Case Study Analysis: Benetton's Controversial Marketing Strategies

This case study analyzes Benetton's controversial advertising strategies, particularly its use of shock advertising. The assignment explores the objectives of advertising, the advantages and disadvantages of shock tactics, and the role of art and consumer perspectives. It examines Benetton's campaigns, the views of figures like Olivier Toscani, and compares Benetton's approach with other brands like Calvin Klein and PETA. The analysis concludes with a discussion on whether Benetton should continue using shock advertising, advocating for a shift towards more conventional and less offensive marketing approaches. The paper references various sources to support its claims.

Running head: BENETTON CASE STUDY ANALYSIS
BENETTON CASE STUDY ANALYSIS
Name of the Student:
Name of the University:
Authors Note

2BENETTON CASE STUDY ANALYSIS
Table of Contents
Answer to Question 1:.....................................................................................................................3
Answer to Question 2:.....................................................................................................................4
Answer to Question 3:.....................................................................................................................5
Answer to Question 4:.....................................................................................................................6
Answer to Question 5:.....................................................................................................................7
References:......................................................................................................................................9

3BENETTON CASE STUDY ANALYSIS
Answer to Question 1:
Advertizing is the most significant part of promotional mix. An organization that
advertizes strives to achieve its objectives more easily. Advertizing objectives are the
communication tasks that are accomplished when the organization reaches their potential
customers. The potential customer is targeted with the help of advertizing within a particular
time period (Saad et al., 2015). The advertizing main objectives include trial, brand switching,
inform, remind and switchback. Selection of the objective is made after analyzing the product in
its life cycle.
The main purpose of trial objective is to make the customers encourage for buying the
new products. Creative advertizing strategies are used to gain competitive advantage. By
informing the individuals about the products and its price helps in raising awareness about both
the company and the product. This strategy is used while launching a new product or re-
launching it as an updated version. Through continuity, the existing customers are targeted and
provided latest information about the product to build consumer loyalty (Buccoliero et al., 2018).
Brand witching is another technique used with an only goal to make the consumer switch from
their competitors brand to their brands. Switchback is the advertizing objective of the company
to get back the former users to use its own brand and product.
The main advertizing objective of Benetton includes creating its brand awareness through
huge promotions in the public. The company follows shock advertizing since the year 1982 by
creating its different image (Benetton.com, 2018). This approach brings out innovative themes
that lead to position the company in a completely different ways (Engelbart, Jackson & Smith,
2017). The company’s shock advertizing objective created a new revolution and scenario in the

4BENETTON CASE STUDY ANALYSIS
advertizing sector. Benetton used corporate social responsibility as it themes and promoted its
brand throughout the world. Benetton promotional strategy highlighted the issue of
indiscrimination in society. This objective leads to serve the global audience and the company
created its own distinctive image.
Answer to Question 2:
Shock advertizing was developed by Benetton, the retailing company of clothing creating
line United Colors of Benetton. The advertising is shocking and can be offensive for various
reasons. Through shocking advertisement social, political and religious norms can be violated in
various different ways (Girling, 2004). The advertisement includes people traditions, practices
and beliefs by reflecting the true scenario of the society. The shocking content of the
advertisement increases the attention of the people. Shocking advertisement benefits the memory
of the people and positively influences their behavior.
The advantages of shock advertizing are that an advertisement with shocking concept
itself increases the attention of individuals. This creates a positive impact on the mind of the
people and influences their behavior. Consumers generally remember shocking content in an
advertisement more over a content that is not shocking. People tend to remember for more time
period about a shocking advertizing. This is not in the case of normal advertizing. The
advertisement features kids and teenagers from culturally diverse country wearing the clothes of
Benetton. They spread the message that different culture all over the world can share its product
to encourage harmony. This lead to aware the local people about civil liberties, human rights,
social issues and environmental rights.

5BENETTON CASE STUDY ANALYSIS
The major disadvantage of shocking advertisement is that overexposure of individuals
can deliberately affect the mind of the consumer. It creates a long-lasting impact on the mind of
consumers. Shock advertisement is in a graphic form and its real meaning is shown to the people.
The images can be highly sensitive or in a negative form (Dahl, Frankenberger & Manchanda,
2003). Such kind of advertisement can also be offensive for various reasons and in different
ways. This creates various controversies and can be considered offensive in nature.
Answer to Question 3:
Art is the expression of emotions and the image of world is portrait in the form of
certain characters. Art makes the people to think and react to certain situations. Olivier Toscani
defended Benetton’s shock advertizing as it constituted only debate between art and advertizing.
He argues that graphics and potentially offensive images are acceptable only in the world of
journalism and art. Advertisement should not showcase graphics and images that are potentially
offensive in nature (Parry et al., 2013). According to the consumer perspectives advertisement is
a tool that should convey useful message for the product. It should display the products
applicability and usefulness rather than relating it with completely different kind of activity. I
completely agree with Olviero Toscani as he has pointed the true facts about shock
advertisement.
Oleverio Toscani is popular throughout the world for creating advertizing campaign for
Benetton. He is an Italian photographer and generated various controversial photographs for the
company. The images that created more buzz around the world as a man with AIDS lying in
death bed, surrounded by friends and families around him. Another controversial picture
included three identical hearts and black, white and yellow written over it. This was meant to

