The month of Ramadan is seen as a great opportunity for brands to connect with their audience. Marketers know this fact and they come with emotional campaigns talking about what this holy month means for the people.
Sometimes, in the race of making something new and viral, brands tend to forget how such campaigns can act negatively for a brand’s image if not planned well.
A new ad film by Turkey’s biggest sweet maker- Kent is facing backlash all across social media from Turkey. For those who don’t know, Kent was acquired by Cadbury Schweppes (now Mondelez) back in 2002.
Check the ad film to get an idea about what the whole matter is:
Sıcacık bir bayram sabahı hikayesi anlatan Kent filmimiz yayında. İyi bayramlar Türkiye. #AileOluruz #madeingultepe pic.twitter.com/rFXVIkRZdH
— Ogilvy Istanbul (@OgilvyIstanbul) May 21, 2019
Here’s the meaning of caption in English- The story of a warm holiday on the morning of Kent film is on the air. Good holidays turkey. #AileOluruz #madeingultepe
The film shows a journey on the day before a big festival. Further going, the journey stops and the strangers are made to spend the festival with each other instead of their loved ones.
Why this ad is controversial
To understand what’s making people angry about this ad is because of an incident that happened in the recent past. Let us tell you about an accident that happened last year on July 8 in which 24 passengers died. After investigation, it was revealed that the railway in which these people were traveling in collapsed because flood water washed away the soil underneath the railway tracks resulting into the accident.
People aware of this incident are saying that Kent’s ad is identical to the real accident and is reminding them about the loss. The only difference in the brand film is that the train is stopped by people at the right time in the ad.
Here are some tweets expressing the feelings of people:
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What are your views over this campaign? Do let us know your views in the comments section.
