Brand image is everything, That’s why it’s important that a brand stay true to the image they are trying to portray. If inconsistencies are found with what the brand is supposed to stand for and how they actually run their business, customers will lose trust, and if customers lose trust, companies lose business. When brand hypocrisy is brought up the first company that comes to mind would be Unilever. Unilever is the parents company to many popular brands, including both Dove and Axe. Yes, that’s right. Dove with it’s campaign for real beauty, and Axe, the company with arguably the most degrading ads towards females on TV.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iYhCn0jf46U

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I9tWZB7OUSU

Dove appears to be working hard to break down the social custom of what beauty is perceived as, though I find it difficult to become invested in their campaign. How can a company promote natural beauty, while at the same time send out ads depicting the classic supermodel thin, every man’s dream woman. I believe that the dove real beauty campaign is a great one, and definitely does wonders for their brand popularity, but at the same time they can’t be as effective because in the back of peoples minds, they are still thinking of those infamous Axe commercials, which leaves people questioning the true intention of the company.

(Jennifer Wells. Taking the Axe to Unilever’s Hipocricy. thestar.com. Published November 28, 2007.  http://www.thestar.com/opinion/columnists/2007/11/28/taking_the_axe_to_unilevers_hypocrisy.html)

In a recent class the question of whether employees were considered assets or not was brought up. I found that this question raised an interesting debate. Some interesting points were brought up regarding how critical employees are to the company, saying how they provide the customer service and even the reputation of a company. While others in the class may have disagreed, it is clear the Google does not.

As one employee states in the video above “Google takes care of us”. With free food, multiple gyms, medical, and even laundry services, it’s clear that Google views its employees as a priority. So why would such a large company go so far to try and please their staff members? Google obviously views them as a critical part of the company, which can not be easily replaced. With such great perks Google certainly attracts some of the best in the tech world, and it’s these people who are working to keep Google innovative and relevant. Google works hard for their employees so, in turn, their employees will work hard for them and offer their best. In response to the question posed earlier, I believe Google is on the right track in treating their employees like assets. This technique has clearly been working for them, as they are one of the most successful companies in the world. I believe that in order for a company to be successful they should take a page out of Google’s book and reconsider how far they are willing to go to keep their employees happy.