Advertising in the Period Industry is a utopian fiction, comprising the A to Z’s of everything that’s not real, that includes false, non-inclusive portrayal, targeted exclusively at cis women. These are just a few characteristics that stand out in advertising in the period industry.
The narrative that they depict is entirely far-fetched and couldn’t be further away from a realistic or authentic depiction of the process. Crowded with euphemisms, absurd imagery, and inaccurate representation, it does everything it can to sugar coat a monthly biological process.
What They Show
Almost every big brand targets its advertisements to cisgender women, completely neglecting individuals with other gender identities. Adorned with smile plastered faces of women, and blue liquid to depict menstrual blood it is nothing like what they show.
We might have progressed from hesitating to even say the word, ‘Periods’ or ‘Pads’ on-air to advertising for menstrual products. But even today with so much growth and modernization, most adverts can’t be depended upon to illustrate menstrual blood in red on television.
Though the advertising industry fails to acknowledge that even trans men or nonbinary people go through menstrual cycles, they too use the very products that the industry fails or instead refuses to market as inclusive.
The very core of advertising to spread information, and to empower people with knowledge; the exact opposite of the current scenario.
What They Should Show
Actually, depicting blood and not a blue liquid sends a much clearer message across. Beginning the use of words like ‘vagina’, ‘menstruation’, ‘period flow’ is the direction they need to move towards rather than focusing on coming up with silly allusions. For instance, using the image of orange to reflect a vagina. The 20th century should be able to boast of more accurate advertising than what goes on now.
These adverts have to focus much more on becoming informative, than just babbling about how nice a fragrance their product has. And it is high time that each menstrual product brand starts employing non-binary people and trans individuals to advertise their products as well.
This sends a message that their products are inclusive; it recognizes that their products are meant for people of all gender identities and not just cis women.
How Do We Make Advertisements More Inclusive?
There are numerous ways one can make their adverts more inclusive and friendly for all its users. For instance, these are just a few examples.
In 2017, a period subscription service called Pink Parcel cast a transgender model Jenny Jones for promoting their awareness campaign.
In the Indian context, while most adverts seem to follow a similar trend, P&G’s ‘Touch the Pickle’ campaign strayed from the path and became a groundbreaking advert and even went on to win at Cannes Lions in 2015.
This advert mostly dealt with efforts and attempts to combat period prejudices and varied cultural notions of stigma, shame, and taboos related to the process of menstruation.
Reclaiming Period Advertising
Advertising has immense power; it has the potential to reach and influence millions of people. And if they, in turn, showcase a reality that is both valid and representative, it can directly impact the lives of several people outside.
Mainstream advertising should focus not just on selling their product, but also keep in mind that in this age of information and media if they continue to enforce and reiterate negative perceptions, they are harming innumerable lives in exchange for monetary profits.
It is up to them to reclaim the power of advertising and churn out something positive. Start referring to periods directly, shift emphasis from being discreet to proud acknowledgment. Start involving people of different gender identities, people of different sexes. Start giving out consistent information, and stop portraying periods as a shameful and humiliating experience.