Advertising of the Beauty Industry in China: How Foreign Beauty Advertising Affects Chinese Culture...
-
Upload
erica-swallow -
Category
Documents
-
view
2.364 -
download
0
description
Transcript of Advertising of the Beauty Industry in China: How Foreign Beauty Advertising Affects Chinese Culture...
INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MANAGEMENTDOCTOR BHATTACHARYA
December 15, 2008Authored by: Erica Swallow
Advertising of the Beauty Industry in China
How Foreign Beauty Advertising Affects Chinese Culture and Society
1
Ad
vert
isin
g o
f th
e B
eau
ty In
du
stry
in
Ch
ina |
12
/15
/20
08
Advertising of the Beauty Industry in China
How Foreign Beauty Advertising Affects Chinese Culture and Society
Introduction
Since China’s opening in 1978, it has lured investment from foreign
companies that hope to find bountiful opportunities by appealing to China’s
1.3 billion consumers. Companies of all types have entered, yet few have
found success. One industry that has highly benefited from China’s opening
up policy is the beauty industry. With increasing disposable income among
female Chinese consumers and a greater demand for beauty products, the
beauty industry in China has welcomed many foreign firms with open arms.
The mass entrance of foreign beauty companies has a huge
significance as pertaining to Chinese culture and society. With foreign beauty
companies came foreign beauty advertising, portraying Western models,
blonde-haired and blue-eyed, flaunting Western goods and values, with little
attention paid to Chinese traditions and ideas on ‘beauty’. Foreign beauty
advertising has drastically changed the concept of beauty from a preference
towards traditional Chinese beauty to a preference of ‘foreign beauty’.
Foreign advertising sends the message that natural Chinese features are
inferior to Western ideas of beauty. Some believe that mass foreign
advertising has created a psychological inferiority complex in the younger
INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MANAGEMENTDOCTOR BHATTACHARYA
December 15, 2008Authored by: Erica Swallow
2
female Chinese population. Rather than accepting themselves as Chinese
and embracing their natural beauty, young women are seeking medical
treatments and beauty enhancements to make themselves appear more
foreign, requiring them to be slim, tall, white skinned, have rounder eyes, a
high, narrow nose and wider lips. This behavior is unhealthy and may have
lasting effects on Chinese culture and society.
Background
Looking back on history, we see that there is a recurring theme of
beauty if China – a porcelain, oval face; thin, long eyebrows; long eyes with
slightly up-curved corners; and a small, rosy mouth. In fact, beautiful
Chinese women were often compared to peach blossoms. Beauty in ancient
China could also be defined by a woman’s obedience to commonly held
virtues. “Women’s appearance, along with their impeccable morality, proper
speech, and diligent housework, were compulsory criteria of good women. In
addition, a woman should be obedient to her father before marriage, to her
husband after marriage and to her son after her husband’s death” (Chinese
Perspectives). This criterion was highly influenced by Confucius-thought.
3
Ad
vert
isin
g o
f th
e B
eau
ty In
du
stry
in
Ch
ina |
12
/15
/20
08
ABOVE, FROM LEFT: THE TRADITIONAL CHINESE BEAUTY; ZHOU XUAN, THE MARILYN MONROE OF 1930 SHANGHAI, IS AN EXAMPLE OF TRADITIONAL BEAUTY IN THEN MID-TWENTIETH CENTURY; THIS VINTAGE AD FEATURES A WOMAN WITH PORCELAIN SKIN HOLDING THE KU LIN BRAND FACIAL CREAM AND READS “GIFT OF QUALITY AND BEAUTY”.
As evident in the last image above, up until China’s opening, it was quite
typical that the basic ad for any beauty or fashion product would feature a
woman of traditional beauty holding the product. While it may seem
repetitious, this style was regarded as art. This was a result of government
regulations on advertising, deeming it a Capitalistic evil.
With the entry of foreign beauty companies, new forms of
advertisement became more prevalent. By the time of China’s opening,
foreign beauty companies were far more developed in the advertising
industry than Chinese companies. In fact, a year after China’s opening,
advertising was officially reinstated and the emergence and foundation stage
of the advertising industry in China began (Hu). During this foundation stage,
from 1979-89, Chinese advertising scholars began to systematically
introduce Western advertising concepts to promote "modern advertising”, an
4
antithesis of "traditional advertising." Table I below explains the differences
between modern and traditional advertising as argued by Chinese
advertising scholars (Gao).
