Dove’s campaign for real beauty Essay

Introduction and Problem StatementUnilever, with yearbook revenues of approximately $50 billion and a staff of 250,000, ranks among the worlds largest companies in consumer ingatherings. One of its most famous labels is the personal cargon inciter descend. In an attempt to reposition the mug and rid it from its conservative image, in 2004, dove launched its radically untried Campaign for Real Beauty. In-ho use up consumer look had revealed major insecurities among women concerning their physical appearance. Hardly any female considered herself to keep up with the standards depicted in regular steady ad.Based on these findings, plunge redefined sweetheart in a way that had been ignored by other(a) players before. Targeting women aged 30 to 39, the turn ons purpose was to show true(a) female kayo, reflected in divergent shapes, sizes and ages. The midpoint message was No models scarcely firm curves. The break away received enormous attention sales of genus Colum ba-branded products to a greater extent or less quadrupled and market sh be increased signifi sesstly in various core markets. (for further information please refer to 5.1).Nevertheless, after this great mastery and image conjure up, come downs major brand management take exception for the upcoming year is how to continue the promotional campaign.The problem can so be formulated a followsWhat should fall do to prep be for the re-launch of plunge spectator products to the next level and winnerfully keeping this competitive profit for world(a) use over condemnation? alternates1. substitute A take up the benefits of brand aw benessOne possibility for Dove is to seize the fortune of high brand awareness to extend the brand and enter upstart aspire markets man largely continuing with the womens marketing mix. A saucer care terse letter for middle-aged men would be introduced, as this segment is non well explored by competitors yet and, age-wise, goes in line with the certain female target. Products would connect the moisturizing and mild benefit with attri barelyes like ready and self confident. Regarding advertisement, this would be communicated using normal, average males and then hang-up with the Real Beauty paradigm. However, it is assumed that men are less prone to be self-conscious about their looks. hence, perceptions would be assessed in further studies and advertizing messages concentrateed on the issues regarded as most critical.2. Alternative B concern to evolveWith the on-going success of the campaign, it might also be logical not to introduce significant veers. The idea would thus be to apparently extend the brand dialogue and promotion for 2 aspects To give consumers roughly forward-looking insights and keep them excited, advertisements would not however depict happy, normal women. They would straightaway also include storytelling, showing how average womens self-confidence helps them in different situation s (such as job interviews or dates). Additionally, Dove products would be feature more(prenominal) prominently in these advertisements. Their connection to Real Beauty and vanity would be communicated more distinctly by showing the women use Dove products prior to making a self-assured down.3. Alternative C Its all in the productSeeing how the prevalent image in the lulu indus filtrate is even-tempered one of perfection, Dove might be well-advised to provide for the possibility that identifying with imperfect women loses its appeal to the customer base. Without reversive to classic yellowish pink models, the brand could and so decide on detaching the products from re master(prenominal)s images altogether. The self-esteem topic would lock up be key, but the main localise lies on the product. For example, women would no longer be shown in campaigns, but merely come together-ups of skin and the products packaging as well as ingredients themselves.Issues4. How easy is it for competitors to pursue the strategy? With Doves focus on Real beauty touching such great success, it is likely for competitors to try and get their component of the cake by imitating Doves strategy. When utilizing a more product-focused strategy, communication will opti except be on brand attributes than on the brand image that has successfully been tryed. As attributes are easier to copy and, consequently, convey, preference C runs at a respectively higher risk of exposure of being imitated. For secondary A, as on that point will be a new target group to win over, competition is likely to be dangerous from beauty brands that already enjoy a high standing among the relevant consumers (e.g. Gillette). Alternative B builds the most on the current communication strategy, where Dove is well-established and simply needs to keep consumers interested in order to reap its first-mover benefits.5. In how far are current brand associations held up?As Doves Real Beauty campaign was exclusively focused on women, it might be hard to stretch the brand associations to fit the new consumer segment targeted by the portfolio extension (i.e. men). As a solution, prospective customers could experience difficulty identifying with the brand, whereas current customers could perceive brand values as near diluted by the new attributes. Alternative B will clearly remain the most consistent with the current image alternative C, on the other hand, runs at a risk of not diluting but rather reducing the brand image by taking away its humane dimension. On top of this goes the fact that it is harder to convey brand values when they are not placed in a reference frame (e.g. that of curving women enjoying themselves). piece of music the core message and self-esteem concern will still be pursued, losing the edge of directly opposing competitive clich images might revile the brands credibility.6. Will consumers in the long run balk the attraction of elevatedized advertis ing? Although the move away from idealized models has brought Dove high brand awareness and appealed to many women, it is questionable whether consumers will not fall stake into their learned habits of trying to become more perfect. The consequence would be that they are again attracted by competitors. As explained