• by Richard Whitman , Columnist, July 12, 2017

There’s something about exposed boobs that ties everybody’s knickers in a knot, at least in the UK and certainly in the U.S. I’m not even talking about soft porn (let alone hardcore), but rather breastfeeding and its acceptability in public.

Baby Dove found out the hard way. It tackled the issue of public breastfeeding in a recent campaign — causing such a sh*tstorm in UK social media circles, the Unilever unit pulled the campaign earlier this week.

UK publications reported the controversy over the July 4 weekend, when a prominent blogger “Unmumsy Mum” took Baby Dove to task for a statement on its website that read: “Whether you're among the 66% who think that breastfeeding in public is fine, or the 34% who think otherwise, whatever choice you make, we are with you every step of the way.”

The blogger responded on twitter, 'Just to be clear, you SUPPORT those who oppose breastfeeding in public and are with them "every step of the way." Oh dear @Dove.'

It was downhill from there. Many wondered — which is probably the most pertinent point — what the hell breastfeeding has to do with a line of baby skincare products?

Usually, marketers try to stay away from controversy. It’s a no-win proposition because you’re likely to offend some portion of the consumer audience. But if you choose to be controversial, that’s OK and sometimes admirable. But if that’s the path you take, you sure as heck better be relevant.

As one reader replied to Unmumsy: “Uh Oh, epic fail.”

Which, in so many words, is what Baby Dove admitted in a statement it gave Campaign after deciding to pull the, uh, campaign: "Our ad, as well as our campaign, aims to celebrate the diversity of parents and parenting choices in the UK. However, we realise that our message in this instance has not come across as we intended, and we did not mean to cause offence. For this reason we decided to review and stop further distribution of the ads in question."

OK, well, that’s a stand-up sort of response. They screwed up and pulled the campaign. Good for you, Baby Dove. Admitting a campaign misfired, pulling it and moving on.

Probably best to leave boob talk to the breast-pump manufacturers. Or some other product where it’s actually germane.