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The Axe Effect . . . Imagine the power of Axe

An Axe rep from Edelman PR gave The Poke with No Name a heads up (way to generate some viral buzz) on this ad that appeared in Chicago and New York:

Anyway, with the recent Gallup Polls showing Obama support among female voters up 13 points in recent days; and given the “lovefest” between Obama and Hillary after the last debate, I thought you might get a kick out of a new print ad (attached) from AXE that will premiere tomorrow in newspapers in Chicago and New York City. Is the “lovefest” the result of The AXE Effect? We’d like to think so.

 And the reviews are pouring in!

. . . a primo example of the laziest, easiest type of ad concept . . . .

This might be an all-time low for both Hillary Sexism Watch and for Axe ads. And that’s really saying something.

Can we look forward to a CGId Clinton doing the Bom Chicka Wah Wah dance next? Oooh! Maybe a dubbed Obama extolling the virtues of skin whitening creams! 

Well, something had to pull me out of this five-day virus-induced stupor.

This is worth another click to the CCFC form that will transport your complaint to Unilever, makers of Axe and Dove.

We’ve managed to stay away from Club Libby Lu because we avoid malls at all costs.

Which is not always easy. Remember, I live in Minneapolis, home of the MOST HUGEST AND COOLEST MALL IN THE UNIVERSE.

This hysterical post at Daddy Types (which I found via a scraper site, of all things) was written as a rebuttal to a comment from a Libby Lu employee on a previous post.

Daddy Types successfully counters the commenter’s argument that Club Libby Lu is really a saint-like retailer:

. . . Club libby Lu donated an insane amount to St. Jude’s cancer research hospital . . . [and] we have been supporting Girl scouts of America for years now.

This is a perfect example of the conundrum people face when a company touts their “good works” as a reason to continue buying their product.

After all, don’t we want to support companies that do good work?

Another example is Unilever:

Too many girls develop low self-esteem from hang-ups about looks. Consequently, many fail to reach their full potential later in life. The Dove Self-Esteem Fund is an agent of change to educate and inspire girls on a wider definition of beauty.

On the surface, bravo! However, a closer look reveals that Unilever still makes a profit from women who believe that their skin isn’t the right color and from men who believe that their sexual desires should be reserved for naughty supermodels. Neither of which seems to be inspiring our daughters with a “wider definition of beauty.”

And McDonald’s is asking kids to Bee Good to the Planet by making an “eco-pledge” for the environment. But doesn’t that Happy Meal still come with a useless piece of plastic that will most likely live forever in a landfill?

Responsible marketing is more that just another sales strategy. But these superficial campaigns work. Corporations count on the fact that no one will take the time to peek behind their curtain.

Next time a company brags about its social responsibility? Take a closer look.

Action: Support the Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood’s initiative to Tell Unilever: It’s Time to Ax their Exploitative Marketing