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Jillian Youker
Introduction
The beer brand Heineken has promised their consumers they care about quality,
enjoyment of life, respect for people and for our planet. The Heineken company, founded in
1864 in the Netherlands, is currently available in two hundred countries worldwide. Heineken
jump started a “Enjoy Heineken Responsibly” campaign encouraging their consumers to never
drink and drive and to try their 0.0% alcoholic beverage. This gives those who enjoy the great
beer taste without the high alcohol content and intoxication. The reasoning behind this to cater to
those who enjoy drinking but are driving or those dealing with addiction but still want to feel
included.
Although Heineken encourages responsible drinking habits and claims to have respect for
others, there was a moment when they missed the mark and failed the public to their brand
promise. In 2017, Heineken released a commercial for their ‘Lighter is Better’ campaign. The
commercial featured a beer sliding down a bar table that passes by three different people whom
have darker colored skin. At the end of the advertisement, the camera pans to a woman who has
lighter skin grabbing the beer and the slogan “Lighter is Better” appearing on the screen at the
end. This commercial was immediately pulled off air and caused a large amount of controversy
for their racial equality incompetence. Social media exploded with people demanding the
commercial to be removed and was even called out by a well-known artist, Chance the Rapper,
To be ethical means to follow values that are fair, truthful and morally correct. The first
ethical issue with Heineken’s slogan and the commercial itself is that it clearly displays racist
rhetoric. The blatant verbiage of the slogan is that it puts an image in the mind of the consumers
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immediately. The idea of light is better leaves the consumer to reflect on their own racial bias or
code of ethics. One consumer may consider this advertisement entirely acceptable when another
sees it as blatant racism. After the video was released, Chance the Rapper was not one to shy
away from his criticism of the advertisement. In a New York Times article written by Niraj
Chokshi, Chance tweeted calling the advertisement obviously racist and stating “I think some
companies are purposely putting out noticeably racist ads so they can get more views” (Chokshi,
2018). Along the same vein as Chance’s criticism, all advertisers choose particular people and
demographics for their advertisements. In addition to the slogan, the advertisement itself is
unethical and racist because of subject matter and focus of the commercial. It is perceived to
show how lighter is thought to be better and more superior when in reality it comes off as
Internal Factors:
Brand Recognition: Heinekens initial goal was to create a memorable commercial that
highlights how their product is different than other brands. Although the creative team wanted to
create this type of ad, it fell short of the expectations and was remembered for the wrong reasons.
Increase Revenue: One of the main reasons any brand advertises is to increase revenue.
Heineken was promoting their light version of their already popular brand. The true intent in the
minds of the creative team may never be known. Relating back to Chance the Rappers claim, on
thought would be that the advertising team purposely created this advertisement to gain attention
External Factors:
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Competition: In order for Heineken to stand out from their main competitors, the
advertisements had to be different. To help Heineken stand out against their competitors such as
Bud Light, Miller Lite, Coors Light, Amstel Light and Michelob Ultra just to name a few, to
stand out the idea was to show Heineken Light as a superior option to a dark heavy beer. When
in reality it came across as offensive and the viewer did not take away the intent of the ad.
Social and Cultural Influences: Because of the out pouring of criticism on social media,
this was one of the main reasons for the advertisement to be taken off the air. Cultural factors
played a major role in how the public perceived the ad because an entire culture was stigmatized
and misrepresented.
for their actions. Providing objective counsel to those who are being represented (PRSA, n.d). It
is important for brands to take responsibility when a crisis arises. After Heineken removed their
advertisements their statement about the controversy was “While we feel the ad is referencing
our Heineken light beer — we missed the mark, are taking the feedback to heart and will use this
to influence future campaigns” (French, 2018). The brand was able to quickly respond to the
Fairness: Fairness is the idea that a company must respect the opinions of the public and
how they have the right of free speech. This aims towards the clients, employees, competitors,
peers, and the media (PRSA, n.d). This relates to the Heineken scenario because when Chance
the Rapper become involved, he had the right to call out the brand. In addition, Heineken was not
fair to all of their consumers, specifically darker skin patrons who enjoy the brand. By coming
out and apologizing they acknowledged their mistake even though the damage was already done.
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Honesty: Honesty is the idea a brand must promote accuracy and truth to make their
brand reputation credible (PRSA, n.d). Although Heineken’s brand is strong in the marketplace,
they owe it to the consumer to provide honest and ethical advertisements. The use of the “Lighter
and enjoyment to their consumers. This specific group would be affected by the controversial
advertisement because it does not portray a respectful image of the consumers. This group is able
to choose to continue to drink Heineken or find an alternative brand. Depending on how this
People of Color: Currently there are many groups of people who deal with
discrimination and racism on a daily basis. This specific group would fit into the public that is
affected because the Heineken commercial is disrespectful to people of color. Because of this
advertisement people of color may choose to discontinue drinking Heineken or never choose the
brand in the first place. The negative perception of the brand may last much longer in influencing
Heineken Stock Shareholders: Because the advertisement was pulled and the
subsequent negative publicity surrounding the ad, those who have stock in the company saw a
Harm Principle: The intent of the slogan and the commercial is in conflict of the harm
principle because the brands actions caused harm and was offensive to an entire race. Even
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though the right of free speech exists, it is important to not cause harm or greatly offend certain
viewers.
what they want. Considering the polarization that currently exists in our country today, an
advertisement that portrays exclusivity instead of inclusivity only perpetuates the lack of moral
climate.
Recommendation
The decision to pull the commercial off air, in my opinion, was appropriate. The apology
could have gone farther in addressing the enormity of the mistake and more heartfelt to those
who the commercial offended. The damage control and crisis management options would be to
create an alternative advertisement and slogan that is much more encompassing and inclusive to
all races and ethnic backgrounds. An alternative and more appropriate slogan would be “The
Light Side of Great Flavor” this extenuates the full flavor of Heineken in a light beer version.
This changes the intent of the slogan from light versus heavy rather than light versus dark. The
ad could feature many people of all different races and not one is signaled out for any reason or
because they are superior. The reason I chose this specific solution is because admitting the
mistake and openly fixing it to be more inclusive may change the negative image in the minds of
the consumers. This idea would persuade my potential boss or team because it is inclusive,
honest and respectful connecting back to the mission statement of the overall company. This
potential solution could change the views and perceptions of the brand to consumers who
References
Chokshi, N. (2018, March 28). Heineken Pulls 'Lighter Is Better' Ad After Outcry Over Racism.
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French, S. (2018, March 27). Heineken pulls 'Lighter is Better' ad after critics like Chance the
lighter-is-better-ad-after-critics-like-chance-the-rapper-call-it-racist-2018-03-27
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