Traditional Advertising Modern Advertising
Centered around production and was employed to disseminate product
information and promote sales
Centered around the consumer and tailored production and marketing to
consumer psychology
Based on small-scale production, it functioned only as a subsidiary
business tool and tended to be blind and impulsive
Based on large-scale socialized production in a commodity economy,
it rose to the level of scientific decisions and became an integral part
of enterprise management systemConsidered an art of painting Considered a comprehensive science
Only offered services such as media booking and advertising production
and operated on the principle of "advertise for whomever pays"
Emphasized planning and creativity and provided full services to the client
SOURCE: GAO, ZHIHONG (SEE BIBLIOGRAPHY)
This shift in advertising style after China’s opening correlates to a shift in
societal thought. To a large degree, advertising is a reflection of society and
has an influence on future societal behavior. While pulling in Western
advertising styles, Chinese advertisers also pulled in Western messages and
ideas on life and consumerism.
Looking closer at the beauty industry in
China, it is evident that some large Chinese beauty
companies, such as DaBao, still use the traditional
image of Chinese beauty in ads. Foreign entrance
has had little influence on their beauty philosophy.
However, this may change in the near future, as ABOVE: DABAO, A HOUSEHOLD NAME IN CHINA, STILL USES TRADITIONAL BEAUTY
5
Ad
vert
isin
g o
f th
e B
eau
ty In
du
stry
in
Ch
ina |
12
/15
/20
08
large international corporations have begun buying up Chinese beauty
companies left and right. For example, Johnson & Johnson acquired DaBao a
few months ago, after entering a bidding war with Avon and Unilever (Yu).
The race to buy up Chinese beauty brands that understand Chinese
consumers is on. Companies like DaBao will continue to be gobbled up by
multinational brands, hoping to sink into the psyches of existing Chinese
consumers.
International and domestic companies alike have reason to quarrel.
According to a new Kline & Company market study, China is now the third-
largest market for cosmetics and toiletries, next to Japan and the United
States. Sales are projected to rise by more than 10% a year to 2010,
expanding the market to $17 billion. With such attractive grown rates,
companies have plenty of reasons to heavily compete. Edward Wang,
manager of China Beauty at The NPD Group, confirms that:
“The beauty industry in China is an emerging market and I expect to
see continued growth in the coming year, with skincare products at the
forefront. We are seeing more advertisements in China both in
magazines and on television for premium-priced anti-aging products.
These ads play an important role in educating women about skincare
usage in China (Hilsenrath).”
But exactly how much influence do these foreign beauty companies
and their advertising have on Chinese consumers? In a 2005 article in
6
Fortune Magazine entitled “Battling for the Face of China”, author Sheridan
Prasso argued that the juxtaposition in China’s beauty industry between
modernity and tradition:
“is a raging battle among global beauty giants vying to win the face of
Chinese women. There's French giant L'Oréal pitted against Japan's
Shiseido, both of which are being challenged by U.S. leader Estée
Lauder and a handful of Chinese companies that draw upon the desire
for traditional skin beautifiers.”
In essence, the beauty battle in China today is a battle of balance between
the old and the new. But it seems that the new is winning and replacing the
traditions. Although beauty products had been popular in China’s history,
wearing them became taboo during Mao’s reign, as it undermined the
Communist philosophy of standardization among people. Beauty products
were reintroduced during Deng Xiaoping’s time in office. But even now,
wearing makeup to appear younger can actually cause a Chinese woman to
‘lose face’ in some parts of China, as everyone is expected to obey their
position in society. As the Chinese respect the wisdom of old age, wrinkles
included, wearing beauty products to cover this ‘wisdom’ could be looked
down on (Alon).
However, times are changing, especially in urban China. After the
country opened to foreign influence, women began expressing themselves
more outwardly, using cosmetics. To take advantage of this, one of the first
7
Ad
vert
isin
g o
f th
e B
eau
ty In
du
stry
in
Ch
ina |
12
/15
/20
08
beauty manufacturers to enter China was Procter & Gamble in 1988 with
their line Oil of Ulan, known today as Olay. Today, even Olay’s skin whiteners
outsell Chinese brands. This is astounding, because whiteners are based on
the traditional preference for fairness. How could a foreigner outsell the
locals on such a traditional concept? Advertising.
China’s advertising industry is booming. According to CR-Nielsen,
Nielsen's China joint venture on research of China's Internet market, online
advertising spending is expected to increase 30-40% in 2009. Traditional
media is also on the rise in China, but at a slower rate. At the CCTV prime
time advertising auction for 2009, sales hit a record high of $1.36 billion, a
15% increase from last year (Online). Let’s take a look at some of ads from
2008.
