"Natural" Representation of Asians in Advertising Advances

Living in multicultural, coastal cities such as San Francisco, the "natural" inclusion of Asian characters in advertising doesn't seem like a big thing. But for mass advertisers to give the middle of the country something other than karate experts and Chinese laundrymen is certainly a step forward.

Bill Imada makes note of this with some good examples in his recent AdAge article:

AT&T, Priceline, Walt Disney and IKEA are just a handful of the many marketers who have included Asians in their commercials. And unlike the past, these Asian actors have roles that don't perpetuate or accentuate some of the tired stereotypes that have plagued Asians and Asian Americans for decades.

I particularly enjoy the Priceline ad, in which William Shatner continues to amuse us by sending up his own bizarre self, and leaving the viewer to identify completely with the other characters in the ad, regardless of their ethnicity:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Armstrong Debacle: Are Celebrities too Risky for Brands?

Once again, brands that thought they could borrow some magic from a celebrity find themselves swimming in confusion and controversy, like poor Mickey Mouse in The Sorcerer's Apprentice . From  AdAge : Within hours, Mr. Armstrong's endorsement empire fell apart as Anheuser-Busch, Trek, Easton-Bell Sports, 24-Hour Fitness, Honey Stinger, Oakley and other firms dumped the cancer survivor, even as some pledged to continue support of his Livestrong Foundation. Nike's livid. The US Postal Service is dismayed. I'm not at all surprised. Celebrity endorsements are a double-edged sword for brands. When the celebrity is hot and you're slicing the competition into prosciutto, life is good. When the celebrity trips and the brand falls on that sword, well, not so good. The foibles of even the most upright-seeming celebrities are eventually exposed and magnified by social media and the Internet, association with stars is a minefield for brands. Eventually someone's ...
Read more

SAAB, Venerable Swedish Brand, Dies at GM's Hand

Don't you hate mornings where you wake up to learn from the New York Times that yet another intrinsic part of your youth has died? with a narrow, though loyal, customer base focused on Sweden, Britain and the American Northeast, Saab has proved too small to lure the world’s big automakers, many of which are seeking tie-ups to increase economies of scale. For me, learning that SAAB would be closed by the feckless GM demons who became their master left a big hole in my heart. Why? Because a 1972 SAAB Model 96 was the first car I ever bought with my own money. It was my first automobile-based personal brand statement. I was a budding iconoclast, and could think of no better way to show that to the world than to drive around in this funny looking foreign car. The ignition on floor. The handle under the dashboard that you could pull out so the car would freewheel at highway speeds, settling the car into an eerie quiet as the motor shut down to idle, and the little upside-down bat...
Read more

Insurance Marketing: Morbidity Begone!

From Ad Age, a good story about Lisa Bacus, CMO of American Family Insurance and how she's remaking the company's image with a really sound media and creative strategy: Like many advertising categories, insurance marketing was heavy on tactics and price-driven deals but short on branding in 2009. That's where Lisa Bacus, VP-marketing for American Family Insurance, saw an opportunity -- to tell brand-driven stories while her competitors, such as State Farm and Allstate, were driving home the literal value of their packages. Beginning in fall 2009, the insurance marketer and its media agency, Mindshare Entertainment, embarked on its first branded-entertainment strategy, encompassing several integrated entertainment programs with multiple media partners. The first, focused on agent interaction, was led by "In Gayle We Trust," a branded web series for NBC.com (written by Brent Forrester of "The Office") featuring a fictional American Family Insurance a...
Read more