Exploiting the Pink Ribbon for Corporate Profit
Breast Cancer Awareness Month Equals Big Business for Some
Oct 19, 2009
Public spaces are draped with so much pink these days that one might wonder if the whole world is “having a girl.” Now, don’t panic just yet. No one is doomed to participate in hundreds of awkward baby shower games and in-depth discussions on diapers. All it means is that October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month. And whether you like your products gendered or not, putting up with it for a month is a small price to pay when you consider all the good it does for the cause. The campaign raises millions of dollars for breast cancer patients and research. It also brings the disease to the forefront, encouraging regular breast exams and making woman more aware and in control of their health.
However, there are a growing number of people that argue that advertisers and marketers have gone too far in exploiting this worthy cause for profit. As consumers are buying up be-ribboned make-up brushes, chocolate bars and can-openers, for that matter, it needs to be asked: Who is really benefiting from all this pink?
Companies take Advantage of Breast Cancer Awareness Month
Kris Frieswick from Boston Globe recently reported that "79 percent of consumers would likely switch to a brand that supports a cause, all other things being equal." Companies are fully aware of this and breast cancer-specific packaging has less to do with corporate generosity and more to with smooth marketing.
Aimee Picchi cites several examples of questionable corporate benevolence in an article for AOL Daily Finance. For instance, Procter and Gamble markets a pink Swiffer sweeper this month with packaging that reads "early detection saves lives." However, Procter and Gamble will only give two cents to the National Breast Cancer Foundation. And, they will only shell out these two cents if you use a specific coupon from their brand coupon book. Other companies may put a cap on donations. It's only in the fine print that Herr’s Whole Grain Pretzel Ribbons reveals that there is a cap on donation at $15,000, at which point your money goes straight into the company's pocket.
Going Pink but Linked to the Disease
Another sad truth, highlighted by Picchi, is that some of the companies "helping" to find a cure are also doing things to cause it. For example, many cosmetic and antiperspirant companies paste a pink ribbon symbol on products containing chemicals that are linked to breast cancer. Yes, they are raising money, but one might ask why they aren't also trying to make healthier products for women to use.
Think Before You Pink, an organization that monitors the commercialization of breast cancer, considers Eli Lilly to be the worst pink faker. This pharmaceutical Goliath who sells pink products also sells rGBH, a bovine growth hormone given to dairy cows that actually increases people's risk of cancer (rGBH is banned in Canada).
Women Feel Exploited
Yes, the argument can be made that some good is coming from all this. As mentioned, the pink-corporate strategy has raised millions for the cause. So then what's the big deal that companies make a profit? No one is getting hurt, right? Jeanne Sather, a breast cancer patient who blogs about her experience with Breast Cancer on Assertive Cancer Patient, thinks this is just an easy way out: "Breast cancer is a disease. Not a marketing opportunity." In an interview with Picchi she explains that: "It also matters that the companies, with a few exceptions, are not donating their own money, they are just passing on their customers' money. Then they are making a profit on top of that --larger than the donation in many if not most cases--and patting themselves on the backs for being good citizens. This is wrong."
Yes, Sather is grateful for the support she gets from people that want to help, but the bombardment of pink products on her grocery store shelves doesn't make her feel supported, just exploited. She wonders how many people realize that their pink purchase is probably not doing a thing. How many people realize that they are really just being tricked into buying something because they believe that every pink purchase equals a donation? Sather worries that this business strategy encourages people to just drop a can of pink Campbell's soup in their shopping basket instead of giving directly to organizations such as Gilda's Club and Breast Cancer Action, which she feels really makes a difference.
Taking advantage of people's desire to support a great cause might be legally sound and even "good business," but people are starting to ask whether this is right.
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