Many companies will do whatever it takes to make a bigger profit. Sometimes, this means adopting marketing and advertising strategies where they, bizarrely, try to gender products and services for no logical reason whatsoever.
Some consumers, upon seeing this, get so frustrated that they snap a photo and share it online for some public shaming. These pictures sometimes end up on the ‘Pointlessly Gendered’ and ‘Unnecessarily Gendered’ online communities, which we’re featuring today. Scroll down for our list of photos of needlessly gendered products that pushed people away.
#1 [gendered]
Image source: Icy-Gianna
#2 Make Sure You Are Using Your Gender’s Hand Sanitizer!
Image source: arthkum
#3 Don’t Let The Man-Trash And The Woman Trash Touch Each Other! They Will Make Baby Trash!
Image source: KimberlyMitchell643
Pushing back against pointlessly gendered products and services might be difficult, but it’s not impossible. Consumers wield a lot of power. And rational business owners tend to react to changing market trends and consumer preferences.
So, voting with your wallet is one of the most powerful things you—along with your family, friends, coworkers, and acquaintances—can do.
#4 Water And Water For Women. Different Ph Levels
Image source: theyear200
#5 Where The Heck Do They Think We Get It From?
Image source: Rich_Low6943
#6 I’m Sat Here Wondering Why The Safety Areas Were Gendered In The First Place
Image source: LanaHearts-You
If you think that a product is overpriced, the company’s values don’t match yours, and you suspect that someone’s trying to make a quick profit, don’t reward that business with your money. On top of that, reach out to the company’s representatives about your concerns or share your insights on social media. If the behavior is egregious, reach out to your government representatives. Ask them to take a stand and protect your interests as a consumer.
Your cash, attention, and loyalty mean a lot for the longevity of any company. So, by hitting a business where it hurts (its profits and reputation), you’re forcing them to pivot and adapt.
#7 Cool Actually
Image source: Positive-Face1705
#8 God Forbid If Your Child Learned The Wrong Alphabet
Image source: 8euztnrqvn
#9 Gendered Baby Brushes – The Exact Same Product, The Exact Same Baby On The Packaging – But The Pink One Costs More
Image source: 8euztnrqvn
Pointlessly gendering products can be problematic when taken to the extreme. What’s more, it can split your potential customer base.
As ‘The Society Pages’ points out, these products can reinforce gender stereotypes, lead to more inequality, and end up costing women more money. Sometimes, you’ll notice that the masculine and feminine versions of the very same product aren’t priced the same.
“When that happens, the one for women is usually the more expensive one. If women aren’t paying attention—or if it matters to them to have the ‘right‘ product—they end up shelling out more money,” ‘The Society Pages’ explains.
#10 Special Wipes For Dudes! Can’t Have That “Girly” Packaging
Image source: curlyycomet
#11 How Else Will People Know You’re A Straight Couple?
Image source: Eilish1997
#12 Batteries Are Now Gendered, Too – So You Can Pay Extra For Pink Plastic Wrap That No One Will Ever See
Image source: 8euztnrqvn
According to ‘Popsters,’ some consumers are becoming less receptive to gendered marketing. As such, some companies are taking note and moving toward more neutral advertising. That being said, many businesses still choose to target genders when crafting their marketing strategies.
#13 Gendered Eggs – I Give Up
Image source: 8euztnrqvn
#14 No Teenagers Are Easy
Image source: FernquillNest
#15 War Paint Is Eye Concealer
Image source: Wide_Strike3530
‘Popsters’ notes that “traditional gender marketing” often focuses on functionality, short formulations, jokes, provocations, and the theme of competition when advertising for men. Meanwhile, advertisements for women typically focus on strength, independence, and the desire to stand out, while avoiding humor.
#16 This Is The Definition Of Unnecessarily Gendered
Image source: DruidsAndDragons
#17 Saw This On Instagram And Figured I’ll Share This Here
Image source: Valuable-Math8515
#18 Pain
Image source: Tink__Wink
However, advertisements that discriminate, use outdated stereotypes, and use black-and-white thinking tend to cause public outcry and fail. “This is especially true for women’s advertising. Gender marketing requires the dynamic use of changes in laws and social norms,” ‘Popsters’ suggests.
#19 Everyone Knows Real Men Have Bald Eyelids
Image source: bloodybloodyvamp
#20 I Cannot Facepalm Harder
Image source: WildFemmeFatale
#21 Why Are Shirt Buttons On Different Sides For Men And Women???
