Redefining the Role of Dads in Advertising
By ANA Staff
What do today’s modern dads look like? According to Nielsen, nearly two-thirds of all U.S. dads are Gen Xers, they are 20 percent more likely than the average male to have a college degree, and more than 75 percent of dads are employed full-time. On top of this, dads are increasingly taking on more responsibilities around the home. One-third of North American respondents (33 percent) from Nielsen’s 2016 Global Home Care Report stated that the male of the household was primarily responsible for buying the cleaning products for the home. In addition, the number of stay-at-home dads in the U.S. has tripled in the past 10 years, up to 154,000 in the most recent census.
To connect with dads, marketers need to fully grasp their attitudes and behaviors to know when and how to reach out to them. When it comes to marketing around Father’s Day, the key is authenticity. Father’s Day celebrates one of the most personal relationships that people have, so it’s unlikely they appreciate being bombarded with campaigns that are promoting discounts on typical dad gifts. Here are three brands that take a much more emotional approach to fatherhood and its attendant challenges, going beyond the traditional stereotype of the hapless dad:
- Dove: Typically, Dove ads are geared toward woman, but last year, the company created an advertisement specifically for Father’s Day. The commercial showed the reactions of 12 men as they learned that they were going to be fathers.
- Georgia-Pacific: As part of the brand’s ongoing “Be Soft. Be Strong” campaign, Angel Soft created a film is about Melquiades Rayos, an immigrant widower from the Philippines who works three jobs to send enough money to his nine children back home.
- Cheerios: The “How to Dad” campaign departs from the typical bumbling dad figures so often seen in food ads by presenting dads as multitasking superheroes.