Marketing Communication Of Hindustan Unilever (HUL)
Introduction
The current event to be discussed is the rebranding of ‘Fair and Lovely’, a skin-whitening cosmetic product by Hindustan Unilever (HUL) to ‘Glow and Lovely’ due to the ‘Black Lives Matter’ movement.
AIDA model and its Application
Marketing communication is considered to be the most visible part of marketing as it influences how information is processed by consumers in shaping their perceptions. Marketing communication through influencing the consumer perception impacts the purchasing decision (Smith & Zook, 2019). It is evident in the discussed event study as well.
HUL, a subsidiary of British-Dutch multinational company Unilever Plc and its product has received criticism for stereotyping racial types and for suggesting that fair skin is good. Despite all the criticism in the past, the company has been promoting skin fairness. However, in the aftermath of ‘Black Lives Matter’ movement, many cosmetic brands are facing increased criticism for products that promote skin fairness and as a response, the cosmetic product has been rebranded (Jain et al. 2020).
This event can be analyzed using the AIDA model according to which the influence of marketing communication has four stages: Awareness, Interest, Desire and Action (Blakeman, 2018). The above model can be applied to the event as follows: First, audiences need to be aware of the promotion. As the world was responding to support the ‘Black Lives Matter’ movement, it was becoming difficult for a product to continue promoting that it can help change the skin color to fair, so the rebranding was done. Second, audiences must understand and be interested in the message so the company used the same advertisement, just changing the product name in the end. Third, since the consumers have been using the products for enhancing their beauty, rebranding ensures that it would not be impacted, without being controversial. Fourth, to promote action by consumers, the company has also been doing some promotional activities to empower women and to ensure consumers continue using the products, the constituents have not been changed (Bagchi 2020; Jain et al. 2020).
The company has focused on rebranding as it was drawing criticism. An alternative was to discontinue the product, however, white skin is considered to be equivalent to beauty and self-confidence in the target market. Also, a significant number of women in its target market use whitening cream as they aspire to have white skin as it is considered to be an economic and social step-up in their society. There is also a need to understand that the earlier brand is a market leader with a 70% market share and a loyal consumer base. Therefore, discontinuing a product that is demanded by the consumers would have been a poor business decision. Therefore, the company focused on rebranding and used market communication to promote their commitment to skincare that is inclusive of all skin tones, and thereby supporting the diversity (Bagchi, 2020).
Conclusion
While it can be argued that skin fairness products exist due to demand by consumers, however businesses must avoid negative publicity and can use marketing communication effectively, like in the case of HUL.
References
Bagchi, S. (June 25th, 2020). The Dark Politics of Fairness Products in India. Live Mint. Retrieved from: https://www.livemint.com/mint-lounge/features/the-complicated-politics-of-fairness-products-in-india-11593065657252.html.
Blakeman, R. (2018). Integrated Marketing Communication: Creative Strategy from Idea to Implementation. 3rd Ed. Rowman & Littlefield, Maryland.
Jain, R., Greenfield, C. & Cavale, S. (June 25th, 2020). Unilever’s ‘Fair & Lovely’ to get makeover after Backlash. Reuters. Retrieved from: https://in.reuters.com/article/unilever-whitening-southasia/unilever-rivals-mull-changes-amid-global-backlash-against-skin-lightening-products-idINKBN23W0XE.
Smith, P. R. (2019). Marketing Communications: Integrating Online and Offline, Customer Engagement and Digital Technologies. 7th Ed. Kogan Page, London.
