Canada Dry Advertising: Marketing Policies and Societal Significance

This essay examines the advertising strategies employed by Canada Dry and their subsequent social impact. Beginning with the origins of Canada Dry Ginger Ale in 1964 and its rise to prominence, the analysis focuses on how the company's marketing policies have influenced consumer behavior. The essay highlights the evolution of Canada Dry's advertising, from its initial focus on refreshment to more recent campaigns targeting specific demographics like Gen Y and ethnic communities. It also critiques instances where the company's advertisements have perpetuated gender stereotypes, promoted outdated social norms, or sparked controversy through questionable content. Despite these missteps, the essay acknowledges Canada Dry's consistent messaging around refreshment and family-friendly appeal, contributing to the brand's enduring success. Desklib provides access to similar essays and solved assignments for students.

Running head: SIGNIFICANCE OF ADVERTISING ON SOCIETY
Significance of Advertising on Society
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1Significance of Advertising on Society
Advertising refers to the process of attracting customers and manipulating customer
needs with the purpose of selling certain products, through the channels of media.
Advertising is the direct mode of communication by the business houses to their existing and
forthcoming customer base. Advertising is one of the essentials of marketing strategy and
policy to sell ad promote a particular product. It is the part of the business goal with the main
motto of manipulating and customizing the customer needs. Therefore, the following paper
aims to illustrate upon the advertising strategies and marketing policies of certain business
houses and the social impact these houses have. Sometimes the projected advertisements
come with certain social message, again, they come with certain ideas that are in the stark
opposite of the ongoing social concerns. Therefore, in the paper, the products of Canada Dry
and how they have excelled in business through right advertising strategies.
The Canada Dry Ginger Ale came into being in the year 1964. The father of the
company, John J. McLaughlin, started off with his sparkling water plant and with the increase
in demand for syrupy ginger ales, he gradually moved to the Canada Dry Ginger Ale
(Funderberg). It got a huge customer base since the onset as it had a lighter and refreshing
taste that ticked off the Canadian market during the time of prohibition of alcohol in the
country (www.canadadry.com). Since then, it has been among the top choices of the
customers. It has got a huge customer base in New York as well. According to Watkins,
along with the great taste the ale has, it is the advertisement policies that brought the
company to the limelight and increased its selling even in the US and helped the company to
establish a factory in the country as well.
Formerly, the company did not invest much thought and capital in the advertising
policies but recently, it is seen to have been addressing and approaching to the customer
through the usage of multimedia and digital platforms. It is known, that advertisements and
media promoting have always been proved beneficial for the companies and this is true for

2Significance of Advertising on Society
Canada Dry in all aspects. The main tagline of the beverage company is that it has a
refreshing taste and the company has upheld the concept over time through various
advertisements.
It is evidenced from the above picture that the people shown in the picture is having a
great time and the Canada Dry Ginger ale is their refreshment partner. They have promoted
their beverage as the most refreshing drink and event today, in their recent advertisement they
have portrayed the same. Further, their innovative way of launching the sports cola with less
caffeine was also interesting and earned them a good fortune. The way they had visualised
their products stating the facts that too much caffeine affects health along with a research
studies and how ginger ale, that contains much lesser caffeine but energizes someone the
same, was an insightful and interesting advertisement and had kicked up their sales.
However, as they tried to expand their business across America, their promotional strategies
were very much needed and became effective (Acharya, Dutta and Minaret). They focused
upon rigorous promotional strategies for example usage of effective taglines such as,
“American Face, Canadian taste.” & “Coast to coast America’s first family beverage.” The
following picture is a small illustration of that

3Significance of Advertising on Society
.
Promotional strategies like these had kick-started their business in New York and
within some years they could open a factory there. However, many a times their
advertisements have gone wrong and have sent the wrong message. One significant
promotional strategy to mention, is their two different portrayal of children in their
advertisements. Previously, in the vintage advertisements, we find that they are projecting
their drinks as something that can be enjoyed by the children too. In plenty of advertisements,
they have shown children playing and enjoying themselves while drinking the Canada Dry.
However, in one recent advertisement, circulate din 2018, they have projected children,
selling the products. This upholds the idea of child labour which is extremely bad for the
reputation of the company. Especially, for a developed country, and that too at a time when
plenty of NGOs and other such bodies are calling for the child rights and child protection and

4Significance of Advertising on Society
child education (Watkins). Therefore such an advertisement at a certain time is not helpful for
the company, neither is it expected.
Further, another point of argument for the company is their portrayal of women. Since
the origin of the company, in the advertisements, the portrayal of women has been the as a
sex object. Even the taglines, they had were catering to that. In many of the advertisements,
the women were portrayed as a person to go after whole day of work with a Canada Dry
which, again, gives you refreshment (Ulrich). The following picture evidence that.

