This print ad released by a leading soap brand caught my attention. The ad had very little or no copy. And featured just one girl or young woman’s face. But what stood out for me was the tattoo on her hand. Wow, I said to myself. Even premium brands aimed at the millennial audience are now ready to sport a model with a tattoo. I had been burnt showing a dragon tattoo on the back of a model in a telcom ad I had helped create a decade or more ago. The ad attracted some criticism especially since the music that was playing in the background had religious significance.
I thought I had located an interesting ad to share on social media to stimulate some conversation. The ad did stir some chat including someone who commented how they had to struggle to hide a model’s tattoo while shooting a tea commercial. But one comment blew me away, reflecting my own ignorance.
‘Semi Colon Tattoo’ has a meaning. Is the brand trying to say something more? That comment got me rushing to find out what a ‘semi colon tattoo’ means. To those who are in my boat here is what Google (now AI powered) had to say: ‘A semicolon tattoo represents a symbol of hope and perseverance, typically used to signify overcoming personal struggles related to mental health issues like depression, addiction, or suicidal thoughts, often associated with the “Project Semicolon” movement which advocates for suicide prevention; the semicolon signifies that one’s story isn’t over and they are choosing to continue living…’
Well well. I thought I was old and did not know about the meaning. So I posed the question to the class at SPJIMR that I was teaching on consumer behaviour. Of the 60 students in the class, 6 had a tattoo (is that a national average, we will check that in a bit). And only 7 of the students, many belonging to the Gen Z generation, could correctly identify the hidden meaning of a ‘semi colon tattoo’. After this bit of education, I decided to find out if there was a not-so-hidden meaning behind the popular tattoo symbols we see around us. Here are a few: anchor – strength / stability / loyalty; butterfly – transformation / renewal; candles – finding way in the dark; eagle – wisdom / power; infinity – endless potential ; lotus – purity of mind, body, spirit; moon – cycle of life; owl – wisdom / knowledge; you can find more in science.howstuffworks.com
Obviously the brand was aware about what it was doing but I wonder if they knew that only a small percentage of the readers of the newspaper where the ad appeared will actually decode the meaning of the ‘semi colon tattoo’. Assuming that most readers did not know the hidden meaning, does the ad still work?
New York city had banned any form of tattoos in its schools during the period 1961 to 1997. Apparently there was a health reason for banning it. But Americans have embraced tattoo culture fully. Reports say that almost 30% of Americans sport a tattoo and if you look at millennials the number is higher than 45%. We don’t have the numbers for India though some reports say that almost 20%, urban + rural consumers may be sporting at least one tattoo.
Tattoos have had an interesting journey in India. It was once restricted to the devout who tattooed their body with their favourite god. In Tamilnadu it spread to the favourite actors. The habit was more common with the rural consumers. All that has changed in the last ten years. Tattoo parlours can be spotted in fancy malls and there are tattoo artists who can custom design a tattoo to your taste and fancy. Seeing the young embrace the tattoo culture, even the Gen Xers are joining the movement. Tattoos which were a rarity in board rooms and among readers of this paper, is no longer so rare. And those with a tattoo are no longer looked at with suspicion.
I suppose the aforesaid brand was sending out a message to its consumers that it is ready to accept all kinds in its fold. With a tattoo. Without a tattoo. With a semi-colon. Or a butterfly. All are welcome.
Appeared originally in Economic Times February 2025