Schick has introduced a hybrid bamboo razor as part of its goal to be fully sustainable by 2030. The handle is bamboo, the steel blades are made from 75% recycled material, and the packaging is 100% recyclable paperboard. (Clark, 2022)
Schick believes that small changes matter, and that there is merit in encouraging consumers to change their routines in order to be kinder to the environment. (Mahoney, 2022)
But at the same time they are realistic about the fact that switching to more sustainable products and habits can be intimidating amid widespread wokeness and green-shaming - hence the term "greentimidation."
Enter Beth Behrs portraying someone who has gone way over the top in greening her personal care routine. The spot is running on Instagram and Twitter.
Links here...
https://www.instagram.com/p/CcQUAJ9FBsR/
https://twitter.com/BethBehrs/status/1513954349046665220?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
Although Schick's parent company has similar long term goals for their brands as does Grove Collaborative, which we discussed last week, they have chosen to use humor to engage, while Grove has employed scare tactics that could backfire and result in less recycling among casual viewers.
How do you feel about these different approaches. Which makes you more likely to comply - humor or fear? Would it impact your overall view of the company? Would it make you more or less likely to buy their other products?
As we have discussed, not all humor is persuasive. Does the humor used here work? Why or why not?
Finally, although Schick has a decidedly male heritage they have chosen to target women in this campaign. Do you think that is a good strategy? Why or why not?
Clark, K. (2022, April 12) Schick and Beth Behrs mock sustainability-splainers in ad for new eco-friendly razor. thedrum.com. Retrieved April 25, 2022, from https://www.thedrum.com/news/2022/04/12/schick-and-beth-behrs-mock-sustainability-splainers-ad-new-sustainable-razor
Mahoney, S. (2022, April 12) Schick Tackles 'Greentimidation' With New Bamboo Razor. mediapost.com. Retrieved April 25, 2022, from
https://www.mediapost.com/publications/article/372942/schick-tackles-greentimidation-with-new-bamboo-r.html?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_content=headline&utm_campaign=125954&hashid=Pumyb0Zq27pukAWPYSxcJWfpafM
11 comments:
Humor can capture anyones attention and humor is more persuasive compare to fear. Also humor can work anywhere if it's done right. I don't want to fear because it will ruin my day and change my mood completely. If brands uses fear its just makes people hate them. I think it's great ideas that Schick target women in their campaign because there are women who use men razors compare to usage of regular razors used for women. Most brands main goals now are sustainability. Schick the handle is bamboo, the steel blades are made from 75% recycled material, and the packaging is 100% recyclable paperboard. Its not big change, but its the first step to change.
I think humor can often be a better tool than fear. It just has to be used properly. Humor should be thought out and also broad enough that a large audience can understand and connect with it. However, I believe that fear can be useful as well if it is necessary and fairly placed. If a product that is being advertised is truly going to help a dire situation that is hurting people or the environment, than displaying what the damage is that is being done can be very motivating to get people to buy to support the cause. However, more often than not, fear unfortunately influences people that can be easily swayed to buy a product using false information or stretching the truth. Transparency is key.
I really enjoyed the way in which Schick used humor in their campaign. I think it is truly the perfect combination of relatable, with educational as it shows how sustainable the product is. Their bamboo razor seems like a great step in lessening the amount of plastic used, and I am all for it!
Shohei Ishikawa
I believe the humor advertisement is more effective than the one using fear and intimidation. When the advertisers use fear tactics, I always feel that I do not want to face the consequences of the problem itself. I assume that someone else will do it instead of me; I make excuses to avoid facing the fear and consequences. On the other hand, I like a humorous advertisements. I believe that I pay more attention to the ad because it is funny. Also, humorous ads make me feel that I should cooperate with others. Therefore, I believe that a humorous advertisement works better than a fearful advertisement.
Also, the humor approach helps the company to have an overall better/ positive impression on me. For example, I did not know about this company at all until I saw the ad, and it made my impression of the company more positive because it was humorous. On the other hand, if the company uses a fear approach, I would not necessarily have a negative but darker image of the company. Therefore, I have a much better image of the company with a humorous approach and will likely buy their products.
For me, this humor worked because I do not take any "extra miles" for the environment. I do not have many interests in the "natural" lifestyle, and I thought it was funny. On the other hand, I can imagine that some people may be offended by how she acts. From my perception, I felt that the ad was making fun of the people who take the "extra step." It may offend these people because the ad almost sounded like if you recycled the bamboo razor, you are almost equal to doing the same as people with "extra miles." I am sure that people who take "extra steps" put a lot more effort into environmental issues.