8
ABOVE, FROM TOP LEFT: VARIOUS FOREIGN BRANDS MARKET WHITENING CREAMS IN ASIAN COUNTRIES. THESE ADS FEATURE PALE CAUCASIAN MODELS: DIOR SNOW; ESTEE LAUDER CYBERWHITE EX; LANCOME BLANC EXPERT; POND’S WHITE BEAUTY.
9
Ad
vert
isin
g o
f th
e B
eau
ty In
du
stry
in
Ch
ina |
12
/15
/20
08
All of the previous ads for whitening creams were found in popular Chinese
magazines. Stressing the importance of fairness, they use phrases like
“snow”, “cyber white”, “blanc”, and “white beauty”. Products that promise to
help consumers improve themselves are to be expected. However, the
underlying message of ‘change’ in order to be beautiful is a troubling
concept. This message sent out by the beauty industry can be found
everywhere, in every country and almost every city. However, the effect that
it is having on Chinese and other Asian consumers is much more horrendous
than in the U.S. or other developed areas. As Indian graphic designer Nikki
Dugal expressed: “we still have this colonial hang-up that white is better,
white is wealth, white is someone rich enough to never toil in the sun (Wax)."
While whitening rooted in colonialism is unfortunate, this is not where
the beauty alterations end. For many Chinese, beauty is seen as an
investment in the future, as it often allows women to get better jobs or find
wealthy husbands. Young girls in their early 20’s are increasingly interested
in getting cosmetic surgeries to obtain ‘foreign’ beauty. Some of the most
popular surgeries include creasing one’s eyelids, narrowing of the nose,
breast implants, liposuction, and even leg-lengthening (Jesús).
10
In China, the popularity of change for beauty resulted in the first
annual Miss Artificial Beauty pageant in 2003. The artificial beauty pageant
only allows entrants that have had extensive cosmetic surgery. The
philosophy is that all ‘ugly’ women can become beautiful with the wonders of
‘man-made beauty’. Cosmetic surgeons, proud of their works of art, are
proud sponsors and judges of the pageant. The existence of this pageant is
evidence that China has come a long way in the past few decades. In 1993,
Beijing University students refused ever to enter a beauty contest; they were
“meaningless western culture” and contestants lacked “self-respect and
spiritual pursuits” (Jesús).
In light of the circumstances, a recent campaign by Olay seems to be
trying to combat the popular message of change that other advertisers are
communicating.
ABOVE, FROM LEFT: CHINESE OLAY ADS, WHICH READ: “FROM MAKING YOURSELF BECOME MORE BEAUTIFUL TO MAKING YOUR WISDOM BECOME MORE BEAUTIFUL”; “FROM BEAUTY THAT COMES FROM TOUCHING UP TO BEAUTY THAT COMES FROM THE SKIN”; “FROM BELIEVING IN DESTINY TO BELIEVING IN YOURSELF”.
11
Ad
vert
isin
g o
f th
e B
eau
ty In
du
stry
in
Ch
ina |
12
/15
/20
08
The ads above focus on self-improvement based on wisdom, one’s natural
skin, and confidence. However, if we look closer, we’ll see that all of the ads
are promoting Western values. In the first ad, the Chinese woman is
whitening her skin while reading about French, one of the well-known
Romance languages. The cultural assumption is that learning French, a
Western language, will make you wiser. In the second ad, a Chinese woman
in heavy makeup is overshadowed by a Caucasian model that seems to be
bare of cosmetics. The ad implies that the Chinese woman should take cues
from the Westerner. The last ad discusses believing in yourself rather than
destiny. Her palm is marked with her life, heart, and sun lines, as dictated by
chiromancy, or palm-reading. Palm-reading roots back to India and Roma,
but came to China around 3,000B.C. In any case, many Chinese believe that
destiny and luck play large roles in a person’s success. Thus, this ad has
inadvertently taken a hit at Chinese cultural norms in preference for the
selfish, Western ideals that come with self-esteem. Furthermore, the focus
on the self in this ad undermines the group-orientated mindset that is
strongly held in China.
