Monday, February 01, 2010

7489: Why Black Agencies Must Avoid Pine-Sol.


During the recent Pine-Sol fiasco, a few commenters suggested that the brand connect with a Black advertising firm in the hopes of avoiding the continued cultural cluelessness.

This is probably not a good idea for any self-respecting Black agency. Minority shops are already handcuffed by conservative clients seeking warm-and-fuzzy advertising, which often leads to clichéd commercials. Imagine being tasked with reversing the embarrassing swill Pine-Sol has been pouring on the public since 1993. It would be too politically charged—a no-win scenario.

If anything, this should be an opportunity for Clorox to demand that its White agency assign diverse staffing on the account. Let the client demonstrate their ability to make a powerful difference. Now that’s the power of Pine-Sol, baby!

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