I think it is good to focus on women for this ad compared to men's heritage because of the image. From my perception, I think that women are more conscious about the environment and willing to buy the product to save the environment than men. Of course, it is just my personal experience, but I hear more conversations about the environment from women than men. Also, I believe that it is a good opportunity for the company to expand its target since it has been a men's heritage brand.
Tonya Ongko
Fear or humor would make me comply depending on the situation and context. In other words, each approach can be effective and successful in its own ways based on the audience they want to target. Fear may rub off wrongly or appear too strong to some people, while it can scare some enough to take action. To some audiences, it is like a "wake-up call to reality". But some people may prefer humor because that kind of storytelling engages the audience and keeps them hooked. These individuals are typically the ones who like casual narratives, so they would not easily comply if fear was used against them as it could be too extreme or have opposite effects – they may perceive it satirically and informally. Hence, I think it really depends on who you're targeting.
I don't think a company's tonality will necessarily change my overall view of them but it will be more shocking if they employ a tactic that is unexpected or different from their usual tone. If they are delivering a tonality that is offensive or inaccurate, then this will impact my purchasing decisions.
In terms of this commercial, I think the humor was pretty persuasive because it kept me hooked until the end. Particularly, they would mock our sustainability efforts until they flip and promote their hybrid bamboo razor. This definitely kept me engaged as I was confused with the ad's intentions, but when they switched their wit and started advertising the product, I thought to myself, "oh they do have a point". Therefore, their initial sarcastic energy keeps audiences engaged till the end to convince them why the hybrid bamboo razor could be a great purchase.
Finally, I think it was a good strategy to target women in this campaign since it's always good to expand your target market and delve into niche markets especially when your product aligns with the audience you've targetted. Personally, I believe women admire and care about sustainability more than men. So, if this is backed enough by research, that is one reason why this campaign is clever to target that gender. Additionally, even though they're primarily targeting women with this campaign, they can still be targeting men...I believe this because when you're targeting some men, sometimes you want to advertise women in your campaign to grab their attention. Hence, widening your target market could always be benefitting and it may even still be targetting your previous audiences.
Humor is mostly better compared to fear in most circumstances. Humor is something that's more chill than fear; it's something that connects all the people together once people understand it. For the fear, it's more likely something that's initiative that is not entirely persuasive, it will affect people's mood negatively. However, there are many places where fear could be useful, like if the product is about hurting the environment or something relating to disease or medication.
I believe it would be a good strategy for Schick to target women. These days I believe women are more caring about the environment. And there are more housewives nowadays which is a greater target. And it's since it's always a man's brand it's also important to expand the market to other targets.
I believe each approach can be successful if they are used for the right products and right causes. In case of products concerning human health, scare tactics could be useful. Yet humor can be a great way to engage customers in by appealing to them with a fun narrative. Likewise, the audience is also crucial as some audience might be more prone to take action with a little scare push whereas others might be terrified by such a strategy.
When looking at products, I don’t really rely on the descriptions they might have online but rather on customer reviews and the features of the product. However, I am more inclined to buy a product that has an enthusiastic or humorous description rather than a fear enchanting tone. Thus, I do not really consider tonality when perceiving companies unless it is an offensive one or misleading one. The key factor that would influence my perception and future purchasing behavior would be the use of the product and its efficiency.
I believe the humor in this particular ad worked well for me and I will definitely try their product as I think their tactic was unique. Showing difficult ways to become green that not many people might be interested in, and then offering them a easy solution to take a step is very clever as people might want to start making environmental-friendly choices, but might not have the budget or right simply the awareness to. But I also believe people who are putting a lot of effort into becoming environmental-friendly and using some of the products she used in the beginning of the ad might be offended by these ad rather than focusing on the humor used.
I believe this ad might be a step for Schick to broaden its target audience with their new product. My personal experiences also showed me that women tend to be more interested in environmental-friendly products and environmental issues in general. I believe, with the right amount of research on this new niche target, Schick might attract a wider audience that they anticipate.
Honestly, ads that sell fear don't work well on me, trying to scare me in to doing something, makes me think you're trying to cover something up or distract me by making me so afraid I act quickly. Humor on the other hand I never really saw as a tactic to make me buy. I thought the ad was light hearted enough to watch a few times, they were over exaggerating the lifestyle of someone that goes green and I think it worked! Basically saying you don't have to do it all to help, just getting this razor made out of bamboo and recycled plastic is a step in the right direction. Individually, most people don't think they can save world, but they would be willing to make small changes like this to help the planet. The humorous light hearted approach makes me feel more favorable towards Schick, where as before I only saw them as a stuffy mens razor brand and now I am more inclined to try them in the future.
