UNITED COLORS OF BENETTON

UNITED COLORS OF BENETTON

The advertising philosophy of United Colors of Benetton is based on Luciano Benetton's belief. This brand tries to make a difference with the other brands advertising ways trying to make adds with a set of common values.

At the beginning their adds where well known because of their colorful images. Without reading anything, an add could easily be recognized just by its colors.    

Its first slogan was “All the colors of the world” but later it was changed to “United Colors of Benetton.” With the time, this slogan became the logo of the brand and nowadays it still continues.

The message of “united colors” still forms the basis of the advertising visual design to create a network of “united people”. Since the beginning, its images showed youth of both sexes and every skin tone.

It could be said, that the brand follows common values with three different cycles:

1)      The cycle of difference

2)      The cycle of reality

3)      The cycle of free speech and the right to express it

1.    The cycle of difference:

The interpretation difference was represented by inserting groups of multiracial kids in its ads. Even if it is not a bad idea, they realized that it was getting a controversial issue. Dealing with the issue of difference in advertising it was not an easy task because trying to bring different individuals together can be conflictive. A clear example of this is the one that represented religious and political conflicts (the Palestinian and the Israeli)     

Other conflicted adds where the next ones. In the first, a priest appears kissing a nun while in the second the stereotypes of good and evil can be easily detected.  

However, it must be said that the only problem was not the idea that the ads wanted to transmit but the era when they were made. By the years this ads where published, these conflicts where based on taboos. They wanted to break down barriers and ensure the dialogue by uniting differences.

As it can easily be seen, the product mostly disappeared from the advertisements and this is what made impact in the public. It is amazing how its products could be so known products without making them appear in the ads.     

2.    The cycle of reality

In 1991, during the Gulf War, this image was created, a photo of a war cemetery:

It was published in just one newspaper in Italy because all the others refused to print it. This photo signaled a break with the previous campaigns introducing a bit of “reel life”. In order to answer to this and against the irruption of death as an advertising subject they did this famous advertisement of a newborn baby still attached to the umbilical cord.

This image has been one of the most censures in the history of Benetton adds. However, after the period of rejection, it started to be understood and appreciated. At this point, the language of Benetton communication changed radically and they started showing photos such as: a man dying of AIDS, a soldier gripping a human thigh bone, a man assassinated by the Mafia, a car on fire and a ship being stormed by emigrants.   

These photos where not taken for the ad campaign and they where actual agency photos that wanted to show the real world.

3.    The cycle of free speech and the right to express it

Benetton started the foundation that held up the culture, language and specificity of the classic advertising message. They were very criticized but nothing could be said against these ads while the media was showing us all sorts of images: murders, natural catastrophes, genocide. However, it must be said that what bothered people where not the images itself but the fact that they were being used as advertising by a corporation. Nevertheless, not everyone critiqued them and there were people who even applauded Benetton’s effort to raise public awareness about AIDS, war, racism, and so forth.  

With all these we can easily seen the differences during the history in advertisements. The way people think must be taken into account when doing an ad. Because of that, we know that these ads were very controversial when they were made but, what about nowadays?

We are not used to seeing these kinds of ads and they always surprised us. In addition, using common values as a topic seems to help even more when advertising. Do you think that using this theme can be part of the success?