Real Beauty. What does that mean? The definition differs for each person, for some it reflects an inner beauty, while for others beauty is all about external looks. Dove launched the powerful “Real Beauty” campaign in 2004, with the intention of focussing on the innate issues surrounding body image. The campaign was used to develop Dove’s value proposition, rather than focussing exclusively on profits. As we have learned, creating a successful va
lue proposition is essential to a company’s success as it is the way for companies to connect with their target market to intuitively understand why this product/brand resonates with them. As Ruby Fung states, “Trump’s value proposition “Make American Great Again” is blatantly obvious and easy to understand. Trump also makes a point of how strongly people respond to clear value propositions.” Although many people may not support him, his value proposition is undeniably great and is at the heart of his campaign.
The campaign for Real Beauty was extremely successful in igniting a global conversation about the need for a deeper definition of what is conceived as true “Beauty.” Dove’s slogan is “Real women have curves.”The campaign was established during three years of creative strategic research led by Joah Santos, in partnership with three universities and Ogilvy & Mather. Joah Santos founded a new advertising strategy, called “Mission Strategy” which was developed “To make women feel comfortable in the skin they are in, to create a world where beauty is a source of confidence and not anxiety.”
The inspiration for this movement was due to the fact that only 2% of women consider themselves beautiful (2004); that number has moved up to 4% today. In an article named “Dove: The Most Impressive Brand Builder,” David Aaker explains the depth of the campaign, “The Real Beauty campaign resonates at several levels. It connects with an issue of deep concern within the customer base, their appearance and self-confidence… It provides a higher purpose to the brand and a shared interest with customers.” And Dove did not stop there, since the early 1990’s Dove has grown from a 200 million dollar soap brand to an estimated worth of nearly 4 billion dollars (2013). In a highly competitive market, without this significant value proposition with ads that evoke deep emotions within viewers, Dove would simply be seen as the plain and pure white soap bar. They are involved in a highly competitive market with large, intelligent established competitors.
Dove continues to connect with people all over the world, one of their main platforms being through intense and emotional videos. I remember watching the Dove Evolution video (2006) in class when I was very young and remember how it completely changed the feelings of many girls about their own body images. As we saw in Class 8 the Evolution video depicts what goes on behind the scenes of your average makeup advertisement. The model was changed into a person who no longer resembled herself. Dove challenged this stereotype by creating Dove real beauty sketches showcasing “You’re more beautiful than you think”, with 67 million views on YouTube. 54% of women globally agree that when it comes to how they look, they are their own worst beauty critic.
Dove has the power and proven advertising success to stimulate creative thinking around the world and push individuals to love themselves just the way they are.
References :
Dove Websites :
http://www.dove.com/ca/en/stories/about-dove.html
http://www.dove.com/ca/en/home.html
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XpaOjMXyJGk
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iYhCn0jf46U
Additional Source :
http://www.ambilogo.com/15-great-slogans-that-turned-into-philosophy/
Images :
https://chippersengl.wordpress.com/what-went-wrong-with-doves-attempt-at-beauty-with-a-conscience/
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