5Significance of Advertising on Society
Further, in the advertisements, along with the tagline, “too cool” it was the men who
were projected as being the cool one. Again, with the tagline, “not too sweet”, for the sugar
free ginger ale advertisement, it was seen that a navy officer, a Chinese conqueror and a
wrestler were having the drink while saying the tagline. Whereas, in case of the same
advertisement, it was shown that women, who were trying to get thinner and are working out,
are having that drink. Therefore, a clear distinction between men and women were portrayed

6Significance of Advertising on Society
(Belwal). Further, in case of the soft drink, it was a women who danced about saying so soft.
All these illustrates how the beverage company has catered to gender discrimination over
time. Further, certain taglines of the company, such as, “Hard to resist”, “So good that it
hurts” and “One gulp is for Thirst and another gulp is for Kicks”, “Fresh, Wet & Moonlit- A
girl and a Canada Dry.”- all these advertisements illustrated women as sex tool and have
further commoditized. The following picture corroborate to the fact.
In some cases the women were also projected as the host for and are there only for the
service where, they are projected as serving the drink to the children of the home or to the
guests in a house warming party. They were also shown to get a class of ginger ale for their
husbands who have returned from the work. Such projections corroborate to the age-old
traditional concepts of women being homely and care givers and attending guests (Pazeraite
and Repoviene). Further, a recent argument, that has taken place, is over a recent

7Significance of Advertising on Society
advertisement that has taken place, where a man and a women are seen to be undressing in a
room and then have a sip of Canada Dry and their children looking through their parents’
bedroom door. Such a projection has invited many criticisms from all age groups of the
society as well as from the critics. However, the critics are of the opinion that such
illustration is the outcome of the company’s recent coalition with the Cadbury Schweppes
(Zhang). Moreover, this particular advertisement has no logic in it. Although the rest of the
advertisements go against social and moral value and portrays gender discrimination but they
do follow the traditional concept and logic of the social outlook. But this particular
advertisement has no meaning to it.
However, they have started two new advertising campaigns to address two different
significant sections of the society. Their first campaign is to address the Gen Y, where they
have launched their products under the tagline “The Root of Relaxation”. In the
advertisement a man is shown to be enjoying a can of Canada Dry while reading a book and
he is being served the beer by a little robot and there is a voice-over in the background,
“Work hard, Play hard”. But at the end of the advertisement the company tagline of, “Work
hard, Play hard, Relax harder” is projected. Thus they are reaching to the mass youth
population, spotlighting the attractive millenary females and males who are seen to be
enjoying in the orchard of ginger. The message they want to spread about is that the current
generation is much planned and take their work and play very seriously (Ameh, Ibekwe nad
Ebeshi). Further, they have recently included certain ethnic programmes where they are
addressing to the Chinese and South Asian countries and their cultures. For example, in their
recent mall takeover campaign, they are addressing and sponsoring the New Year events and
other cultural events like Diwali, Markham and the like, where they change the language ad
translate it into Chinese, Hindi or Punjabi. This have improved their selling position and
increased their stock (Hammill and Smith).

8Significance of Advertising on Society
The company has certain wrong portrayals in some of their advertisements but they
have stuck to their basic idea of the drink that is providing refreshment and can be enjoyed by
the family. Over and over, through their advertisements and taglines they have corroborated
to their age-old concept and has made the tagline “For everyone, its Canada Dry”, true in all
sense.

9Significance of Advertising on Society
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and wet torrefaction." Sustainable Energy Technologies and Assessments 12 (2015):
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Hops, Cloves, and Pepper Flavored Beverages–A Review." Journal of dietary
supplements 12.3 (2015): 241-260.
Belwal, Mukesh. Studies on development of technology for production of ginger Ale. Diss.
Vasantrao Naik Marathwada Krishi Vidyapeeth, Parbhani, 2016.
Funderburg, J. Anne. Bootleggers and beer barons of the prohibition era. McFarland, 2014.
Hammill, Faye, and Michelle Smith. "Mainstream magazines: home and mobility." (2015):
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794-810.
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2019.

10Significance of Advertising on Society
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