In recent times, a brand's controversial advertising visual, especially on social media, has brought the importance of advertising and its language to the agenda in the communication sector. Experts state that a brand operating in many markets worldwide and communicating without altering its discourse, language, or visuals in these markets is defined as 'global advertising,' and they emphasize the importance of implementing global advertising with the right strategy. Experts underscore the necessity that if a globally positioned brand communicates with consumers in many countries or regions simultaneously, the religious and sociological factors in that country must be taken into account, and both the advertising language and visual components must be carefully selected.
Language and visuals must be carefully selected, religious and sociological factors must be considered!
Asst. Prof. Dr. Cihan Becan from Üsküdar Üniversitesi Faculty of Communication, Department of Advertising, evaluated a brand's recent controversial advertisement and its advertising language.
Global advertising should be implemented with the right strategy
Asst. Prof. Dr. Cihan Becan stated that a brand being present in many markets worldwide and communicating in these markets without changing its discourse, language, and visuals is called 'global advertising,' and he added:
"The example implemented by the brand here, which caused reactions, can also be evaluated within this scope. If it is not applied with a correct strategy and action is taken without considering the consequences, we can say that the global advertising approach itself is no different from walking in a minefield for that brand."
Religious and sociological factors must be considered!
If we are positioned as a global brand in the market and are communicating with consumers in many countries and/or regions simultaneously, the religious and sociological factors in that country are among the first elements we must consider. It is not possible to act without taking these into account. If you do proceed, receiving strong reactions from people becomes inevitable.
Visual appeal is not the same across all markets
The main reason for the emergence of problems here stems from evaluating global advertisements by considering features such as assuming that a visual appeal for a brand or message is the same across all markets, not requiring extensive language translation, the usability of universal needs-values and emotions in brand image campaigns, and prioritizing universally similar interests, needs, and values."
Careful selection of advertising language and visual components is important
Asst. Prof. Dr. Cihan Becan, referring to the advertising example that met with backlash on social media, stated that the crucial aspect for any global-scale brand in an advertising campaign is the careful selection of its language and visual components. Becan said, "An object, image, or photograph can simultaneously lead to different perceptions in many countries. It may be necessary to know what the photograph or object in question means for that country, and even resort to sociological research. Furthermore, it should be well calculated how and in what context various objects, traditional clothes, and colors will be used. Otherwise, even work done with good intentions can lead to negative consequences."
Using the 'bread' visual is a wrong choice
Dr. Becan noted that the use of the bread visual in the example recently subject to debate was a very wrong choice for a brand operating in Turkey. He stated, "Beyond being a basic food source for people in general, bread is also attributed as a religious value by our nation. In some hadiths, bread is mentioned as 'Respect bread. Allah grants favors to those who respect it.' For this reason, the saying 'nân-ı aziz, âb-ı leziz' is also used in our culture."
A wrong communication strategy has been adopted
Asst. Prof. Dr. Cihan Becan stated that Article 4 of the International Code of Advertising Practice (ICC) is evaluated under the heading of 'social responsibility,' and he said: "The following statement is included here: 'Marketing communications should not support discrimination based on race, national origin, religion, gender, age, social values, mental or physical disability, or sexual preferences, nor should they ignore such discrimination; they must respect human dignity. Marketing communications should not exploit feelings of fear without just cause, nor should they use elements such as misfortune and suffering as exploitative material. Marketing communications should not contain elements that incite or condone acts of violence, nor should they encourage illegal or antisocial behavior. Marketing communications should refrain from exploiting superstitions.' Therefore, according to this article, it can be clearly stated that the brand has entered into a wrong communication strategy."
An attempt was made to create a 'buzz' effect
Asst. Prof. Dr. Cihan Becan stated that the real question to be asked here is not what a brand (especially a global one) should pay attention to in terms of language and expression in its advertising campaigns and where it should be selective, but rather why a well-known brand acted this way. He concluded his words as follows:
"There are two possibilities for this. Either it acted without foreseeing and calculating the consequences, which I don't consider very likely. The other option is reflected more predominantly. That is: we can see it as a result of attempting to create a 'buzz' effect by confronting consumers with linguistic or visual expressions that do not align with values or religious beliefs, whether on social media or traditional media. The reactions beneath this advertisement are a concrete reflection of this effect. Although the buzz effect is generally used positively in the advertising and communication sector, global brands of this type can also resort to such methods to get themselves or their relevant product model talked about. Let's also look at it from this perspective. The main product of the advertisement is shoes, but a bread visual, which cannot be associated with the product in any way, was used. Ultimately, advertising principles and guidelines, global advertising strategies, and cultural and religious sensitivities can sometimes be overshadowed in this way due to the framework brands simply want to establish for themselves."