Oct
17
Dove’s Almost Real Beauty Campaign
Posted by: Brian Chan | October 17, 2010 | Leave a Comment
.
.
I think that Dove’s campaign is incredibly effective in that it can reach their target market by sympathizing with the feeling many women have; that they are not as attractive as many models or celebrities. At a time when technology allows us to greatly augment physical appearances in pictures and movies, many people are beginning to realize the extent that advertisements change appearances of their models through artificial means, and Dove takes advantage of this backlash.
Dove decreases the efficacy of advertisements by their competitors while creating a unique statement in the marketing world that resonates with their audience. Their ad became viral and thus also self-advertised.
While I applaud the creativity and intelligence of those who create the ad, I don’t necessarily agree with the message that our perception if beauty is distorted. I also don’t agree that it’s a bad thing to enhance the features and aesthetics of models. Models have been doing this for years through make up, lighting and angles. I have yet to see a Dove ad using people who truly demonstrate “all shapes and sizes.” Aren’t they then still “distorting” our perception of beauty? How will the women who can’t even compete with their “lowered standards” feel?
This does not truly display “real beauty.”
Their message is great, but also idealistic. In a way, I feel the campaign is just a marketing strategy and nothing more. The truth is just that beauty will always be valued in the marketing industry, regardless of how artificial. Will a model our society judges to be ugly be able to sell as well as one that’s beautiful? In my eyes, all Dove’s campaign only extends itself to “slightly more shapes and sizes.” Beauty does not come in all shapes and sizes. That’s just how it is. Perceptions of beauty can definitely differ among different people, but no matter how these perceptions change or evolve, someone will always end up on top, and someone on bottom.
I have no solution for the multitudes of diseases, disorders and depression cases that come from women or men feeling unattractive, but telling them that everyone is beautiful isn’t the answer.