Poll of the Day > Gillette takes $8 billion loss following anti-'toxic masculinity' ad campaign

(+) Yeah! (+)

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-proctergamble-results/pg-posts-strong-sales-takes-8-billion-gillette-writedown-idUSKCN1UP1AD

They claim it's due to increased competition from companies like Dollar Shave Club, but we all know the truth.
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I noticed they ditched those ads for several weeks now. Guess it didn't go over so well, lol

Insulting your own customers, especially in an official ad campaign for your product, is a bad idea. Who knew?

Go woke, get broke.
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Its probably both

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Oh man, that's going to be enough to get the executives at P&G to buy one less ivory backscratcher.
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Not going to lie, the only commercials for shaving I remember lately are dollar shave club, and the one with the nerdy looking white kid dancing.

It was a bad idea for more than one reason. They misread the room in so many ways. The backlash to it was hilarious, though. You'd think they'd used their razors to murder a bunch of men on-screen or something, lol.
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Just looked it up. I think the end messaging wasn't necessarily wrong, but I they did it in the worst way. They start showing mens faces like they are feeling guilty, like I'm supposed to feel guilty. What should I feel guilty for? That then made it so I basically didn't care at all for the relatively positive message in the second half of it.

If their goal wasn't to try putting collective guilt on us all, man, they really botched it.

I agreed with the intended message of the ad, but man their delivery of that message was awful.

A better idea would have been to show a bunch of men acting in a positive masculine way. There wasn't really anything positive about their ad.
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BlackScythe0 posted...

Just looked it up. I think the end messaging wasn't necessarily wrong, but I they did it in the worst way. They start showing mens faces like they are feeling guilty, like I'm supposed to feel guilty. What should I feel guilty for? That then made it so I basically didn't care at all for the relatively positive message in the second half of it.

If their goal wasn't to try putting collective guilt on us all, man, they really botched it.

Thats a good way of putting it. Its not like anyone should feel guilty just for being a man.

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BlackScythe0 posted...

If their goal wasn't to try putting collective guilt on us all, man, they really botched it.

Exactly. It's like, what the fuck did I do??

For that matter, what's wrong with talking to someone on the street?
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Making BBQ for your familar is a baed thing
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I dont think it was the messaging that caused this. Its probably way more convenient to do Dollar Shave Club than buy an expensive set of cartridges every few months.

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jramirez23 posted...

I dont think it was the messaging that caused this. Its probably way more convenient to do Dollar Shave Club than buy an expensive set of cartridges every few months.

Dollar Shave Club, Harrys, and all those places have been around for a number of years now and this only happened in their previous fiscal quarter. Its likely it was a result of the terrible advertising. I think most men who used Gillette products were just using them out of habit. But after an incomprehensibly stupid marketing campaign, it likely gave a lot of dudes, and some women, a reason to switch to the better platforms.
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I mean, I know a lot of my friends who stopped buying gillette products after that, and they're usually not even political. It was one of those things where the backlash broke into the mainstream.

I never actually saw the ads, only read about it online.
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Why cant ads Idk just focus on what the product actually does? Outside ones that successfully manage to be funny ive never cared for ads that are nothing about what the product does.
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WarGreymon77 posted...

I never actually saw the ads, only read about it online.

Yea I had to look it up to give an opinion on it as I had never seen it.

who watches ads?
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mooreandrew58 posted...

Why cant ads Idk just focus on what the product actually does? Outside ones that successfully manage to be funny ive never cared for ads that are nothing about what the product does.

Cause sometimes a product sucks or is way overpriced

half of advertising is peddling bullshit

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TheWitchMorgana posted...

who watches ads?

a lot of people, thats why companies still spend a shit ton on tv ads and radio ads (but really who tf listens to the radio anymore lol)

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oh, well i haven't had cable tv in like... a decade i think
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glad i only need to shave once every 4-6 weeks. save so much money
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Mead posted...

mooreandrew58 posted...

Why cant ads Idk just focus on what the product actually does? Outside ones that successfully manage to be funny ive never cared for ads that are nothing about what the product does.

Cause sometimes a product sucks or is way overpriced

half of advertising is peddling bullshit

I mean I get putting in some unrelated story but ultimately what the product does should be a part of it. Like the one with that football player who was missing a hand. It showed his father teaching him to shave.
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DirtBasedSoap posted...

TheWitchMorgana posted...

who watches ads?

a lot of people, thats why companies still spend a shit ton on tv ads and radio ads (but really who tf listens to the radio anymore lol)

I do but trust me they realize a lot of people dont listen to traditional radio anymore station i listen to anyways advertises the hell out of iheartradio and how to find them on it.
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Krazy_Kirby posted...

glad i only need to shave once every 4-6 weeks. save so much money

same, blonde facial hair ftw

Although I use an electric razor so fuck it

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Why don't people use electric razors/shavers? I have both, They were cheap, and they work fast. I don't have to use shaving cream etc. When I take a shower in the morning, I run the electric shaver over my face to prevent any hairs from actually growing more then a few centimeters. When I had a beard, I did the same think with the beard trimmer/razor thing (lets you control length).

In both cases it takes a minute or two, no clean up, no shaving cream, and your done.

