BUSINESS & BRANDS TRANSFORMATION & GROWTH
THE CHALLENGE:
Dove had once been the market leader in skin care… but no more: in 2003 the brand felt dated and irrelevant. Unilever decided that Dove should stand for and “own” beauty. The company wanted to develop an groundbreaking global marketing campaign around this, in a way that spoke to the hearts and minds of women.
We were called in to provide a truly new way to understand and talk about beauty – and move the brand in a radical new direction.
Research
The depth and complexity of our research matched the depth and complexity of the subject. We spoke with more than 200 women in their homes, asked them to keep diaries, to talk to us while looking in the mirror, went shopping with them and their “most beautiful” friend; we interviewed dozens of “beauty experts” across a range of disciplines – from academics to society photographers; we used quantitative surveys…
Insight
Beauty was rarely comfortable. Rather, it was one of the most challenging and contradictory dimensions in women’s lives: a scarce commodity, but universal. Oppressive but liberating. Unattainable for one self because it required perfection, but accessible to their friends because of their inner beauty. Women did not want to be told they were beautiful: it felt static. But they knew they were beautiful in a real, dynamic way.
Strategy
The focus of the campaign was moved from telling all women they were beautiful (not believable and psychologically uncomfortable), to recognizing the real beauty in every woman (democratic, inclusive, forgiving).Dove’s new definition of beauty would resonate powerfully: it was urgent, needed, and meaningful .
Dove's Real Beauty Campaign. One of the most successful campaigns in history.
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