Welcome to the latest edition of Marketer's Brief, a quick take on marketing news, moves and trends from Ad Age's reporters and editors. Send tips/suggestions to [email protected].
The Association of National Advertisers has a new take on gender equality that is sure to raise some eyebrows, and possibly some backlash: In a new report released today, the organization finds that 68 percent of its members are female, which lends more proof of the gains women are making in marketing departments. But the ANA cautions that “it should be a concern that entry-level professional and mid-level lower-end positions are both almost two-thirds female.” The organization continues: “It is important to point out that gender ‘equality’ means equal representation between men and women. The industry needs to understand why more young men are not entering (or remaining) in the marketing industry, and respond accordingly.”
This is certainly a unique—and potentially controversial—spin on the gender equality debate that to this point has focused on the misdeeds of powerful men and the struggles of women to reach full equality. (The 3 Percent Conference—started to boost female representation in creative director positions—begins its annual meeting Thursday in Chicago.)
What is not new is the continued lack of ethnic diversity in marketing ranks. The ANA report, done in conjunction with the organization’s Alliance for Inclusive and Multicultural Marketing, finds that 75 percent of ANA members are white. The findings are based on 15,306 ANA members who provided gender identity and 13,781 who provided ethnic diversity information.
The findings mirror other recent surveys that all seem to be drawing the same conclusion: Women are making rapid gains in marketing departments but minorities are not being hired at a level consistent with the general population. States the ANA report: “Ethnic diversity is poor from the senior level on down, especially for African-American/Black and Hispanic/Latino workers.”
Smell like Biebs
Unilever’s Schmidt’s Naturals may have gotten a new CEO between announcement and launch, but its rollout of a new Here+Now scent with Justin Bieber continues without a hitch. Well, actually there was a hitch, inasmuch as Bieber field tested his sensitive-skin, magnesium-enriched, activated-charcoal deodorant when he got hitched to Hailey Baldwin in September, according to a fun fact supplied by Schmidt’s.
Schmidt’s also has a new Bieber video to back the plant-based, certified-vegan, cruelty-free deodorant, which is also free of aluminum salts and artificial fragrance. It was created in-house.