Study and analysis of the Dove Real beauty campaign since its inception to date.

Dove is an American personal care brand owned by the British multinational consumer goods company Unilever.

Established in: 8 March 1957

Parent Company: Unilever

Category: Personal Health care

USP: Deep Moisturiser for skin

Objective of the campaign: why was it initiated? 

In February 2000, Dove was tapped to become a Masterbrand. And it needed a strong UPS to enter the market with its new series of products. Since its launch in 1957 in the United States, the primary product of Dove has been its Beauty bar. Among its other competitors, Dove Bar Soap led by a large margin. It helped Unilever to take over its biggest competition, Proctor & Gamble, and dominate the American Soap Market in 1999. However, the sales started becoming stagnant for Unilever, with P&G introducing Olay to the consumer market. The company also planned to launch a series of products and to enter this market, they needed to change their strategy. “Dove’s mission, in commissioning The Real Truth About Beauty study, was to explore empirically what beauty means to women today and why that is. Further, Dove wanted the study to assess whether it was possible to talk and think about female beauty in ways that were more authentic, satisfying, and empowering” (Etcoff, Orbach, Scott, & D’Agostino, 2004) In 2004, Dove and Ogilvy & Mather organised a photography exhibit titled “Beyond Compare: Women Photographers on Real Beauty.” The show featured work from 67 female photographers and was the beginning of the revolution in the world of beauty that would lead to the Real Beauty campaign. This, in 2004, initiated the “Real Beauty Campaign”.

Integrated Marketing Communication Approach and Communication Mix’s Impact

Before launching the actual campaign Dove needed a clear communication model from the result of the Global Research study. Target The integrated marketing target segmentation revolved solely around women including all ages, sizes, and ethnicities of women. It was important to use Integrated marketing communication because, with its broadcast, women were made aware of the unsettling beauty description in the market. Dove was able to pinpoint the basic sense of demoralisation among human beings about their natural appearance. This was only heightened by the gaps between their image and the image of perfection created by the industry. It was followed by two creative strategy approaches. The first was the rebranding strategy and the second, was a stand-out guerilla marketing campaign to create a ripple of uncomfortableness in society about a topic that people don’t feel comfortable talking about. Dove aimed for full market coverage by focusing on and reaching women from all groups. The emphasis and the highlight were not on a single product but instead on the branding message. Through undifferentiated marketing, Dove was able to execute their goal for full coverage by strategically placed tactics where the campaign is viewed by all women. Dove initially targeted women aged from 18 to 65 most of the responses from the campaign came from middle-aged women, aged between 35 to 55. These women came from the targeted consumer which consists of middle-class income families who are mostly dependent on the low end and drugstore beauty products rather than luxury high-end products. At the time the campaign was being launched there was an emerging trend of social media and Dove was able to utilise that to the advantage of marketing through YouTube and other social media platforms. They are one of the first big companies that started utilising social media before other brands followed. The product line for men was also generated from this when Dove’s real beauty campaign opened discussion and conversation about beauty involving men as well. A lot of credit goes to the brand positioning itself in the market among its competitors as well as highlighting the brand image and also creating the key factor for brand differentiation. 

Main communication channels: 

• TV commercials 
• Social networks (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram) 
• Billboards 
• Videos: Youtube

Marketing communication mix 

Advertising: The campaign was also focused on better positioning the brand in the market along with its competitors. Initial Advertisements were done through billboards and hoardings followed by social media and youtube videos. 

Sales promotions: Dove provides free samples of their products being launched in the market. Potential customers are provided with opportunities to join “ your love” which provides them with special offers. Customers are provided with expert advice and beauty tips which in turn promote Dove soap to the customers. 

Events: Dove events are especially for engaging with customers. These include regional brand-building events like a self-esteem workshop in Canada which was later turned into a film. 

Public relations: The PR highlighted the importance of inner beauty through its constant creative marketing and impactful content. These include a news section of Dove that popularised the effects of Dove products which are synonyms to the campaign message of inner beauty. 

Direct Marketing: Dove enables the facility to customer service through their toll-free number. Through the “Your Dove” campaign, customers can receive beauty tips, offers, etc. 

Interactive marketing: The real beauty campaign provided a platform for women to provide their perspective about beauty to the world. 

Word of mouth: Along with the success of the campaign at the very initial stage, people were already interacting with the content. This along with the affordable nature of the products made them even more famous among the masses. 

Social media interaction: Dove started utilising social media when it was not the convention. However, it was able to reach a greater audience and create a bigger impact with it. With relatable content about the constantly changing notion of beauty, Dove was able to tap into a topic that is relatable for all times. 

How did it differentiate the brand?  

