TrendWatching | (F)EMPOWERMENT

INTRODUCTION

If your brand isn't communicating well with women, your brand is losing.

You are losing women's attention and trust while missing out on their massive buying power.

In recent months (OK, years), many brands across South & Central America have caused controversy and attracted the wrong kind of attention with sexist advertising campaigns that have drawn widespread criticism on social networks and in public forums.

For a long time, countries across the region – and industries of all varieties – have been guilty of using out-dated gender stereotypes or objectifying women to sell products and services.

In March 2015, Brazilian nail lacquer brand Risqué launched the Homens Que Amamos (‘Men We Love’) line of products. They featured names of men, accompanied by proud, supposedly romantic phrases, such as ‘João disse eu te amo’ (‘João said I love you’), ‘Fê mandou mensagem’ (‘Fê sent a message’) and ‘André fez o jantar’ (‘André cooked dinner’).

“What makes a woman happy is not a man who thinks making dinner is the exception, but understand that this is his task as it is a woman’s task”, from Petiscos, Julia Petit’s blog from Brazil.

Of course, when it comes to Latin America, beer advertising is still the most consistent offender.

In February 2015, Brazilian beer brand Skol launched an advertising campaign for Carnival with phrases that mentioned a ‘lack of control’, such as ‘I accept it before learning what the question is’ and ‘I left my ‘no’ at home’. After widespread media criticism and a social media backlash, Skol removed the ads.

Conti beer were another offender, accused of sexism after an ill-advised post on the brand’s Facebook page. It read ‘tenho medo de ir no bar pedir uma rodada e o garçom trazer minha ex’ (‘I’m afraid to go to a bar and order a round of beer* in case the waiter brings out my ex’), and ended with a request for suspension and a warning to the agency that conducted the campaign.

*In Portuguese, the expression used for “a round of beer” is the same as the one for “a woman who’s been around”.

Yet women across the region are becoming more empowered...

... as consumers, students, politicians, entrepreneurs and more.

In Brazil, women make BRL 1.1 trillion per year and are responsible for 85% of shopping decisions.
(Data Popular, September 2014)

In Mexico, women are graduating from college more than men. The Asociación Nacional de Universidades e Instituciones de Educación Superior (ANUIES) revealed that the enrolment of women in graduate programs is 50.4%, while among specializations women make up 51%.

The participation of women in Latin America and the Caribbean in the labor market had the largest increase among all regions globally – increasing from 40% to 54% between 1990 and 2013.
(UN, April 2015)

These socioeconomic changes are yet to be reflected in much of the marketing that reaches women.

This means the gap between a modern woman’s reality (or at least, desired reality) in Latin America and how they are portrayed in marketing is widening.

This is not just about being ‘politically correct’. It’s about effectively communicating with a very large proportion of your customer base. Women are not a market niche – if your brand is not talking to them properly, you are losing money.

Beyond being bad for business (it has been scientifically proven that sex doesn’t sell!), misogynist messaging contributes to a more unequal and dangerous society for women. It propagates a culture that impacts the numbers of rapes, murders and cases of domestic abuse – in Brazil, for example, there’s one rape every 10 minutes (Anuário Brasileiro de Segurança Pública, 2014).

To put it simply, out-dated brand messages cause more harm than hurt feelings.

In Latin America, women are fighting for equality in public and private life. Brands that not only avoid harmful stereotypes or objectification but also actually support women’s causes and better communicate with modern women will be loved – at the expense of those that don't.

We’ve said before – brands across the region are now expected to be part of the social tissue, to fight the same fights people are engaged in as groups or individuals. The fight for gender equality is one of these issues (in South & Central America and, of course, elsewhere in the world).

More and more, if a brand is not part of the solution, it will be seen as part of the problem. It’s time to break away from gender stereotypes, communicate with women in the manner that they deserve and empower them to live the lifestyle they desire.

WHY NOW

1. International Sisterhood

The digitally entwined population of the world is sharing stories of repression and (F)EMPOWERMENT, from India to Iran.

Women face different challenges from region to region. But many share a passion for change, and inspire each other across borders.

In June 2015, the Ni Una Menos campaign reached 110 cities in Argentina, Chile, Uruguay and Mexico, as people protested against femicide. In Mexico, #NoAcosoCallejero (‘no street harassment’) took to social networks and the streets. In Puerto Rico, women created the hashtag #andandolacallesola (‘walking the streets alone’), in protest against comments by a high-ranking police officer that women should not walk alone late at night.

And in January 2015, the documentary used by the Chega de Fiu Fiu campaign (against women harassment on the streets) in Brazil was funded using the crowdfunding platform Catarse. In July, the country also saw the creation of Cora Coralina, a public library focused on feminist issues.

WHY NOW

2. FEMPRENEURS and Role Models

Women are climbing higher into positions of power.

Latin America is the leader in women’s political representation.

In political leadership, the region has Cristina Kirchner in Argentina, Dilma Rousseff in Brazil and Michelle Bachelet in Chile. In the NGO sector, there’s Relinda Sosa from Peru and Sandra Ramos from Nicaragua. In the world of business, María Mercedes Cuéllar is president of Federación Latinoamericana de Bancos (Felaban), Paula Santili is Senior Vice-President of PepsiCo Mexico, and Luiza Trajano is CEO of Magazine Luiza.

Across the board, women in SCA are doing it for themselves. They can assume political power, run NGOs and start their own businesses (and crowdfunding platforms like Catarse, Idea.Me or Fondeadora are making this easier than ever!).

Just one example of the rising power of SCA’s women? According to the latest survey by the Ministry of Economy on Entrepreneurship and Gender (March 2015), 38% of micro-entrepreneurs in Chile are female, and 40% of those are heads of household.

WHY NOW

3. Institutional Impotence

Consumers no longer let institutions dictate how they live their lives.

Social rules and traditions are being challenged or ignored in many societies. Individuals are forming their own singular definitions of what they seek from their own lives. Formal entities (governments or organizations) are less able to impose values or expectations.

Success and status have been redefined in personal terms. Consumers are less accepting of media organizations or brands that dictate who they are and how they should behave. From sexuality to career choices, it’s up to the individual to decide.

WHY NOW

4. BRAND STANDS

Consumers will embrace brands that take a stand on the issues that matter to them – such as sexism.

As much as SCA’s women feel empowered, they’re also looking to brands to be partners in change. That means taking a BRAND STAND on issues around gender prejudice.

In March 2015, Cannes Festival introduced The Lion For Change category, rewarding actions that challenge gender stereotypes. Three out of 18 shortlisted winners were from Latin America. In Brazil, interest is growing in new ways to portray women in advertising. In August 2015, São Paulo-based Escola Superior de Propaganda e Marketing (ESPM) launched Publicidade e Mulheres: um novo jeito de fazer publicidade para mulher, a course designed to introduce marketing professionals to new ways to advertise to women.

Years ago, marketing used weaknesses to try and sell products and services to women. Today, brands must offer empowerment.