I don't get using non-electric at this point.
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It is weird how many people still use shaving cream and razors. It makes sense if you want your face to be super clean shaven down to the pores, but for a standard shave electric works just fine

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TheWitchMorgana posted...

oh, well i haven't had cable tv in like... a decade i think

i think these were also on youtube
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My god if that ad really put your rectum in a twist you need to, I dunno, uh, shut up.
Yeah it was dumb but come on. It wasn't even that profound. It was just saying dont be an asshole. You shouldn't need some tug-on-your-heart-strings ad to tell you that
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^Nobody here seems particularly up in arms about it. Also it was less "don't be an asshole" and more "stop being an asshole."
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Boys will be boys.
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jramirez23 posted...

I dont think it was the messaging that caused this. Its probably way more convenient to do Dollar Shave Club than buy an expensive set of cartridges every few months.

I do like Harrys. I would probably have been buying those if I was still active duty. If I get that job on base, Ill probably start doing that...

TheWitchMorgana posted...

who watches ads?

People, usually... I see all kinds of ads on YouTube...
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keyblader1985 posted...

^Nobody here seems particularly up in arms about it. Also it was less "don't be an asshole" and more "stop being an asshole."

The message was supposed to be "stop being a dick" but sounded at times more like "stop having a dick".
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Mead posted...

It is weird how many people still use shaving cream and razors. It makes sense if you want your face to be super clean shaven down to the pores, but for a standard shave electric works just fine

For me, its a few reasons. One is because of money. I know they arent super expensive, but I am super broke. And I can get a couple razors for like a few bucks. Haha.

wolfy42 posted...

When I take a shower in the morning, I run the electric shaver over my face to prevent any hairs from actually growing more then a few centimeters.

I cant do that. I tried shaving without looking once. It was not good. Haha. Had to shave again once I got out of the shower...
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Electric shavers always leave a 5 o'clock shadow. Not the best look. But it's all I've ever used.
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@LinkPizza I got a pretty decent electric razor for like $30. You can find good, cheap electric razors pretty easily.

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wolfy42 posted...

Why don't people use electric razors/shavers?

Mead posted...

It is weird how many people still use shaving cream and razors. It makes sense if you want your face to be super clean shaven down to the pores, but for a standard shave electric works just fine

For me specifically, electric razors just don't work. My hair is just too thin/fine so they don't cut it properly unless I go over the same spot several times, and in that case I am just better off using a manual razor.

As for Dollar Shave club being a reason... Gillette has their own service like Dollar Shave club, they have had it for years now. Granted, it is more expensive but a lot of people will say that the quality is much higher and worth the price. Their marketing plan was just poorly thought out, especially when their customer base is made up of people who don't really pay attention to the brand of product they are using, just grabbing whatever off the shelf. I didn't even realize the razor I had used from the time I was 14 until I switched to Dollar Shave club was a Gillette until I saw this topic and checked.

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I admit that razors give you a cleaner shave, but I won't give up the convenience of an electric shaver for completely smooth shave.

Also, I don't know what a company that sells men's products was expecting with a commercial shaming men.
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Dikitain posted...

I didn't even realize the razor I had used from the time I was 14 until I switched to Dollar Shave club was a Gillette until I saw this topic and checked.

Does it not say Gillette in big letters anywhere on any of the products you used to buy?
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I still think mead is just an alternate version of me, or possibly a clone, or my lost sister that was adopted or something.
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Mead posted...

It is weird how many people still use shaving cream and razors. It makes sense if you want your face to be super clean shaven down to the pores, but for a standard shave electric works just fine

Especially now that "unkempt" has sort of become stylish. When I was younger there was much more of a drive to be completely clean-shaven or people would assume you were kind of a dirtbag, but Hollywood has spent the last 20 years telling us that scruffy 5 o'clock shadow is a sexy fashion statement. So now most people can easily get away with not having the world's closest shave every single day as long as they trim.
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DirtBasedSoap posted...

@LinkPizza I got a pretty decent electric razor for like $30. You can find good, cheap electric razors pretty easily.

I dont even have $30 to spare. Im like beyond broke...

TigerTycoon posted...

I admit that razors give you a cleaner shave, but I won't give up the convenience of an electric shaver for completely smooth shave.

Also, I don't know what a company that sells men's products was expecting with a commercial shaming men.

I would probably have to either way. I dont think the military likes that. They want a clean shave. Though, there is a new beard rule for religious purposes... Also, Im black and could probably get a shaving waiver easily...

AllstarSniper32 posted...

Dikitain posted...

I didn't even realize the razor I had used from the time I was 14 until I switched to Dollar Shave club was a Gillette until I saw this topic and checked.

Does it not say Gillette in big letters anywhere on any of the products you used to buy?

Probably. But a lot of people dont really check...
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I dunno man Dollar Shave Club got that podcasting market down pat.
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wolfy42 posted...

I still think mead is just an alternate version of me, or possibly a clone, or my lost sister that was adopted or something.

We must be triplets then.
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Zareth posted...

I dunno man Dollar Shave Club got that podcasting market down pat.

They do. Thats also how I found Harrys. I like using the codes they give me...
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Mad_Max posted...

They claim it's due to increased competition from companies like Dollar Shave Club,

Well, they run less obnoxious ads.

aHappySacka posted...

Go woke, get broke.

When did making a high quality product become not enough? This trend towards companies "standing for something" and virtue-signaling has led to terrible commercials (which are neither compelling nor particularly entertaining) and campaigns that backfire spectacularly. The only people who have truly profited are consultants pitching this nonsense and convincing companies that there's a need to do this.

wolfy42 posted...

I don't have to use shaving cream etc.

I don't either. The only time it might be absolutely necessary is with a straight-edge razor.
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