Discussion Questions

1. What are the basic objectives of advertising? What are the advertising objectives of
Benetton?
a. The basic objectives of advertising are to increase sales and profit, encourage trail
and usage, and to remind the customer about the satisfaction they had with
product in the past. The advertising objectives of Benetton are to raise their brand
awareness by subtly stirring up controversial topics in society.
2. Discuss the pros and cons of the shock advertising campaign that Benetton used for many
years.
a. There are both pros and cons to Benetton’s shock advertising campaign. One of
the pros of Benetton’s shock advertising campaign is that it attempted to educate
people on the various social and political concerns happening at that time. The
customers watching the advertisement may pay closer attention and start talking
about the issue. On the other hand, one of the cons of Benetton’s shock
advertising campaign is that the images shown can offend some viewers and may
not be suitable for children do not really need to see some of those images. These
cons cause a loss of retailer partnerships, as well as bad publicity for Benetton.
3. Oliviero Toscani has defended Benetton’s use of shock advertising by noting that it
constitutes nothing less than a debate between advertising and art. He argues that
potentially offensive images are acceptable in the world of art and journalism while in
other realms such as advertising, they are not. Do you agree with Toscani’s position?
a. I see what Oliviero Toscani is trying to say, but I think that art and journalism are
completely different than advertising, which is why it is acceptable for offensive
images to be found in art and journalism and not advertising. One of the
objectives of advertising is to try to persuade customers to buy your product or
service. I do not find that offensive – and sometimes vulgar – images can
persuade a customer to buy Benetton clothes.
4. Can you think of any other companies that use shock advertising? For what type of
companies might this type of advertising be effective?
a. Another advertising campaign that uses shock advertising is the anti-smoking
commercials. Seeing a shocking commercial may convince a viewer to quit
smoking to improve their overall health. For example, people with holes in their
throats are often shown speaking about how they began smoking and how it led
them to not be able to speak normally anymore. This is appropriate because they
are trying to let the viewer know the consequences of smoking and inform
viewers that smoking may eventually kill you.
5. Do you agree with Benetton’s decision to drop the use of shock ads and return to the use
of more conventional ads?
a. I do agree with Benetton’s decision to stop their shock advertising and return to
advertising that is more traditional. There is a time and place for everything, and
shocking people in order to sell clothes does not seem appropriate. If Benetton’s
goal was to bring controversial issues to the attention of people, it should have
been done for that sole purpose and not as an advertising strategy. Also, if
Toscani insisted on shock advertising, it should only have been done in an adult-
type setting where children do not have to see images that offend adults.