above, alternative C would or so prepare for that backward shift. Alternative A, with going into a new target, still has some live for maneuver to introduce slight changes back towards higher idealization. Alternative B, however, is completely tied to alternative beauty models and thus most exposed to the risk of backward-changing consumer preferences.ConclusionThe brand management brass instruments a constrained budget, which makes conducting a combination of these alternatives unfeasible, at least in the short and medium run. The task is hence to select the one most promise alternative.Addressing the issue of delaying a unique berth first, it is clear that al ternative C provides the least protection against copycat behavior of competitors as it even part abandons the original concept and thus leaves more space for the rivals to also henchman their brands with attributes such as genuineness or sincerity. Similarly, alternative A opens a window for imitation even though it is, arguably, not likely to happen, as the market for mens personal care is not as profitable as to allow rivals to simply establish themselves as pursuit in this way. Under alternative B, Dove further elabo order on its positioning which is deeply ingrained in the minds of customers, thus rendering imitation by competitors especially hard and therefore unlikely.As already mentioned, the question of compatibility of the current brand with mens mindset is questionable. Even though, option A does not hand over to necessarily alienate the current target group, provided the advertising message is adapted seamlessly and promotes the idea that real beauty comes regardless of trip out as it comes regardless of age, ethnicity or shape. Alternative B stays close to the message and does not pose a threat in this regard. Alternative C, however, moves away from the concept, producing incongruity within the brand image. This fact, together with the previous issue, makes alternative C seriously undermine the strategy that Dove has been by-line and we hence drop it from subsequent discussion.Regarding the risk that people regress to their old habits of following an idealized concept of beauty, alternative B fares better than alternative A. While not reverting to the standard approach to fashion advertising, the storytelling technique expands the consumers judgement of the issues and leads them to process the brands benefits more consciously. This should, in turn, inhibit the customers object towards idealized images in advertising. In this regard, Dove might be worsened off under alternative A, as a positioning for two partly distinct target groups c an reduce the degree to which all(prenominal) of them associates themselves with the brand.Also alternative B is a mere evolution of the current campaign. From an economic point of view, the fact that the target segment remains the equal, the early returns are severely limited. Albeit option A is associated with a higher risk, it has to be concluded that a successful implementation would also enable Dove to unlock a whole new market, making this choice more appealing.The final decision between the two options is difficult. While being somewhat weaker on the side of economic potential, alternative B ultimately outperforms alternative A in regard to other issues. Higher revenues can still be made by expanding geographically, while the image needs to be adapted to fully resonate with the customers. Yet, these alternatives are mutually exclusive only to the extent of the disposable funds. Alternative A might hence actually well be the logical extension of Doves efforts and the intr insic next step for a phase 3 of its brand relaunch.Additionally, some(prenominal) other factors should be taken into account, such as a doable conflict with other Unilever brands, such as Axe/Lynx. These inconsistencies should be countered with a clear positioning in non-overlapping segments and appropriate PR measures. Also the global dimension of the decision should be kept in mind and the campaign continuously adapted to local circumstances in order to expose a high level of fidelity, which is completely crucial if the brand is to sustain its image. Provided Dove manages to avoid pitfalls as these, the brand is best off by evolving its brand communication to further curb female insecurities about themselves while strengthening the link between the image the brand evokes and the products. (For further expound pleas refer to 5).Appendix7. The fraternity and campaignDove was originally real in the United States as a non-irritating skin cleaner for pre-treatment use on burns a nd wounds during WWII. Nowadays, Dove products are available in more than 35 countries, generating revenues of $3 billion. The Dove product line includes body washes, beauty bars, deodorants, hair and facial care products and lotions. Before Dove set up the marketing strategy, they wanted to understand the relationship of women to beauty, without a special focus on any beauty care products. Therefore the company supercharged a global research firm, StrategyOne to conduct a research study. Hence, StrategyOne surveyed 3,200 women from around the world. The result of the survey showed a wide disparity between the ideal of beauty pictured in the media and the perception by women themselves. Based on this report, the company redefined beauty in a way that all competitors cast off ignored. To launch a new campaign Dove used a new and unconventional ideal of beauty, thus they differ significantly from their main competitors.To strengthen the emotional ties to Doves target group, the bran d and not the single products should be in the foreground. The campaign was launched to increase also revenues and to re-brand Dove. Therefore the advertising budget approximately accounted for $ 27 million in atomic number 63 alone. The Campaign for Real Beauty began in September 2004, when a website for beauty debates was established. The main target group was 30- to 30-year-old women who could identify with the new brand explosive charge statement to make more women find out beautiful every day, by widening todays stereotypical view of beauty and stir women to take great care of themselves. To transmit the core message Doves ads contained no models, but firm curves.The promotion also showed a group of women of different ages, shapes and racial backgrounds that were just having a good time in bras and knickers. Therefore the models were chosen in a street stamp to achieve a great acceptance among the observers. Traditional television and cartridge holder advertising was suppo rted by outdoor ads, such as billboards, posters and signs. The results were dramatic, because the advertisement gained a massive media coverage. The brand had a sophisticated image shift and is now described by adjectives like open, active and self-confident. The turnaround was really striking. 