Image source: EaterOfCrab
Gender-neutral marketing, however, can help companies expand their target audience and increase brand loyalty. After all, this way, you’re aiming your products and services at the entire population, not just half of it. For instance, instead of labeling the toys you sell by gender, you can do so by age, product category, and brand.
#22 What The Heck Is Wrong With These People?
Image source: heyvixiee
#23 Checkout Options
Image source: Good_Joke7140
#24 I Think We Know What The Writer Wanted
Image source: tavuk_05
The ‘Pointlessly Gendered’ subreddit was first created in March of 2015, and it continues to be popular to this very day. At the time of writing, it boasts a whopping 134k weekly visitors, as well as 3k weekly contributions.
Meanwhile, the ‘Unnecessarily Gendered’ community was created in December of that same year, but it is more niche.
#25 Because Only Women Can Change Diapers Apparently
Image source: RobIson240YT
#26 Do You Ever Find Your Cotton Swabs Are Too Damn Feminine?
Image source: Feanturii
#27 Barbells At The Gym
Image source: orqa
Despite the differences in popularity, both online groups focus on the same thing: products that shouldn’t be gendered but are, in the most humorous ways.
As the moderators of ‘Pointlessly Gendered’ point out, their community should focus on humorous posts about gender and needlessly gendered things. Meanwhile, “certain products are gendered for a reason” and shouldn’t be posted.
#28 Definitely Men
Image source: wolveskin
#29 Felt Like This Belongs Here
Image source: reddit.com
#30 Gendered. Pickles
Image source: 8euztnrqvn
Once you’ve finished looking through this list and upvoting the most egregious examples of gendered products, we’d like to hear your thoughts in the comments down below.
Realistically, what do you think it would take for companies to stop with this nonsensical product gendering? What’s the worst, most pointless example of a gendered product that you’ve stumbled upon personally? Let us know.
#31 The Excitement Of Gunfighting Is Clearly Not Something Girls Would Enjoy, But What About Shooting Gossipy Messages At Each Other?
Image source: thermonolith
#32 Poems That Make Grown People Cry
Image source: Paclerin
#33 Because Women Can’t Hold The Big Tube?
Image source: reddit.com
#34 No Avocados And Blueberries For Women. They Might Explode, Since This Is Specifically For Men
Image source: Sycthe-Anne
#35 Grow A Girlfriend Has “No Nagging” And Other Phrases While Grow A Boyfriend Just Has Instructions
Image source: griefandpoetry
#36 Masks Donated To My Work Today
Image source: barrett95
#37 Ah Yes Because Girl Bug Notebooks Need Eyelashes
Image source: Celesgiri_stan
#38 Gendered Towels?
Image source: veryrandomshadow
#39 Weird Waste Separation On This Playground
Image source: cosh90
#40 Because Regular Freshwater Wasn’t Good Enough
Image source: zhara_sparkz
#41 Couldn’t Eat My Roommates Lettuce, Didn’t Fit The Right Gender
Image source: Dlongsnapper
#42 But Like… They’re Dogs Though
Image source: mmv_98
#43 Hey Kids! Guess What? You Could Become A Powerful Knight… Or A Pwetty Lickle Pwincess!!
Image source: spaceandthew00ds
#44 Just Got This Recommendation On Yt
Image source: Gsovs
#45 Hey Lady, Get Down From There
Image source: reddit.com
#46 Guess Girls Can’t Like Playstation
Image source: SoPuggly
#47 Ladies Can’t Handle Sleeping With These
Image source: On-wings-of-Mercy
#48 That Is Not How Trauma Works
Image source: DarkModeDamsel
#49 Low Key Photo From 4chan
Image source: Big_Information_6581
#50 What Is This Meant For Exactly??
Image source: ChocolateWeird3343
#51 Not Even The Dragons Are Safe
Image source: SnowcapMt-
#52 Candles
Image source: Dry-Sector-7137
#53 [meta] Are You Kidding Me?
Image source: reddit.com
#54 Women Can’t Feel Lonely, Apparently
Image source: Angels_of_Death_Zack
#55 German Parking Disc – “Time Of Arrival” (Blue) vs. “I’m Off Shopping” (Pink)
Image source: Lost_Lecture1207
#56 Gender Is Pointlessly Gendered
Image source: ThatNewt1
#57 You Mean Humans?
