaign and here are some examples

• Dirty Pretty Thangs believes something is missing.
• Brown Bombshell Beauty thinks the message of the campaign is misleading.
• Clutch Magazine Online promotes the campaign, the interesting commentary is in the comments section.
• BLGH presents the campaign as well allowing women to comment on the story.

In a World where a few items on the market are geared specifically towards the unique needs of black hair care, skin care and makeup, it is easy to get possessive about the few products that have thought of us a primary group to market products too. We've all walked through stores and seen the tiny little section at the back of the store that has a few bottles of TCB, Palm Olive oil products, two boxes of African Pride relaxer and the Ginseng Hair Oil. Unless you are willing to go to the Asian owned black hair care stores there are very few options left for women to run to.

Image Credits

There are two points we have to remember to consider when we start the fight for products like these.

• Companies have to grow. It is entirely possible that Carol's Daughter believes that they have already successfully marketed their product to the vast majority of women in the African American community. I believe this ad was created to INCLUDE women who consider themselves to be bi-racial or poly-racial but have hair issues just like ours.

• Advertising has not presented reality in a very long time. Every time you see an ad on TV, whether it is food (like the article we tackled), beauty products, dish washing soaps, blenders... whatever it is, it is always being exaggerated. The product never works the way they say it is going to and you never look like the people in the ads. If you have watched America's Next Top Model, you have seen the women get extensions in their hair, pictures being airbrushed, props and hops and loops and goop... it does not end. 

In this case I think Carol's Daughter may have made a mistake in using "Diversity" in their campaign slogan when they were trying to include bi-racial sisters and hopefully they will be able to redeem themselves. We will be watching closely!

What are your own thoughts on the campaign?