Flab or Fab?: Blog #3 Advertising Image from a Magazine

For my third blog entry I decided to analyze an advertising campaign, which not only appears in magazines, but anywhere from television commercials to billboards and almost every advertising media in between. This series of advertisements is the Dove skincare ‘Campaign for Real Beauty.’

“At Dove, we want to help free ourselves and the next generation from beauty stereotypes. It’s the message that’s at the heart of our Campaign for Real Beauty and Self-Esteem fund, and it’s why we continue to create thought-provoking ads, confidence building programs and messages that embrace all definitions of beauty.” (http://www.dove.us/#/cfrb/)

This is the major message behind Dove’s innovative campaign, which began in 2004. The advertisements feature plus-sized women with ‘real world’ features and bodies; this is what makes them so initially striking. If these ads featured stunning, slender and possibly anorexic models, the effect and entire campaign would be lost. People wouldn’t even give the ads a second thought. Dove’s campaign is undoubtedly an original idea and some might even consider it a revolution in advertising. The message being portrayed is a positive one and who’s to deny fuller bodied girls their self-esteem? The thing is with such a fresh, unfamiliar and seemingly ingenious advertising campaign, one must consider the flaws involved.

The major question in my mind is: ‘will this idea be played out?’ Will people begin to tire of this cutesy, feel good campaign? The advertisements already seem out of place in regards to all of the other beauty product ads out there. This gives them an edge now, but the general public might get bored of seeing flabby, big-bottomed women on anything from bus stops to billboards. People may even begin to associate Dove products with bland, plus-sized women. Other beauty products have achieved success in the past because of the gorgeous women that represent the brand in their advertisements.  Although the Dove campaign is inventive and may continue to draw success, it seems as though it may play itself out in years to come. I suppose only time will tell.