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DOVE REAL BEAUTY SKETCHES CAMPAIGN 1
Emily Goldberg, Ben Gottlieb, Samantha Landy, Sam Solomon, and Lindsay Sittler wrote this case under the supervision of
Professor Matthew Thomson solely to provide material for class discussion. The authors do not intend to illustrate either effective or
ineffective handling of a managerial situation. The authors may have disguised certain names and other identifying information to
protect confidentiality.
This publication may not be transmitted, photocopied, digitized or otherwise reproduced in any form or by any means without the
permission of the copyright holder. Reproduction of this material is not covered under authorization by any reproduction rights
organization. To order copies or request permission to reproduce materials, contact Ivey Publishing, Ivey Business School, Western
University, London, Ontario, Canada, N6G 0N1; (t) 519.661.3208; (e) cases@ivey.ca; www.iveycases.com.
Copyright © 2014, Richard Ivey School of Business Foundation
Version: 2014-05-14
INTRODUCTION
It was August 1, 2013, and Michelle Sterling, brand manager for Unilever’s Dove line, was preparing for
her upcoming meeting with agency executives from Ogilvy & Mather to discuss the direction of the Dove
Campaign for Real Beauty. Hype surrounding the Dove Real Beauty Sketches video was quickly fading,
and she must decide what the next stage of the campaign should be.
Since 2004, the Dove brand had been committed to widening the definition of beauty after the results of a
major global study suggesting that the public’s perception of beauty had become unrealistic and
unattainable. 2 In response, the brand launched the Dove Campaign for Real Beauty, intending to start a
global conversation about beauty by featuring real woman in its advertisements whose appearances were
outside stereotypical norms. Every year, the brand launched a new aspect of the campaign with the
common theme of empowering women and boosting self-esteem.
BACKGROUND
Unilever, the parent company of Dove, is an Anglo-Dutch multinational company and the third largest
consumer goods company in the world. 3 In 2013, the company reported an annual revenue of nearly €50
billion and a net profit over €5 billion. 4 Unilever’s product offerings span diverse segments and categories:
foods, refreshment, home care and personal care. Unilever owns over 400 brands, 14 of which generate
sales in excess of US$1 billion 5 a year. Some of the most recognizable brands include Lipton, Knorr, Ben
& Jerry’s, Hellman’s, Magnum, Sunlight, Axe, Vaseline and Dove. 6
1
This case has been written on the basis of published sources only. Consequently, the interpretation and perspectives
presented in this case are not necessarily those of Unilever or any of its employees.
2
www.mydove.com.au/en/Our-Mission/Our-Research/default.aspx, accessed April 1, 2014.
3
www.occstrategy.com/sites/default/files/20894_global_50_in_2012.pdf, accessed March 2, 2014.
4
www.unilever.com/images/ir_Q4-2013-full-announcement_tcm13-380368.pdf, accessed March 3, 2014.
5
All currencies are in US$ unless otherwise stated.
6
www.unilever.com/brands-in-action/view-brands.aspx accessed on March 3, 2014.
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Investing more than $8 billion in advertising and promotion per year, 7 Unilever is one of the largest media
buyers in the world. The company is determined to continue leading in the digital marketing space by
partnering with the best-in-class agencies to deliver quality content.
In 2004, the company developed a new brand identity focused around the idea of “adding vitality to life.”
The company’s vision is to make the two billion people that use Unilever products each day look good,
feel good and get more out of life. 8
DEVELOPMENT OF DOVE
The Dove Brand was developed in the United States in 1957 with the formulation of a new beautycleansing bar. Made with mild cleansers and moisturizing cream, Dove’s flagship product is generally
known for leaving skin smooth, soft and clean. In fact, Dove is a top brand in Canada, the United States
and France with “moisturization” being its cornerstone. The current Dove line of products includes a full
range of body washes, hand and body lotions, facial cleansers, deodorants, shampoos, conditioners and hair
styling products for both men and women. 9
COMPETITION
As a global Cross-Category Power Brand (CCPB), Dove competes in almost all personal care markets: bar
soap, body wash, face wash, hair care, deodorants and antiperspirants, and lotion. Dove’s direct
competitors in each of these markets range from other CCPB’s that operate in several personal care
markets (Neutrogena, Nivea, Old Spice, Axe, etc.) and dominant brands that operate in one or more
personal care markets (L’Oreal, Garnier, Pantene, Aveeno, etc.). In addition, each of these markets
includes competitors with smaller yet significant market shares that could be classified as indirect
competitors based on advertising and media spend (Cetaphil, Jergens, Speed Stick, etc.).
