SK-II, Procter & Gamble's premium skincare brand, released a viral video in 2016 called 'Marriage Market Takeover' as part of its '#ChangeDestiny' campaign. The video featured Chinese women over 25 — considered 'sheng nu' or 'leftover women' in Chinese society — confronting their parents' pressure to marry.
The video was emotionally powerful and went viral, generating over 50 million views. But the reaction was mixed: while many women praised the brand for addressing a real social pressure, others accused SK-II of exploiting women's anxiety about aging and marriage to sell expensive skincare cream. The implicit message — that your skin determines your marriageability — was criticized as regressive.
The case illustrated the difficulty of 'purpose-driven marketing' in a culture with complex gender dynamics. SK-II's campaign was well-intentioned but walked a fine line between empowering women and reinforcing the very anxiety it claimed to challenge. The brand's product — anti-aging cream — was inseparable from the message, and the contradiction was not lost on the audience.
SK-II's viral ad exploited 'leftover women' stigma, drawing criticism for selling cream by reinforcing the anxiety it claimed to challenge.
The ad played on China's 'leftover women' stigma, a sensitive social issue with complex gender dynamics.
Critics accused SK-II of exploiting women's anxiety about aging and marriage to sell expensive cream.
The implicit message — that skin determines marriageability — contradicted the empowerment framing.
The campaign went viral but generated mixed reactions, with as much criticism as praise.
Purpose marketing must survive one question: is the brand part of the problem? SK-II sold anti-aging cream while saying 'don't fear aging.' When your product is the anxiety, it cannot be the cure.
SK-II continued its '#ChangeDestiny' campaign with subsequent videos that were more carefully framed. The case is studied as an example of the limits of purpose-driven marketing when the brand's product is entangled with the social issue it addresses.
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