National companies are apologizing for missing what leaders of local Black companies say is obvious and preventable.
Bed Bath and Beyond just pulled a candle from the shelves with a label that looks like Ku Klux Klan hoods. The company says the image is meant to represent snowflakes.
"At Bath and Body Works, we are committed to listening to our teams and customers, and committed to fixing any mistakes we make-even those that are unintentional like this one," a spokesperson said.
Heinz is making its own statement after leaving a nasty stain on the minds of many.
The contempt stems from an ad for the company’s new family-sized pasta sauces. The Heinz ad shows a Black bride eating spaghetti next to the white groom and his parents, but just a mom for the bride.
“No Black dad for the Black bride? As if Black women don’t have fathers,” said Sheletta Brundidge, founder and CEO of ShelettaMakesMeLaugh.com, a Minnesota podcast network and promotion company that celebrates Black culture.
In a statement, Heinz apologized, saying, “We understand how this ad could have unintentionally perpetuated negative stereotypes. We extend our deepest apologies and will continue to listen, learn and improve to avoid this happening again in the future.”
Comments on social media called Heinz out for not doing its due diligence well before running the ad. A spokesperson from Bed Bath and Beyond says the company is going to look into how the image made it to the marketplace. “We apologize to anyone we’ve offended and are swiftly working to have this item removed and are evaluating our process going forward.”
“I believe that advertising and marketing campaigns must consult professionals within the communities they serve,” said Lambers Fisher, a licensed marriage and family therapist and adjunct instructor and speaker on multicultural awareness. Fisher is also the award-winning author of “Diversity in Clinical Practice.” “These cultural consultants not only help reduce the risk of unintentional cultural offenses by identifying language which may be received differently than intended due to past cultural experiences and cautions about intentions but also help improve the effectiveness of the campaign by identifying language that may resonate better within certain communities.”
Brundidge and her company, ShelettaMakesMeLaugh.com, work closely with larger white-owned ad agencies in the Twin Cities when they want to do campaigns geared toward Black consumers. Together, they go over scripts and imaging and even review varying skin colors to make sure all hues are represented.
“I remember seeing a script from an agency about home ownership that said, ‘I'm the first person in my family to own a home. My parents couldn't afford to,’” Brundidge recalled. “I raised my hand and said, ‘Hold up! What about redlining? Suppose the family wanted to move to South Minneapolis or somewhere that didn't allow Black residents. It might not have been financial.’ We had to change the script,” Brundige explained.
CCF, a creative communication advertising agency in Minneapolis, seeks Brundidge’s perspective and involvement throughout the process of many campaigns. “The advertising industry is still primarily caucasian with not a lot of representation, especially here in Minnesota,” said Andy Brunn, CCF media director. “We make efforts to broaden our base. This is why we bring in members of the community, whether that be Sheletta, members of the disabled population or the veteran population, for example. We benefit as marketers from gaining those perspectives. At the end of the day, that is what truly drives the change we’re looking for,” Brunn added.
A case in point is the work CCF did for MNsure when its ad campaign in 2014 for purchasing insurance through the Affordable Care Act wasn’t reaching all communities. The marketing and advertising focused on white Minnesotans with images of Paul Bunyan and Babe the Blue Ox. “The end-user, whether a Spanish speaker, of Somali background or an indigenous individual, did not feel the product was marketed to them,” Brunn said. CCF took over the campaign in 2015 with a different strategy that provided results. “We went to users representative of the community to show them MNsure was for them,” said Brunn.
When it comes to ensuring diversity, equity and inclusion in marketing and ad campaigns, cultural consultants agree you can’t wait until it’s too late. “You don’t want to have to apologize for culturally offensive messaging when there are partners who can help,” Brundidge added.
“Due to an abundance of past negative cultural experiences, hoping for the best is too risky,” Fisher added. “Cultural consultants can help educate companies who genuinely want to meet the greatest variety of cultural needs possible and help reduce the likelihood of unintentional offenses while doing so.”
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