Direct Competitors
CCPB’s represent powerful competitors for Dove as they can typically match or exceed Dove’s advertising
and media spend. Brands that compete in personal care markets typically focus communication towards
one gender and release line extensions if the company wants to extend its communications or promotions
toward the opposite gender (i.e., Dove Men’s + Care, Nivea for Men and Neutrogena for Men).
Alternatively, some brands operate across categories and focus advertising and promotion efforts toward a
single gender (i.e., Aveeno, Old Spice and St. Ives). All CCPB’s focus their marketing efforts to create a
competitive positioning in the marketplace.
Nivea, Aveeno and Neutrogena focus on functional benefits and position themselves in the “expert care”
segment of the market. St. Ives and Irish Springs focus on aroma and position themselves in the “sensorial
uplift” segment of the market. Brands such as Axe and Old Spice focus communication on boosting the
male ego by providing men confidence through the use of its products. L’Oréal, Garnier and Pantene
position themselves similarly; however, their focus is providing confidence to women. All of the
competing brands feature stereotypical models in traditional advertising efforts.
7
http://adage.com/article/news/unilever-ad-spending-hits-heights/239348/, accessed April 1, 2014.
www.unilever.com/aboutus/introductiontounilever/, accessed on March 3, 2014.
9
www.unilever.com/brands-in-action/detail/Dove/292077/, accessed on March 3, 2014.
8
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Indirect Competitors
Indirect competitors for Dove represent personal care brands that operate in only a few markets and can be
identified by smaller market shares. These brands include: face and body wash brands such as Cetaphil;
soap brands such as Ivory and Burt’s Bees; deodorant and antiperspirant brands such as Arrid; and lotion
brands such as Curel and Glysomed. These brands focus advertising on functionality.
THE CAMPAIGN FOR REAL BEAUTY
Dove, a brand that has devoted itself to listening to women, 10 partnered with StrategyOne to conduct a
study surveying 3,200 people from 10 countries about women’s relationship to their own beauty. 11 The
result of the study was published in a paper titled, “The Real Truth About Beauty – A Global Report.” The
results of the report suggested:
•
•
•
•
•
Only 2 per cent of women describe themselves as beautiful;
47 per cent of women rate their body weight as “too high”;
48 per cent of women agreed with the statement, “When I feel less beautiful, I feel worse about myself
in general;”
59 per cent of women strongly agree that: “physically attractive women are more valued by men;” and,
68 per cent of women strongly agree that: “the Media and advertising set an unrealistic standard of
beauty that most women can’t ever achieve.”
The findings strongly suggested that the definition of beauty was causing anxiety in women. In response,
Dove ventured where no North American brand had gone before and opened the conversation about what
beauty means to real women.
The Dove Campaign for Real Beauty was launched with the goal of widening the definition of beauty by
featuring advertisements with everyday women instead of models. Initially, the advertisements asked
questions for the public to answer on the Dove website such as “Wrinkled or Wonderful?.” 12 Unlike
traditional advertising, Dove gave consumers the ability to postulate their opinions, ultimately creating
engagement online.
The next phase was launched in June 2005, featuring advertisements of six “real” women with “real”
curves wearing only undergarments. 13 The underlying message was to demonstrate that all women are
beautiful and deserve to be fawned over like the stereotypical models seen on the majority of billboards. In
2007, Dove extended its message to demonstrate that beauty is not confined to specific age groups by
featuring elderly women as models in its advertisements.