12. expletive AnalysispicFigure 7 PEST AnalysisPolitical factorsAs Unilever and therefore also Dove are globally acting brands, there are several political and court-ordered factors that could influence the performance of the company. For example the political stability in different countries is not as stable as in Europe. Therefore a quick change in laws can occur, like the employment laws, health and safety laws, consumer laws etc. It is also possible that new import tariffs are introduced. Hence, regarding those changes the costs for Dove could increase and the demand for the products could be reduced. frugal factorsEconomic factors can have major impact on business and in sto re(predicate) decisions. Those factors include an economic downturn, volatile exchange rates and inflation rates in the operating countries. It is possible that Dove has to increase prices due to different circumstances like increased ingredients price and therefore the demand for the products could decrease. friendly factorsSocial factors as lifestyle and cultural values vary from realm to region. As Dove launched the unique campaign they have to be certain that they adapt it to the different cultural environments and lifestyles around the globe. merely also brands have a great impact on peoples lifestyle and can change it.Technological factorsTechnology is also necessary for Doves success and competitive advantage. This includes for example research and development activities and information technologies (with their interactive website). To adjudge the competitive advantage being a moisturizing product, Dove has to rely on the technological progress and has to be a first mover .3. Porters five forcespicFigure 8 Porters five forces little terror of new entrantsAs Dove had great success with their real beauty campaign there is a potential risk for new entrants. except Dove is one of the best brands over the world and competitors have to face that. They have an outstanding marketing strategy and high quality products. But barriers to enter the market are low threat of new entrants can therefore be rated as medium.Bargaining power of suppliersDove is a sub-brand of Unilever that as lots of suppliers over the world. Therefore Unilever as the parent company has power to influence the suppliers and switch them good. So Dove has also a sort of pressure on their suppliers and can cut down prices and establish tight relationships with suppliers. Hence, bargaining power of suppliers is low.Bargaining power of vendeesAs there are many competitors within the industry, Doves customers can slowly switch to another label. But the Dove brand stands for high-quality pr oducts and promotes real beauty in their campaigns so they rely on hard-core consumers. However, you cannot only institutionalise in the sustainability of the campaign in the long run, the bargaining power of buyer has to be rated high.Competitive rivalry within the industryThe main competitors of Unilever are Procter & Gamble and Colgate-Palmolive, because their sub-brands are quite similar to Dove. In the beauty industry there is verly little product differentiation and similar product offerings, as well as little trade secrets. This leaves little room for competitive advantage, but Dove has always remained at number one, because of their loyal consumers and their moisturizing skin quality products. However, it is easily to switch to other high-end products and also to surreptitious label brands, therefore competitive rivalry is high in the operated industry. flagellum of substitute productsThere is a treat of replacing Dove products by competitors products, but people will always need toiletries and therefore cannot easily substitute the line. They can only switch within the existing industry, but as people love Dove and their campaign there is just medium threat of its replacement with present products.9. Alternative/Issue weightinessIssues Alternative A Alternative B Alternative C scourge ofimitation 50 % - + - Brand concurrence 30 % + - Ideals 20 % - + carry over 2 Alternative/Issue WeightAs you can learn from the alternative/issue weight table above, the threat of imitation is the most serious one. As only alternative B is to be forearmed against this risk it is the most desirable one. Also in line with brand consistency alternative B scores highest, followed by alternative A that would try to win over a new target group, but with the same values. Alternative C is the most promising one if it comes to societys ideals. As markers want to sell hope, this alternative would fight against the societys upcoming doubts about average, normal mod els. All in all, you can see that alternative B is due to our table the most promising one.References Hips feel good Doves campaign for real beauty, Richard Ivey School of Business, northeasterly University, College of Business Administration, Canada, 2009 1 Adapted from Hips feel good Doves campaign for real beauty, Richard Ivey School of Business, 2009, p. 3ffFigure 1 Unilever logo, ancestry http//www.greenerpackage.com/certifications/unilever_adopts_paper-sourcing_policy_meet_sustainability_goalsFigure 2 Dove logo, source http//quizbazaar.blogspot.co.at/2010/07/animal-logos-trivia-series-3.html,Figure 3 Hips feel good, source http//greatness-with-gumption.blogspot.co.at/2010/10/beauty-in-bottle-why-dove-can-kiss-my.htmlFigure 4 The campaign, source http//www.adverbox.com/ads/dove/Figure 6 The campaign, source http//www.adverbox.com/ads/dove/Figure 5 The campaign, source http//www.adverbox.com/ads/dove/