Absolut Failure in International Branding
With apologies to Thomas Friedman, the World is Flat. For a marketer, that means two things: your products must be global and so should your advertising. In the past, it was possible to brand and advertise differently in different markets, but that’s no longer true. An ad produced in one country will be posted on Youtube for the entire world to see, while branding can suddenly go from local to global in the blink of an eye. Witness the trouble with the Ford Fusion when Ford’s global marketers failed to communicate - they ended up trying to differentiate a sedan in the US from a totally unrelated little SUV in Europe.
Of course, nationalistic advertising can be real trouble. Nationalism rarely works on a global stage, either because only one group will actually “get it” or because some other group to which you market will find it offensive. Which brings me to this recent ad for Absolut Vodka:
The message is simple: in an Absolut world, Mexico would still own the Western United States. Of course, for anyone who has forgotten their American history, Mexico lost this region after Texas seceded in 1836 and the United States won the Mexican-American War with the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo in 1848.
Obviously, it’s a subject of nationalism for both sides, but that’s beside the point. Absolut is a global brand, and vodka is consumed worldwide. While the ad was originally intended for a Mexican audience, the Internet thwarts attempts at regional advertising and makes all media global. Perhaps Absolut wanted “edgy” and this was their intention, but advertising this way is incredibly risky.
Border security and immigration issues are at the forefront of American politics, and many Americans are incredibly sensitive about these topics. While this ad may grow vodka sales in Mexico, many middle-class Americans who have long formed the core market for Absolut’s trendy alcohol will be turned off. Already, some conservatives are calling for a boycott, showing that Absolut has probably done more harm than good to their brand.