Data Analysis
It is clear that the beauty industry has benefited from China’s opening
up policy. While many smaller corporations could not weather the storm,
many large multinational companies have found success. These companies,
including Olay, Lancome, Estee Lauder, and Pond’s, have survived based on
12
one of their shared core competencies – a large advertising budget and
creative advertisers who use the money efficiently. It is evident that these
companies have a large influence in the market, as they are among the top-
selling brands in China. The issue, however, lies in their inability to
communicate messages that agree with the once widely-held ideas of
natural Chinese beauty. This lack of cultural integrity on part of multinational
advertisers has had a detrimental impact on young Chinese girls. Cosmetic
surgeries, even to the extent of leg-lengthening, have become
commonplace, accepted, and encouraged.
Conclusion
In general, international marketers must take all aspects of a brand
into considerations when choosing to market abroad, including the price,
distribution, product features, and promotions as specific to the country in
which they want to enter. In a lot of cases, beauty manufacturers are able to
make good choices on pricing and distribution models. Product features can
be a little more difficult to figure out, as consumers have varying needs
across countries. However, promotion is arguably the most difficult aspect of
the brand to master while abroad. Marketers must understand a country’s
language, symbols, and cultural assumptions.
In this case, it is apparent that upon first entering China, foreign
beauty advertisers, with a lack of knowledge on the cultural ideas being
Chinese beauty, continued to persevere with advertising that practically
mimicked the Western versions of ads for similar products. Even today, in
13
Ad
vert
isin
g o
f th
e B
eau
ty In
du
stry
in
Ch
ina |
12
/15
/20
08
the age of information overload and with a wide-spread understanding of the
need to be culturally-sensitive, advertisers within the beauty industry
continue to advertise using Western views and values.
A lot of Asian societies have already been Westernized to a large
extent as a result of colonization. Now, with the opening of China, foreign
companies have revived hopes of profiting at the expense of the Chinese
consumers. With little regard to cultural norms, advertisers push products
that Chinese women have traditionally had little use for. The underlying
message is that ‘foreign’ beauty trumps Chinese beauty. This rejection of
natural beauty in preference for ‘foreign’ beauty has resulted in shifts in
cultural and societal values among the younger Chinese generations, as well
as the creation of a psychological inferiority complex in the younger female
population. Rather than accepting themselves as Chinese and embracing
their natural beauty, young women seek to change themselves to conform to
international beauty standards. Refutation of one’s natural self is an
unhealthy behavior. As this type of behavior is occurring on a mass scale in
China, it could have a negative effect on Chinese society and culture, as well
as a lasting impression on future generations.
If anything is to be done to improve the situation, foreign beauty
advertisers should be more critical of the messages they are communicating
to young women in China, paying closer attention to the cultural and societal
rifts that could be caused.
14
Bibliography
Alon, Ilon. Chinese Economic Transition and International Marketing Strategy. Greenwood Publishing Group; Westport, Connecticut: 2003. Pages 164-67.
Chinese Perspectives on Attraction and Beauty. October 21, 2007. Journal of Intercultural Learning. December 9, 2008.http://www.interculturallearning.net/2007/10/21/chinese-perspetives-on-attraction-and-beauty/
Gao, Zhihong. What’s in a Name? On China’s Search for Socialist Advertising. 2003. Advertising Education Foundation. December 9, 2008. http://muse.jhu.edu/journals/asr/v004/4.3gao.html
Hilsenrath, Cristina. The NPD Group Reports Premium Skincare Products See Growth in China. June 26, 2008. NPD Group Press Release. Smart Brief. http://www.smartbrief.com/news/aaaa/industryBW-detail.jsp?id=8D4C98DA-733C-41D8-87DA-22A3EC754B8B
Hu, Xiaoyun. Theoretical Studies of Advertising in Modern China: the History and the Actuality. 2006. Institute of Communication, Zhejiang University. December 9, 2008. http://www.chinamediaresearch.net/vol2no2/5_Hu_xiao_yun_Newer_2.pdf
Jesús, Attilo. China’s New Faces. June 2005. Le Monde Diplomatique. December 10, 2008. http://mondediplo.com/2005/06/17beauty
Online Advertising Set to Rebuff Global Crisis. November 26, 2008. China.cn. http://en.china.cn/content/d444270,3c24e4,2848_13987.html
Plasso, Sheridan. Battling for the Face of China. December 12, 2005. Fortune Magazine. http://money.cnn.com/magazines/fortune/fortune_archive/2005/12/12/8363110/index.htm
Wax, Emily. In India, Fairness is a Growing Industry. May 4, 2008. Washington Post. December 11, 2008. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/05/03/AR2008050302146.html?referrer=emailarticle
Yu, TianYu. Johnson & Johnson Buys Out DaBao. August 1, 2008. China Daily. December 9, 2009. http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/bizchina/2008-08/01/content_6897364.htm