Image source: Creative_Trade_7927
#58 More “Batman Is For Boys” Nonsense — But With A Happy Ending
Image source: Wild_Lingonberry9656
#59 Cringe In The Wild
Image source: KooKayXYZ
#60 Only Fit For Her Ears
Image source: Rose1982
#61 Men’s Reading Glasses
Image source: CookiefromDiscworld
#62 Masculine Chargers Are Something Else
Image source: mynameisareen
#63 Girl Dogs Need The Same Nutrients In A Pink Bag And Boy Dogs In A Blue Bag!
Image source: immovablemargin
#64 Power Tools For Women!
Image source: On_my_last_spoon
#65 Gendered Changing Rooms For One Person Each
Image source: one_odd_pancake
#66 Why Do We Need To See Her Bare Shoulder (Barely Can Tell She Is Wearing A Shirt) And Have Her Posing Like That?
Image source: That_wrench_wench
#67 I Can Feel My Estrogen Supplies Dwindling Already
Image source: starmama90
#68 Look What I Found On My Local Facebook Marketplace
Image source: dizzybeyor
#69 Safe For All, Thank Goodness
Image source: dracorotor1
#70 Knifes For Women
Image source: aconc
#71 Ouija… Just For Her!
Image source: im_toohungryforthis
#72 Be Careful Men, You May Look In A Woman’s Mirror!!
Image source: justhere4raww
#73 Don’t Let Your Men Drink This! They Will Become A Woman!
Image source: Actually_a_bot_accnt
#74 For Books That Girls Can’t Read
Image source: On-wings-of-Mercy
#75 Got Some Man Debt?
Image source: ospiveyg
#76 I Was Playing With The Background On A Web Poll At Work And Found The “Thinking Male” And “Thinking Female” Background Options… Just Why?
Image source: d_chazz17
#77 It’s A Brush And Comb Why Does It Need To Be For Men
Image source: IAmHereNowOrAmI
#78 Angry Monkies For Boys Only, But At Least They’re Giving Therapy For Both
Image source: creeperfaec101
#79 I Want To Know If There’s A Difference Between These But Don’t Want To Buy Them
Image source: Helix_Apostle
#80 For Ladies Delicate Ears Only Pink Will Do. And They Only Cost A Little More!
Image source: reddit.com
#81 Gendered. Chocolate
Image source: wanttotradebrains
#82 This Needs To Stop
Image source: guyelnathan
#83 You’re Not A Woman Unless You Can Do These Things
Image source: Three-Of-Seven
#84 It’s Not That…
Image source: Impossible-Yam3680
#85 Can’t Even Start Reading Without Being Locked In A Gendered Choice
Image source: tanglekelp
#86 True!!
Image source: Annual_Exam5119
#87 Society
Image source: DeathRaeGun
#88 Birthday
Image source: SaucyStoveTop69
#89 Bc Only Boys (And Sabrina Sexton) Will Appreciate This
Image source: hopeless_sapphic24
#90 So Apparently Women Won’t Understand…fried Eggs?
Image source: Gangters_paradise
#91 This One Is Kinda Funny
Image source: Eastern-Wedding-4157
#92 Need A New Account For These Shoes
Image source: Even_Nerve_756
#93 Women Are Incapable Of Standing Normally
Image source: Dominus-Temporis
#94 They Have Gendered The Bugs. Bugs, People
Image source: Shoddy-Ocelot-4473
#95 Hmmm
Image source: RaccoonWithWIFI
#96 Blueprints Are For Men, Birds And Flowers Are For Women
Image source: joryu-ori
#97 The Male Equivalent To Getting Flowers Is Getting Flowers
Image source: Turbulent-Plan-9693
#98 ?? Why
Image source: SuicidePug
#99 Girl Clothes Only
Image source: brieinherelement
#100 Dinosaur Bubble Wands At Disneyworld
Image source: DavidRainsbergerII
#101 I Guess Men Can’t Write, Sorry I Don’t Make The Rules
Image source: random_person19
#102 Ah Yes, Clearly A Female Elf
Image source: Obvious_Technician_4
#103 Cod Is For Men, AC Is For Women, Clearly
Image source: DifferentIsPossble
#104 These Face Masks
Image source: Chick3nScr4tch
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