Almost everyone in today's day and age have seen an ad or a commercial for Dove's "Real Beauty" campaign featuring real women in the ads while promoting Dove's body washes, soaps, and creams.
This campaign, launched 10 years ago, won
a significant amount of advertising awards along with a boost of $1.5 Billion
in sales.
However, Dove was the source of some
controversy following the campaign. Some questioned Dove's intentions by saying
Dove was capitalizing on women's poor self-esteem issues. Others had issues
with Dove over the fact that they were promoting real beauty, while still
continuing to sell products like cellulite cream. Jennifer Pozner,
executive director of Women In Media
& News, believes Dove is at odds with its message and the products they
sell.
On the other hand, Dove has put their proverbial “money where
their mouth was.” Dove knew that saying all these things without doing anything
about these issues would disprove their credibility as a brand. Dove created a
fund to partner with Girl Scouts, The Boys & Girls Club, and Girls, Inc.
They created this fund to engage in discussions about online bullying and raise
awareness about issues real women and girls have about their bodies.
Their ad campaigns including “Evolution” and “Real Beauty Sketches”
have been among the most viewed advertisements on the internet. They emphasize
their use of real women in their advertisements and have relayed in interviews that
they want to “alleviate pressure on the next generation.”
Pozner admits that the message has its concerns but does consider
it necessary: “Until we get to a point in the culture where the dominant
messages about girls and women are not focused on their physical bodies, then
we do need to actually reaffirm a broader and more innate, internal definition
of what beauty is.” (Huffington Post, Quote)
Dove, in my opinion, is getting it right. They found a way to
link a white bar of soap to a current issue affecting women nationwide. Although
this ad campaign is 10 years old, the main message still rings true. In a world
where nearly every image is photo shopped and re-touched, I love that Dove
breaks the mold and puts real women in their ads. I love the values and beliefs
they stand for, and I will continue to buy their products because I believe in
the work they are doing.
To read more, here is a link to the article: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/01/21/dove-real-beauty-campaign-turns-10_n_4575940.html
What are your opinions? Tell me your thoughts! Comment!
No comments:
Post a Comment