I thought targeting women for this product launch was brilliant, its a new niche market they are going after and using greentailing as a way to get women's attention is smart. Though studies show that the difference between men and women is small with who cares more about the environment, a 2018 Mintel survey", said that 71% of women try to live more ethically, compared to men. (Mintel ,2018)
https://www.mintel.com/press-centre/social-and-lifestyle/the-eco-gender-gap-71-of-women-try-to-live-more-ethically-compared-to-59-of-men
I believe whether fear or humor tactics will work on someone and make them comply depends on both the context of the message and who is interpreting it. I personally do think that fear tactics may get me to comply or purchase something if it is tied to an assertion that I would be doing so for a grave issue and the greater good, such as in the case of climate change and the state of the planet. I would say I am passionate about environmentalism so this may be why fear tactics would work for me in this context. Otherwise, for most other things, fear tactics would not grasp my attention but rather repel me as I would naturally try to avoid feeling fear or thinking of negative matters. Humor tactics do well in engaging me with a brand and their products but I believe it would take repeated uses of humor in their marketing and a consistent desire to engage for me to go out and purchase the product. I do, however, now view Schick as more relatable and they have successfully drawn me to their new more environmentally sustainable razor, especially through their choice to target women.
Although, this Schick ad may be perceived as offensive by some and effective by others. It may come off as insensitive to those who do implement "green living" in most or all aspects of their lives and they may view this ad as negating or trivializing environmentalists' efforts. Others may see it as a lighthearted and authentic spin on the prospect of doing our parts to protect the environment.
I think it was a great strategy for Schick to target women even though they have a longstanding male heritage. They were wise to expand their reach to women with the notion that women would be more likely to use a bamboo razor that is more environmentally-friendly. Their advertisement also executed this image very well in a way that would resonate with women who are trying to lead more "green" lives wherever they can but also feel that it is not easy and can be intimidating. Thus, women are likely to be drawn to shaving with something that also makes them feel good about their part in helping protect the environment.
- Nomi Q.
Humor or fear? That is the question, but in a world with so many different individuals with the various levels of concerns, abiding by one strict approach somehow doesn’t seem suitable. Nevertheless, when we speak of the mass consumer and their concern with the environment and the desperate change it needs I would dare to say that humor might be the best approach, at least for now. Knowing the harsh reality being faced in our deteriorating world is distressing, and if tv and the popularity of cheap entertainment shows like reality tv have taught us anything is that the mass consumer would much more rather turn to a channel presenting videos with people facing some of the silliest, (sometimes dangerous) things than to turn to a documentary or the news. Besides when things are already going wrong, a laugh and an ingenious tactic for engagement might certainly be the best option.
Depending on the level of seriousness and fear being projected by a company my view of it will definitely be affected, however, depending on the level of humor and the type of humor being portrait my overall view of the company will be hindered as well. Ideally a company that is conscious and portraits the reality being faced in the world with humor would have the most impact on my purchasing decision.
Although the humor used here might be seen as offensive to the individuals that do in fact go the extra mile to care about the environment, the ad is engaging and offers an alternative that is obtainable and realistic enough for anyone in the verge of changing their purchases choice or with a desire to begin being environmentally conscious.
Although Schick has a decidedly male heritage, their choice to target women in this campaign id a good strategy. As women, just as men, have a need for razors, they are generally more environmentally conscious, and have already started being targeted as a niche group for male razors.
Although I did enjoy the humorous ad, I think instilling a little fear can go a long way. Fear has a way of being sticky that humor does not possess. Comedy is easier to shrug off because it is not severe enough to encourage people to take action.
I don't believe that either approach would discourage me from trying their other products.
As I mentioned earlier, I enjoyed the humor in the ad, but I'm not sure if it will convince people to switch over. But, at least the company is trying to be more sustainable. Nevertheless, I think this will only attract people that want to be more sustainable. In my opinion, it will have little effect on anyone else.
Targeting women is a good idea for this product because men are less likely to try something new and are less likely to engage in sustainable practices.
More than fear, I think humor is the best tool to reach everyone and hold anyone's attention easily. If it were an advertisement for anxiety, I would reject it from the bottom of my heart and leave the product because of that emotion. In addition, the fear may be misplaced or seem too intense for some people, and it may scare some people into action. Therefore, I think humorous ads are more effective than scary ads.
I believe that Schick's targeting of women is a good strategy. Women are more concerned about the environment than men and are willing to buy products to protect the environment. They are pursuing a new niche market, and it is wise to use green tailing to get women's attention.
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