The campaign has also been the recipient of numerous awards.
Media exposure has provided $150 million in free media time for Dove’s campaign (“Grand Prize”, 2007). The campaign’s success is evident in the tremendous publicity that it has received, for example, with the models being asked to appear as guests on many popular American talk shows, including The View, Good Morning America, The Today Show, Ellen, and Geraldo. The real women were attractive and likeable to their female audience because they were relatable and provided a “fresh” perspective within the media. Stereotypes they selected real women whose appearances are outside the stereotypical norms of beauty (e.g., older women with wrinkles, overweight women). Dove sought to change the culture of advertising by challenging beauty The main issue being targeted was the repetitive use of unrealistic, unattainable images, which consequently pose restrictions on the definition of beauty. One of the greatest achievements of the Dove campaign is that it initiated a global conversation to widen the definition of beauty. Self-esteem? It is an issue worthy of reflection. How many of the ads you enjoy (or at least tolerate) actually reinforce Goal of the article is neither to praise nor admonish the campaign, but simply to examine the complicated nature of advertising in today’s society, and to motivate consumers to take an educated stance with regard to advertising campaigns. Taking a social psychological perspective, this article will attempt to address the good, the bad, and possibly even the ugly side of Dove’s Campaign for Real Beauty. Goal, one that is imperative and alike to all advertising campaigns, which is to increase sales. On the other hand, consumers are also aware of the campaign’s conflicting Goal of changing women’s attitudes toward their On the one hand, the Dove Campaign for Real Beauty can be viewed as espousing a positive message, with the Many critics have relentlessly questioned and brought into focus the campaign’s mixed messages, which have left some consumers feeling ambivalent towards the Dove brand. Despite the immense popularity and commercial success of the campaign, it has also been subject to much criticism.
This message was delivered through a variety of communication means, including TV commercials, magazine spreads, talk shows, and a worldwide conversation via the Internet. The main message of the Dove campaign was that women’s unique differences should be celebrated, rather than ignored, and that physical appearance should be transformed from a source of anxiety to a source of confidence.
So why has the campaign, whose major innovation was to use ads that featured real women rather than airbrushed models or celebrity spokespersons, sparked so much controversy? Taking a social psychological perspective, this article attempts to address the good, the bad, and possibly even the ugly side of Dove’s Campaign for Real Beauty.ĭove launched the “Campaign for Real Beauty” in 2004, in response to the findings of a major global study, The Real Truth About Beauty: A Global Report, w hich had revealed that only 2% of women around the world would describe themselves as beautiful (Etcoff, Orbach, Scott, & D’Agostino, 2004). The Dove Campaign for Real Beauty has been called a lot of things, from a “game changer” and “a breath of fresh air”, to “hypocritical”, “sexist”, and “sneaky”. edited by Rosanna Guadagno & Reine van der Wal.written by Angela Celebre & Ashley Waggoner Denton.Tweet The good, the bad, and the ugly of the Dove Campaign for Real Beauty