The Gift Giving Doghouse: Every Man’s Inevitability?
Do gift-giving occasions inspire “doghouse” dread for men because they feel so unlikely to make the right choice? And, will women only settle for diamond jewelry – even when the vacuum cleaner their mate has bought them has dual bags?
Bewareofthedoghouse, the much-shared video/mini-site promoting JC Penney diamond jewelry demonstrates that even cutting humor, with high quality video production and online viral appeal can’t always do the marketing trick. Even more, it is an odd approach for a store that otherwise offers so many more gift options through an established, inclusive, cheerful and friendly brand message.
Before I go to far, here’s the gist of the video:
It tells the story of a man guilty of giving his wife/girlfriend the wrong gift for their anniversary, and the trouble that ensues. In all her irritation, she walks him over, and demands he crawl into the doghouse in their backyard. In Alice in Wonderland style, the poor sap then finds himself falling into a heap of laundry other men are folding inside a cold, dimly lit, cement cellar. Turns out, they each, as well, missed the mark with gifts for their sweeties, and have been trying to get out of the doghouse ever since. But , it is a difficult thing to do – and diamond jewelry seems the only answer.
The men all appear to be simpletons who just don’t understand their wives/girlfriends, and the women are all depicted as materialistic “witches” who will not stand for this lack of diamond-giving awareness.
It is worth noting that only the seriously marketing-related types of men and women I unscientifically polled last week actually explored the site enough to find the JC Penney jewelry reference. The video’s length kept a lot of people from watching all the way to the end or digging around on the site beyond that viewing. From what I gathered, and marketing perspective aside, the doghouse story elicited a knowing chuckle, a groan of recognition or the general feeling of being insulted.
Hmmm. This attempt at modern humor, seems to be more exclusionary than inclusive. While the humor and gender stereotype jokes in this video might be hip and sophisticated for some, they are also extremely polarizing for others. And, with a message of only diamond jewelry or doghouse – there can be no wiggle room for even the average JC Penney customer, let alone a new one.
This particular doghouse message misses a huge opportunity to offer up more Penney’s-inspired gift ideas, especially in a time of cutbacks where diamonds, at any reasonable cost, are still too much of a luxury. Finally, in the long run, the snarky humor never redeems itself – which could have softened the blow. There is not a single reference to the possibility of love (either from the man or woman’s side).
Bewareofthedoghouse, in all its cleverness and tight production, seems too narrowly targeted on a very specific younger man at a singular point in time. He relates to the humor and definitely sees himself with a gorgeous woman. But, is he really someone who’s got any familiarity with the communication anxieties of significant gift-giving? Will this make him head to JCP’s jewelry department?
The sweetspot for both storybook romance and clever humor in an effective marketing campaign is difficult to find. That may be why so few brands even attempt it. This doghouse tale, entertaining as it may be for some, fails to reach the men and women most likely to even consider giving or receiving jewelry as opposed to a warm, stylish, winter coat. All the moreso in this especially difficult gift-giving season.
Now … for those of you who may need legitimate help buying gifts for your significant other, consider this “he says/she says” chart from The Frisky blog, organized by relationship age. Many thoughtful options, no doghouse.