In 2010, Dove set a bold new vision for the brand with the Dove Movement for Self-Esteem 14. This
initiative has grown into Dove’s Self-Esteem Fund and Self-Esteem Program, whereby Dove provides
younger women with the tools and resources to help celebrate real beauty, working with the support of the
community. Since the program’s establishment, over 8.5 million girls have been reached. Dove aims to
raise this number to 15 million by 2015.
10
www.dove.us/Social-Mission/campaign-for-real-beauty.aspx, accessed April 1, 2014.
www.clubofamsterdam.com/contentarticles/52%20Beauty/dove_white_paper_final.pdf, accessed March 3, 2014.
12
www.dove.us/social-mission/campaign-for-real-beauty.aspx, accessed March 1, 2014.
13
Ibid.
14
Ibid.
11
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With each additional stage of the campaign, it seems that Dove is committed to its goal of widening the
definition of beauty. Through its advertisements and community involvement, Dove has effectively shown
that runway models are not the only definition of beauty. Rather, real people with real bodies and real
flaws can be beautiful too.
DOVE REAL BEAUTY SKETCHES CAMPAIGN
On April 14, 2013, the brand launched the Dove Real Beauty Sketches video as the next phase of the Dove
Campaign for Real Beauty. The purpose of the short film was to document a compelling social experiment
that proves women are more beautiful than they think.
Produced by the ad agency Ogilvy & Mather, the video features a forensic sketch artist drawing portraits of
women based on their own self-perception and then based on that of a stranger whom the subject met the
previous day. Each of the subjects described themselves in a predominately negative way using phrases
like, “fat rounder face,” “protruding jaw,” and “big forehead.” In contrast, the strangers used
complimentary language such as “cute nose,” “nice eyes,” and “thin chin.” The result revealed two
different images. The stranger’s picture was much more stereotypically attractive and accurate as to how
the subjects actually appeared. 15
The video captures strong emotional reactions as the women discover they are overly critical of their own
appearances. While one participant examines her self-described portrait, she describes her face as “closed
off and fatter, sadder too,” while the stranger’s picture “looks more open, friendly and happy.” She went on
to explain, “We spend a lot of time as women analyzing and trying to fix the things that aren’t quite right,
and we should spend more times appreciating the things we do like.”
PUBLIC REACTION
Upon its release, the video generated a strong reaction and went viral within days. It has since garnered
more than 114 million views, making it the most viral ad video of all time.16 The video’s message of selflove resonated with a massive audience, as it was uploaded in 25 different languages and has been viewed
in more than 110 countries worldwide. 17
In May 2013, the film won the titanium Grand Prix, which is the Cannes Lions International Festival of
Creativity’s highest honour. 18 Praised by Katy Young from The Daily Telegraph, who called it “[Dove’s]
most thought-provoking film yet. Moving, eye opening and in some ways saddening, this is one campaign
that will make you think, and hopefully feel more beautiful.” 19
15
http://realbeautysketches.dove.ca, accessed March 1, 2014.
www.businessinsider.com/how-doves-real-beauty-sketches-became-the-most-viral-ad-video-of-all-time-2013-5, accessed
March 1, 2014.
17
Ibid.
18
http://adage.com/article/the-viral-video-chart/dove-s-real-beauty-sketches-viral-campaign-year/245608/, accessed March
2, 2014.
19
http://fashion.telegraph.co.uk/beauty/news-features/TMG10009657/Doves-new-beauty-campaign-confirms-that-we-aremore-beautiful-than-we-think.html, accessed March 2, 2014.
16
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OUTCOMES
The Dove Campaign for Real Beauty and Real Beauty Sketches video were successful. Dove was not only
able to attract the attention of many consumers, but it was also able to attract positive attention from
hundreds of media outlets too.
While Dove’s sales increased 6 per cent after the campaign was run, the increase eventually flattened.
