Industry Issues Revision

You will revise the Ad campaigns for Chanel, Dove and Paddy Power in anticipation of the Industry question, completing a question from a past paper.

Dove

Background/Context
The Dove Campaign for Real Beauty was conceived in 2004 after market research indicated that only 2% of women consider themselves beautiful. The campaign's mission is to "to create a world where beauty is a source of confidence and not anxiety." It was created by Ogilvy & Mather Brazil.

Production
The Dove Campaign for Real Beauty is a worldwide marketing campaign launched 
by Unilever in 2004 that includes advertisements, video, workshops, sleepover events and the publication of a book and the production of a play. The aim of the campaign is to celebrate the natural physical variation embodied by all women and inspire them to have the confidence to be comfortable with themselves. 

Dove's partners in the effort include such marketing and communications agencies as Ogilvy & Mather, Edelman Public Relations, and Harbinger Communications (in Canada). Part of the overall project was the "Evolution" campaign.

Consumers were asked to make judgment about a series of photos of women who didn't fit the glossy mag mould. Was a plus-sized woman oversized or outstanding? Was a woman with small breast half empty or half full

Marketing/Promotion
Relies on Scientific evidence as the language of persuasion. 
This is a particular application of the Expert technique. It uses the paraphernalia of science (charts, graphs, statistics, lab coats, etc.) to "prove" something. It often works because many people trust science and scientists.  It’s important to look closely at the "evidence," however, because it can be misleading.  
Dove 'researched' women's attitudes to themselves.

Also uses Plain folks.  (A type of Testimonial – the opposite of Celebrities.) This technique works because we may believe a "regular person" more than an intellectual or a highly-paid celebrity.  It’s often used to sell everyday products like laundry detergent because we can more easily see ourselves using the product, too. The plain folks technique strengthens the down-home, "authentic" image of products like pickup trucks and politicians. Unfortunately, most of the "plain folks" in ads are actually paid actors carefully selected because they look like "regular people.”

Regulation: Be sure to know what the ASA does when tackling a question on this.
Women in some quarters found the campaign offensive. The Dove marketing campaign also provoked parodies such as this as some women found the ads patronising. The parody above sees the video suggesting to the women that they actually find themselves to be ugly when they look in the mirror. Obviously not all women, in fact very few, feel this way.

Global implications
Dove continues evolving to keep up with the changing world. 
By using advertisements with women from all age groups, the brand has a broad enough reach that all ages have developed trust and loyalty to its products. 
Two of the main ideas that keep Dove going strong are developing adaptive ways to market the brand while also keeping a smaller product base. 
By lowering their original amount of 1,600 brands to just 400, they were able to select master brands and categorize the remaining products under those to avoid confusion. 
The range of products is simplified while the campaign tries to reach an even younger audience through marketing to schools.

Distribution/Exhibition

The first stage of the campaign centred around a series of billboard advertisements, initially put up in the United Kingdom, and later worldwide. The spots showcased photographs of regular women (in place of professional models), taken by noted portrait photographer Annie Leibovitz.

The series received significant media coverage from talk shows, women's magazines, and mainstream news broadcasts and publications, generating media exposure which Unilever has estimated to be worth more than 30 times the paid-for media space.

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Task 1:

With reference to Dove's Real Women campaign answer the following question:

How effectively was this text marketed?

15 - 20 minutes