When “nice ideas” quietly undermine your brand

Sitting in my design studio in Sutton Coldfield this morning, this news article really tickled me – and then made me think (a lot).

On paper, it probably sounded like a nice idea.

International Women’s Day. A thoughtful gesture. Something a bit different.

So… pink ice-cream makers.

And yet, here we are.

A Cambridge-educated international law firm partner caused controversy by sending pastel pink ice-cream makers to female lawyers and clients to mark International Women’s Day – as reported by The Times:

https://www.thetimes.com/uk/law/article/harneys-international-womens-day-ice-cream-h0cc0g8fv

Because the issue isn’t really the product. It’s what it signals.

It’s rarely one bad decision

Most brand missteps don’t come from laziness or bad intentions. They come from shortcuts.

Someone thinks:

Pink = feminine

Gift = thoughtful

Tick. Tick. Tick. Job done

But branding isn’t a checklist. It’s how things are interpreted, not just how they’re intended. And interpretation is where this falls apart. When I am involved in a brand consultancy project, one part of my discovery work is to look around for similar brands, similar challenges, and similar, relatable examples of why something could potentially be an issue. So I’ve done a little digging into more ‘pink gate’ type scenarios and as expected…

We’ve seen this before

This kind of thing crops up time and time again. Different industries, different audiences, completely different campaigns – and yet the same underlying pattern keeps appearing. A simple idea gets reduced just a bit too far, and no one quite stops to sense-check how it might be received.

Individually, these moments can look small or harmless. But they tend to follow a familiar shape. These are the kinds of moments where the intention might have been fine… but the execution told a very different story.

“For her” pens

Not a single campaign, but a whole category.

Pink packaging. Same product. Often a higher price.

It was positioned as thoughtful, but most people saw it for what it was – unnecessary at best, patronising at worst. I love the commentary from Ellen DeGeneres… hallelujah, we finally get our own pen… what ever will be next? Our own beer? Oh hang on…

Heineken – “Sometimes, lighter is better”

A beer slides down a bar, passing several darker-skinned people before reaching a lighter-skinned woman.

The line?

“Sometimes, lighter is better.”

Honestly, every slide by of the bottle is ‘cringe’! You can see what they were trying to say. But you can also see why it didn’t land that way. I can almost picture the meeting where this got signed off. On one level, it’s about the beer. On another… how did no one stop and say, “hang on a second”?

Definitely one of those moments where the idea might have seemed straightforward internally, but the second it’s out in the world, it takes on a completely different meaning. And not in a good way.

Pepsi protest ad

This one leaned heavily into the imagery of protest and social justice.

The problem wasn’t just the concept – it was how disconnected it felt from reality. The backlash was fast, and very public. I tried to to make my husband sit through one viewing of it and he gave up, too cringe, life is too short! I myself found myself even now displaying visceral signs of wound-upness and anger… why did nobody in there art department notice how ridiculously self-indulgent and far-fetched from reality this is? The mind boggles.

The bit people miss

Colour isn’t neutral, objects aren’t neutral, and context definitely isn’t neutral.

When you combine them, you’re not just giving someone a product or creating a campaign – you’re saying something about how you see your audience. And that’s where things can quietly shift from “nice idea” to something that feels a bit off.

It’s rarely about intent. Most of the time, the intent is perfectly reasonable. But intent doesn’t travel nearly as well as people think it does.

“But it’s just a gift…”

This is usually where the defence comes in.

It’s just a gesture. Just a bit of fun. Just a colour choice.

And on one level, that’s true. But brands aren’t judged on what they meant – they’re judged on how things are received. And often, the smaller and more casual the moment, the more honest the reaction. No messaging. No framing. Just instinct.

Where it actually goes wrong

In most cases, it comes down to a few very human habits. Designing for assumptions instead of real people. Going with the obvious answer instead of the right one. And not having someone in the room who feels comfortable saying, “are we sure about this?”

In my design studio, I can always rely on what we call ‘de-creative’ Steve who is very skilled at not knowing what something should be like, but knowing very well what something shouldn’t be like. I have a post on this because it’s not just funny but has actually become a very valuable part of my concept and design process. Watch this space…

These things are rarely a big strategic failure. More often, there’s been a small gap in thinking that nobody quite challenged.

The fix isn’t complicated

This isn’t about overthinking everything or stripping out personality. Instead, it’s about thinking things through properly. Looking at what your brand is actually saying when you’re not there to explain it, and making sure the idea, the execution, and the context all line up.

Because it’s usually the small details – the ones that feel harmless – that make the biggest difference to how something lands. And that’s often the difference between something that feels considered… and something that ends up doing the rounds for the wrong reasons.

So if something feels like a “nice idea”, pause for a second.

Because it might be.

Or it might be one of those moments where your brand quietly says something you didn’t mean at all.