However, the underlying goal of the campaign was not to increase sales, but rather to attract long-term
customers and generate stronger brand awareness by changing the definition of what the mass market
thought of beauty. Dove stated that “…on something like this that’s about long-term Dove love, I would be
much more interested in brand-health measures than short-term sales.” It is clear that Dove was content
with the outcome of the campaign: increasing women’s confidence worldwide. 20
Although Dove was satisfied with the positive attention it was receiving, there was also negative backlash
that could not be ignored. Dove was criticized for having a campaign about accepting real beauty while
also selling products intended to improve people’s appearances. Also, Dove was critiqued for the lack of
diversity in its Real Beauty Sketches video. The majority of participants were Caucasian with people of
colour only being shown on screen for a total of 10 seconds. It was argued that this representation
reinforced a narrow perception of beauty. 21 Third, Unilever is also the parent company of the Axe brand.
Axe is well known for its sexual advertisements with photo-shopped models, essentially epitomizing the
stereotype that Dove is attempting to change. 22 Unilever responded by stating that the products are in
different categories with different target markets, and therefore have two different advertising techniques.
NEXT STEPS
Three options were being considered for the next stage of Dove’s advertising efforts: the Selfie
documentary, the Mirror campaign or a complete overhaul of the Dove branding strategy.
The Selfie Documentary
One option of interest was the Selfie documentary. In this alternative, Dove would encourage motherdaughter teams to submit a “selfie” to a photo exhibit. Taking a selfie is a social media trend whereby
people take their own self-portrait and post it to various social media accounts.
Dove would challenge girls to take an honest selfie with no filters or edits, and have their mother do the
same. After the selfies were submitted to Dove, all participants would attend the exhibit where they could
view the selfies and write down positive traits about the photos on sticky notes. This process would then be
captured by video. An eight-minute short film and a more concise three-minute advertisement would be
produced, in a similar manner to the Dove Real Beauty Sketches video.
This alternative would be a natural fit with the current strategy of redefining true beauty. This option would
also resonate with the target market, as the act of taking selfies was prominent in current social media
20
www.therichest.com/business/the-controversy-behind-conflicting-messages-from-axe-and-dove/, accessed March 2,
2014.
21
http://feminspire.com/doves-real-beauty-sketches-provoke-real-controversy/, accessed April 1, 2014.
22
http://o.canada.com/life/doves-real-beauty-is-bogus/, accessed April 1, 2014.
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trends and the mother-daughter relationship was featured. Was the Selfie documentary too similar to past
projects, and would this create further backlash about Unilever’s inconsistent brands.
The Mirror Campaign
The second idea that was being considered was the Mirror campaign. This would be a promotional event
set up in various busy urban centres. During this event, there would be a large mirror with the words “Dove
knows you’re beautiful” printed across the top. Individuals or groups of people would be invited to take
photos in front of the mirror, and post the photos on social media outlets using the hash tag
#dovetruebeauty.
During this event, Dove samples would also be handed out to encourage participation. To complement
these organized events, several smaller reflective posters with the same text would be posted throughout
the city (e.g., on bus stops and subway cars). This would increase the campaign’s reach, since people
would also be able to engage in the conversation on their own time.
The promotional event might be a good idea since it was a different approach than the videos that Dove
had focused on in the past. The hash tags might also help create dialogue about the real beauty campaign,
also allowing Dove to engage with participants.
Overhaul Dove Strategy
It was still a question mark whether the strategy of emphasizing real beauty was still the right direction.
After all, the campaign was already in its tenth year of execution and perhaps consumers were tiring of the
message. Furthermore, since there had been a lot of criticism about the drastically varying messages
between the Dove and Axe campaigns, maybe it would be best to overhaul the strategy to decrease tension
between brands.
Despite trying to change beauty standards, perhaps using “real” people as models was not as successful in
selling products, and the brand should rely on a more conventional method similar to its competitors. If
Dove did decide to use a different message, how would they do it? And would they be criticized even more
for abandoning the values that had been at the core of its business model?
CONCLUSION
With the meeting fast approaching, Sterling must make a decision soon. Executing a successful campaign
would not only be crucial for the future of the Dove brand, but it would also benefit her career. Would it be
best to continue with the current real beauty strategy – and if so, through which medium – or should Dove
surprise the world with a completely new direction?”
This document is authorized for use only by Matthew Padovano in Foundations of Marketing SP23 MARK-20100 Sec 17&18 taught by Scott Griffith, University of Notre Dame from Dec 2022 to
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