Benefit Cosmetics is a makeup and skincare brand known for
their quirky, vintage-inspired products. Examples of their product line include
a mascara that is supposed to give eyelashes the appearance of wearing false
lashes on top called “They’re Real!” They also have a cream-to-powder highlighter
to illuminate the skin called “Watt’s Up!” Most of the product names are a play
on words or phrases, and the brand is known for pushing the boundaries in order
to achieve that quirky and fun image.
Benefit recently released an in-store advertisement to
showcase their new eyeliner, perfect for creating a cat-eye effect. This
advertisement was placed in Ulta and Sephora locations across the United
States. As you can see from the picture, it is a set of before and after
photos, showing what the model looks like without any eyeliner and what she
looks like with Benefit’s new eyeliner applied.
However, the main problem with this is the copy underneath
each of the pictures. Under the makeup-free photograph, there’s the word “yuck.”
Under the photograph featuring the model wearing the eyeliner, there’s the word
“wow!”
Many beauty enthusiasts lashed out against Benefit for
choosing to put that kind of copy on their advertisements. Many believed that
being a woman in today’s society is difficult enough: There’s so much pressure
on everyone to be perfectly skinny and made up at all hours of the day. The
last thing that women need is a makeup company telling them how to feel when
they are going bare-faced for the day.
I completely agree with the backlash against this
advertisement. Having a beauty company further that pressure that women feel by
making those who choose not to wear eyeliner feel like they look “yuck” is
irresponsible and harmful. Especially since this was placed in Ulta and Sephora
stores, any person who walked by could see it, including little girls. Why
would you want a child to come across that and think that the only way to be
beautiful – or appear “wow!” – is by wearing eyeliner? I understand that the
goal here is to sell product, but I don’t think it’s very responsible of the
company.
What do you think about Benefit’s new advertisement?
I agree with the backlash against Benefit's "yuck" advertisement. It surprised me that the brand chose to use this strategy, especially in an age when brands seem to be taking stances on political and cultural issues in order to gain support from consumers that identify as socially conscious--after all millennials are the generation that place much value on social responsibility. With this in mind, I think that Benefit's strategy lacked research and was misguided.
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