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She’s right here behind the glass, and you’re gonna like her ’cause she’s got class

November 2, 2009 | Advertising,BlogHer,Ethics,Parenting

“Your Dove purchase helps build self-esteem,” says the Dove ad on BlogHer‘s site.

No, it doesn’t.

“My Dove purchase” helps build Dove’s profits. Period. Dove (or its parent company, multinational corporation Unilever) doesn’t care about little girls. It’s a corporation. It’s incapable of having feelings. Its sole purpose is to earn a profit.

Have you seen Unilever’s Bom Chicka Wah Wahs and V.I.X.E.N.S. (Very Interactive Xtremely Entertaining Naughty Supermodels)?

No matter what else I see from Unilever, I can’t get the Axe women out of my head. Unilever portrays women like that on one hand and professes to care about girls’ self-esteem on the other. It’s hypocritical and impossible to take seriously.

“Cause” marketing works profitable wonders for corporations. For example, Campbell’s Soup turns its cans pink “for breast cancer awareness” in October, doubling its sales. While it earns millions from its pink cans, it sends a mere $250,000 to the Susan G. Komen for the Cure.

Unilever earns millions through its Dove self-esteem “cause” marketing campaign. It sends $500,000 to an IRS-qualified non-profit organization, and it gets to claim that amount and all associated costs as deductible advertising expenses.

Instead of entering a UPC code to get Dove to send $1 to Girl Scouts, Boys & Girls Clubs or Girls Inc., if 500,000 people (Dove’s donation limit is $500,000, total) each sent a $5 check directly to each of the organizations, that would add up to $2.5 million for each, a total of $7.5 million — way more than Unilever/Dove would ever claim as a tax writeoff “donate.”

As much as I try to see good in a “positive message” that tells girls they’re beautiful, I can’t help but consider the source. I can’t erase the Axe women from my brain.

That freshly scrubbed, apple-cheeked beautiful redhead in the “viral” video about the beauty industry?

This one.

In five or 10 years, Unilever wouldn’t even blink. It would offer her money to don spiked heels and lingerie to gyrate her excessively thin body on screen … to sell deodorant.

Tell me I’m wrong.

Related posts
Dove’s “real beauty”
Unilever’s “research”

Posted by Becky @ 6:00 am  

5 Responses to “She’s right here behind the glass, and you’re gonna like her ’cause she’s got class”

  1. Corina Says:

    I had NEVER seen that video for the axe girls. Now I am PISSED. Profit driven is right. Hypocritical is right. What a load of crap they are selling.

    My husband has shown my daughter the Dove video on the photoshopping the photographs. I think the their Dove beauty/self-esteem videos are a good resource. Has it ever made me buy Dove? No. I know money is better going directly to the organizations. And do I think that you are right with your final assessment? Unfortunately yes…. and that is sad.

  2. magpie Says:

    Sing it!!

  3. Mocha Dad Says:

    Companies will do whatever it takes to make money. People don’t connect the dots to the major corporations that manage several brands.

  4. Becky Says:

    I know, Mocha Dad. I just did.

  5. Suebob Says:

    Tell it, sister.

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