Yes, they were able to differentiate themself from their competitors very well. In a market where a lot of focus was based on the factor of perfect beauty, Dove was able to differentiate itself with their unique perspective of focusing on real beauty. As mentioned, its position in the market at the time of the launch of the campaign played a significant role. To cater to their marketing efforts Dove was already in a position to take a point of view in culture and popular media. Dove’s differentiating point was simple yet innovative compared to its competitors. They focused on the simplicity and diversity of the products which was essentially suitable for various people coming from different backgrounds. Apart from this the implementation of the campaign strategy also stood them apart from their competitors. Rather than overwhelming their consumers with the negative feeling from traditional beauty advertising, it encouraged the consumer to accept them for themselves. It’s such a brand image in a positive light where the consumers are encouraged to feel confident in their skin. This in turn boosts brand awareness and brand loyalty. With the campaign, Dove appeared as one of the first brands to challenge and change the culture of advertising stereotypical beauty. It provided not only a fresh perspective to the media but also focused on consumer engagement through social media for expanding their brand equity. Dove was able to create an emotional response through their campaign which resonated with the majority of the population. This was aided by its vast reach through social media as well as other communication channels like YouTube videos, ads, etc. Dove was able to present itself as a company that doesn’t simply make people feel better but it was also able to reframe the actual purpose for purchasing their beauty products. Altho the actual quality and the price of the products were never Virtually mentioned in the ads throughout the actual campaign. Its unique presentation allowed women to show solidarity with the brand message simply by buying their products. The self-esteem Toolkit of Dove’s online resource includes workshops, videos, and guides aimed at building girls’ self-esteem. This in turn reflects the campaign’s mission which is to redefine beauty.

Dove’s Strategy and Brand Communication Plan: a brand communication model

With sentiments and emotions attached to the campaign from a big audience, it generated customer loyalty among its followers.

• Brand message: Promoting “ Real beauty” 
• Targeted audience: Women of all ages, ethnicity, race, etc. 
• Pain points and needs: Stereotypical and unattainable beauty standards; feeling confident in one’s skin. 
• Value proposition: Beauty comes from within, breaking beauty standards 
• Advertising plan: Through-the-line-ads, Positioning, retention, product differentiation, social and natural appeal, Guerrilla marketing 
• Customer response: relatable message, see reality and breaking free from stereotypes and their effects 
• Duration: The brand is still going on through the extended version of the real beauty campaign, with its recent change in the logo color from yellow to grey to show aging is also beautiful 
• Success metrics: Sales for Dove jumped from $2.5 to $4 billion in the campaign’s first ten years.

Dove was able to select the right message at the right time. When the industry was at the peak of highlighting impossible beauty standards, dove presented a reality check for the masses and turned it into a positive movement. The brand was able to get itself noticed at the very beginning of the campaign with its tick box campaign with live voting on billboards for different beauty notions. Their brand communication plan through the campaign is simple. “ Beauty comes from within” is a message which resonates and is well-received by almost everyone. It is not only memorable but also motivates potential customers to be influenced by the brand message. Purchasing Dove products meant showing solitary to the message itself. With a new marketing strategy, they showed “real women” in their communication which not only leaves an impression but also creates brand advocates and a love for the brand. Throughout the campaign, the brand has remained consistent with its communication in every channel. These include the logo of the brand after each visual communication or creating dialogues that are authentic and highlight the brand’s personality by connecting to the audience in a friendly and energetic way. One of the downsides of the campaigns is that in some way, the message was unable to serve its true purpose, i.e, showing body difference as a positive thing. “ khamiya nahi, khubiya dekhiye” somehow presents body differences as something like a drawback in a person. Another downside of the campaign is that despite the success and praise for Dove’s ad campaign regarding their true motives, ideology, and efficacy, is in their relation to brands like Axe. Dove’s parent company, Unilever, is also the parent company of Axe and Fair & Lovely. These brands promote messages that are in direct contradiction to the message that Dove is attempting to promote, which is positive body image. This was heightened during recent years with the Black Lives Matter movement and the renaming of the Fair and Lovely empire. 

Public relation perspective and its Effect on Dove’s Sales

Dove’s PR Company, Edelman, was able to provide a positive spin on the company’s image with its real beauty campaign. The PR started with well-done research with a proper sample of the representative population for the focus point of the campaign. Over two years, Edelman surveyed 4,500 girls between the ages of 10 to 17, and 6,000 women between the ages of 18 to 64 from more than 13 countries. The company knew what the audience wanted to talk about. Jennifer Bremner, brand director for Dove stated, “We believe that conversation leads to brand love, and brand love leads to brand loyalty.” 

Memorable campaign moments: 

• Real Curves: In 2003, before the campaign had its name, Real Curves was a pioneering ad from the U.K., which showed curvy women in lingerie. Through billboards, Dove asked questions regarding beauty standards and conducted live voting polls for the results. 
• Evolution: The 1st breakthrough video showing the editing process of the model’s ad on a billboard. 
• Onslaught: This video shows a young girl bombarded by media images seemingly designed to make her insecure about her looks. 
• Sketches: Real Beauty Sketches was a viral video in which a police sketch artist contrasted how women describe themselves to the prettier versions described by others. 
• Selfie: This is a short film that was displayed at the Sundance Film Festival in which a photographer teaches high-school girls and their moms to boost their confidence and expand their views of what beauty is by taking self-portraits with their phones and posting them on social media.

The sketch campaign was everything that the brand hoped for as more than 50 million people viewed the Dove video within 12 days of its release. After the campaign, Dove initiated a revolutionary campaign that set off the trend of inclusivity and gained a lot of media attention through newspapers, magazines, and celebrities talking about its message. Dove has successfully been able to shape the idea and beliefs of the company. Its unique presentation allowed women to show solidarity with the brand message simply by buying their products although there is a lack of product advertising itself. Through strategic public relations tactics, Dove was able to emotionally connect with its audience, creating special brand loyalty. Since its campaign launch, sales for Dove jumped from $2.5 to $4 billion in the campaign’s first ten years.

Undoubtably, the brand’s communicatoion methods adds to its wide market success.