With media proliferating and attention spans shortening, it’s harder to get consumers’ attention. Brands have to come up with cleverer ways to make their products and services stand out from the pack.
But in trying to push the boundaries and get their advertising noticed, they may wander into a controversy that undermines the purpose of the campaign and backfires on their reputation.
At a time when social issues are more contested, ads designed to appeal to one demographic may alienate another. In a polarized world, this can lead to boycotts and counter campaigns. For example, a major drinks brand provoked a social media storm among its conservative customer base when it launched a campaign based around a transgender personality. The fallout seriously impacted the company’s revenue and share price.
Conversely, ads that are seen as inauthentic or misleading can offend the audience a brand is trying to attract. Many campaigns have been accused of greenwashing or pinkwashing for their efforts to link with environmental and social causes. This can lead to an erosion of public trust – in a UK survey, just one-fifth of consumers said they trust the sustainability claims made by clothing brands.[1]
Despite internal sign off processes, brands can fail to anticipate a negative reaction – even when it seems obvious in retrospect, as when a major fashion brand ran an ad that showed children posing with bondage clothing.
There’s a risk that marketing teams and agencies can become so wedded to a creative approach, no one is listening to voices of caution. An ad can be sent on its way, only to rebound on the company’s image – when this could have been prevented with a bit more critical thinking.
The proliferation of social media means a lot more people are listening to signals of negative sentiment – and can amplify it, multiplying its impact in minutes on social media. In the worst cases, this can lead to losses of trust, revenue and ultimately value in the brand.
Ads that make false claims about a product, whether it’s misdescribing functions or ingredients, or promising unrealistic health or performance benefits, can also be reputationally damaging. This area is a source of increasing regulation and litigation in countries such as the U.S., where a new regulation on deceptive advertising practices has come into force with enhanced fines.[2] Companies penalised for false advertising may also be required to run corrective advertising, reimburse customers, or face class-action lawsuits, with significant reputational blowback.
Concerns such as these around legal actions and settlements accounted for more than a third (34%) of reputation risk-related discussion about advertising among stakeholders over the year to March 2025, as shown in this chart from real-time intelligence provider Polecat.
The media landscape is only going to get more competitive. As it evolves, brands will continue to fight for audience and push the boundaries in their advertising to make sure they get eyes on their products. But there are steps companies can take to reduce the risk of an ad blowing up on impact with the world – and to reduce the reputational and financial impact if that does occur.
Make sure that you have good processes for signing off all advertising campaigns. Don’t just leave it to the marketing team. Include documented procedures for escalating any issues up the chain of command early.
Thoroughly test your campaign using methods such as focus groups, surveys and social listening tools. Include a range of demographics, not just the one you are targeting, so you pick up on any potential offence you might be causing among other groups.
It’s Ok to push the boundaries, but make sure you’re doing it for the right reasons and asking the right questions. Is this authentic to your brand or could you be accused of hypocrisy? Is it culturally sensitive or stereotyping? Do you really understand the audience you’re targeting?
Make sure your advertising claims are unambiguous, have been properly tested and can be backed up with robust data. Be clear and up front about what your product can and can’t do.
Once you launch a campaign, it’s important to listen to what’s being said about it across the media and socials. Continuously monitor conversations to get ahead of any brewing story before it hits the headlines.
If negative feedback escalates, you need to have a comprehensive crisis plan in place, backed by the right resources and know-how. It should cover your crisis response, how to minimize your financial losses and what to do to rebuild your reputation once the initial crisis has passed.
Willis has developed a holistic reputational risk management solution, which includes Polecat risk monitoring to track live sentiment and help prevent negative publicity, and Reputational Risk Quantification to measure likely damage if an incident does occur. Our crisis communications experts will help you manage the media during and after an event, with Reputational Crisis insurance to cover you for any loss of gross profit you suffer as a result. The solution also covers the costs of brand rehabilitation and includes Reputational Risk Benchmarking to assess your resilience against reputation risk in the future.
To find out more, please get in touch.