6BENETTON CASE STUDY ANALYSIS
show the people that each individual are same on the inside but different on the outside. This
kind of acts mostly gives rise to communal indifference among the people.
Shock advertisement made by the company generally provokes the consumers (Benoit,
2014). Advertisement is a form of communication and its main objective is to inform the
consumer about the benefits availed from its product and services. The idea is to persuade the
potential consumers to buy the products. On the other hand, advertisement in the form of art by
using slogans and images to highlight the products and attract people is unknowingly violating
the norms.
Answer to Question 4:
Calvin Klein a popular brand known for its jeans has followed shock advertisement to
attract more consumers in the past. The brands advertisement featured the explicit images of
young teenage models. The models were no less that 15 years and were posed in overly
provocative and sexual poses. This led to rise in various controversies of the companies as the
campaign was considered to be highly shocking and exploitative in nature (Kireyev, Pauwels &
Gupta 2016). Moreover later in the year 1999, Calvin Klein further created buzz and
controversy. The company aired its advertisement, which displayed young children’s only in
their underwear. Due to public lash out the shocking advertisement was pulled within 24 hours of
being aired.
PETA is another company, which uses the similar strategy for advertisement. PETA is
also known as People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals. The company uses shock
advertisement to convey the message about their services to the consumers. PETA is an
organization meant for safety of animals. The company displays graphics images to show the

7BENETTON CASE STUDY ANALYSIS
current scenario of animals and their living condition. PETA shows the true conditions of the
animal through shock advertisement and its existing situation in the society and throughout the
world (Hagenbuch, 2015). It is one of the few companies that use shock advertisement in a
positive and effective manner.
Shocking advertisement should be used to promote no cancer campaigns. Images of
cancer affected patients can be showcased throughout the countries to prevent usage of tobaccos
and alcohol. This measure is used by government of several countries by printing such images on
the tobacco products. Shocking advertising is also useful for NGO’s to promote the conservation
of nature and wildlife. This advertisement can also be used in other similar marketing segments
that require immediate action.
Answer to Question 5:
I completely agree that Benetton should drop its decision of applying shock
advertisements and shift to conventional types of advertisements. Since the year 1982, the
company has used the strategy of shock advertizing to create awareness about its product. The
company can promote its brands and product without hurting the values of the consumers.
Shocking advertizing is very offensive in nature in various ways. The advertizing for Benetton
can be made even without graphics or any kind of horrifying images. Advertizing should be
made in such a way that would be helpful to the businesses. It should allow the businesses to
spread the organization’s product and services without hurting the sentiments of any individual.
It should be done in a very friendly manner not ignoring the individual’s value and beliefs.
The Benetton Group with its communication strategy showcased how advertizing can
affect a business strategy. Benetton is a vast advertizing company that mostly focuses on its logo

8BENETTON CASE STUDY ANALYSIS
and products. Advertisement should make in such a way that would easily persuade the
consumers to purchase its products or services. The main idea behind the approach is to create
increase in the profit and consumption of organization’s product and services through the
branding process (Parry et al., 2013).
It was therefore very good decision by the company to switch the normal and
conventional advertizing rather than shock advertizing. Shock advertizing mainly created
adverse impact on the thinking and behavior of the company. This type of advertizing is regarded
to be deliberate rather than inadvertent. Mostly this strategy offends or startles the majority of
audiences as norms for personal ideas and social beliefs are violated. Benetton is a leading and
successful business in the recent times and communicating with consumers with such content
could affect the business in the long-term.

9BENETTON CASE STUDY ANALYSIS
References:
Benetton.com. (2018). United Colors of Benetton - Official Site | Online Shop. United Colors of
Benetton. Retrieved 25 March 2018, from https://us.benetton.com/
Benoit, A. (2014). "An advertising world gone completely haywire": MAC VIVA
GLAM. Advertising & Society Review, 15(1).
Buccoliero, L., Bellio, E., Mazzola, M., & Solinas, E. (2018). The role of social marketing
communications in influencing “Text and Driving” Behaviors: Theory and Evidence
from an international sample. GSTF Journal on Business Review (GBR), 4(3).
Dahl, D. W., Frankenberger, K. D., & Manchanda, R. V. (2003). Does it pay to shock? Reactions
to shocking and nonshocking advertising content among university students. Journal of
advertising research, 43(3), 268-280.
Engelbart, S. M., Jackson, D. A., & Smith, S. M. (2017). Examining Asian and European
Reactions within Shock Advertising. Asian Journal of Business Research, 7(2), 37.
Girling, E. (2004). ‘Looking Death in the Face’ The Benetton Death Penalty
Campaign. Punishment & Society, 6(3), 271-287.
Hagenbuch, D. J. (2015). Should Advertising Shock?. Journal of Biblical Integration in
Business, 18(2).
Kireyev, P., Pauwels, K., & Gupta, S. (2016). Do display ads influence search? Attribution and
dynamics in online advertising. International Journal of Research in Marketing, 33(3),
475-490..

10BENETTON CASE STUDY ANALYSIS
Parry, S., Jones, R., Stern, P., & Robinson, M. (2013). ‘Shockvertising’: An exploratory
investigation into attitudinal variations and emotional reactions to shock
advertising. Journal of Consumer Behaviour, 12(2), 112-121.
Saad, W., Ibrahim, G., Naja, M., & Hakam, N. (2015). Provocation in Advertising: The Attitude
of Lebanese Consumers. Journal of Marketing Development and Competitiveness, 9(2),
92.
Srinivasan, S., Rutz, O. J., & Pauwels, K. (2016). Paths to and off purchase: quantifying the
impact of traditional marketing and online consumer activity. Journal of the Academy of
Marketing Science, 44(4), 440-453.
Wang, Z., Deshpande, S., Waller, D. S., & Erdogan, B. Z. (2017). Religion and Perceptions of
the Regulation of Controversial Advertising. Journal of International Consumer
Marketing, 1-16.