Andi Hicks
Dove has a long-standing history of empowering ‘real’ women. There is a general consensus that
women are still not being represented enough in advertising – not just for consumers, but for the
women involved behind the scenes, and those chosen to be in front of the camera. The gender pay gap, misrepresentation, stereotyping, and the lack of a feminine presence in many adverts is a clear sign that brands need to pull the wool from their eyes.
Dove is one of these brands who consistently includes diversity in their adverts and campaigns, and they aim to make history by taking decisive action against this issue with “It’s On Us”.
With a phenomenal, mind-blowing campaign, Dove has promoted showcasing real women in
advertising. They selected women from various countries and had them audition in front of a camera
to show their authentic selves. They then challenged other brands to hire these women for their
adverts, and said that if they did, Dove would sponsor the appearance costs in any campaign. They
also made it their mission to partner with Getty Images and Girlgaze to upload 10 000 images of real, every day women.The brands who took on the challenge were Nedbank, Magnum, Krispy Kreme, and Cif.
Dove continues to encouraging diversity while the offer remains on the table for those willing to take a step into the future.
This campaign truly breaks through the stigma that women have to be a certain way to be
considered beautiful, and even, sadly, valuable. The celebration of every body type is one that we
stand behind.
Empowering women with a collaborative campaign is genius as Dove defies gender limitations again and again.
Watch it here.
