dove: evolution of a brand

tick-box campaign (2004)

tick-box campaign (2004)
tick-box campaign (2004)
firming campaign (2005)
shorttermgrade:a. theseadsarerealattentiongetterseveryone'stalkingaboutthem.on
thatlevel,they'reasmashingsuccess.also,dovenowownsthe"friendoftheeverywoman"
angle.smartmoveontheirparttospotthisopennicheandgrabit.finally,ifi cangetsappyfor
amoment,itis sortofnicetoseetheunperfect havetheirdayinthesun.

overallgrade:d. sadly,thisisnotawinningplayforthelonghaul.ifdovekeepsrunningadslike
this,womenwillgetboredwiththefeelgood,politicallycorrectmessage.eventually(though
perhapsonlysubconsciously),they'llcometothinkofdoveasthebrandforfatgirls.talkabout
"realbeauty"allyouwantonceyou'rethebrandforfatgirls,you'retoast.
 the next chapter: the thank you for making a
difference campaign

engaging bloggers in an effort to get the word out

campaign objective: reach 5mm girls with self-esteem programming by 2010

post a (specific) message about the campaign and receive products and programming

readers are encouraged to re-post and to visit the facebook campaign page and post a
video of their daughter

important decisions regarding blogger outreach campaign:

theyre paying bloggers
bloggers are disclosing

q: how do you explain this sequence? where does it fit vis--vis evolution, onslaught,
etc.?
 the dove case raises a number of important (and
very much interrelated) themes
branding
what is a brand?
what is brand equity?
what is the relationship between a brand and marketing strategy?
the co-creation of brand meaning

cause marketing or cause-related marketing

taking a point of view
does it work?

promotion policy
generally
viral marketing
content marketing

social media and social networks

 in our choice of tactics, the firm must balance
(shorter-term) tactical objectives and (longer-term)
branding objectives

product

segment target place

position differentiate promotion

sales

price

strategy:stp actions:the4ps
 brands are an (ongoing) outcome of all of our
marketing actions
positioning lives in our powerpoint decks while brands live in the minds of
consumers

brands help consumers in many ways:

serving as places for customers to store all kinds of things
associations
experiences
perceptions of quality and value
 brand matters

source:prenticehall,asrepresentedinn.mizik,branding:functionalandpsychologicalvalue,mit15.810,lecture9
 brands are an (ongoing) outcome of all of our
marketing actions
positioning lives in our powerpoint decks while brands live in the minds of
consumers

brands help consumers in many ways:

serving as places for customers to store all kinds of things
associations
experiences
perceptions of quality and value

providing opportunities to associate with bigger ideas/concepts and to communicate

these associations

acting as commitments (posted bonds) and thus

a signal of quality
do we trust branded items more than generic?

for all of these reasons, brands are often tremendously

valuable to firms as well
 the brand equity pyramid

behavioralandattitudinal
loyalty,senseofcommunity,
activeengagement
resonance

qualityperceptions, emotionalresponses,social
credibility,consideration judgments feelings
concerns

whatdoesitdo?functional, associations,userprofile,
experientialbenefits performance imagery history,personality

awareness whocreates
this?

kevin lanekeller (2008)

 brand meaning co-creation
brands have far more opportunities today to make meaning

however, consumers are no longer passive recipients of this meaning (if they ever
were)

consumers today have many options to:

react to the firms attempts to make meaning
create (and communicate) meanings of their own

thus, more than ever, the firms marketing strategy must be

open & honest
consistent
authentic

this has important implications for brand management: the day of the
conglomerate with many (and perhaps conflicting) brand meanings may be over
 to reiterate

brand positioning
cause marketing: does it work?
the marketing impact of corporate
social responsibility (csr) activities
ref.: doing better at doing good
battacharya and sen (2001)
 what is csr?
the companys status and activities with respect to its perceived societal
obligations (brown and dacin)

to do business in ways that honor ethical values and respect people, communities
and the natural environment
the triple bottom line = people, planet, profit

six categories
community support
diversity
employee support
environment
non-u.s. operations
product
 key question: does it work?
for the firm?

upstream (internal) outcomes

awareness: in general, very low (separate study: high brand awareness required)
attribution: why are they doing this? less of a problem when theres a (a) firm/cause fit,
(b) the company has a good reputation and (c) the firm is proactive in its csr activities
attitude: positive link (amplified by fit); stronger for consumers with attachment to
cause
attachment/resonance: positive link (enhances consumers self esteem)

downstream outcomes
purchase: only when (a) customer supports cause, (b) high fit, (c) product is good and
(d) no price premium
price elasticity: only when cause is central to the customer
loyalty: yes, when customer supports cause
wom: stronger than purchase effect
resilience: csr may help a firm build a reservoir of goodwill

doingbetteratdoinggood,battacharya andsen,cmr,2004
 key question: does it work?
for the cause?
increased awareness/recall
more-favorable attitudes when a well-regarded firm supports it
increased involvement under some conditions
willingness to donate money is lower (why?)

for the consumer?

improved sense of well-being when firms they support also support their causes
potential for change in behavior when their firms support a cause
 bottom lines
firms need to increase awareness levels of their efforts
though attribution concerns need to be acknowledged

absolutely critical that the csr efforts fit with the firms product, positioning, and
overall marketing strategy

similarly, the efforts need to be (or will have a bigger marketing impact when the
issue is) important to the firms target segment

bigger impact on upstream outcomes than downstream (e.g., while consumers

think better of the company, they do not appear willing to pay a (direct) price
premium

the response to csr efforts is asymmetric: not doing good may hurt the firm more
than doing good may help!
this has important implications on measurement
 cause marketing
the campaign for real beauty works not just because of its trendability factor. it works
because the message--that all women are beautiful--is authentic to the brand. a lot of
brand managers tell us, 'we want to have the next dove campaign.' we tell them you
have to find what your real essence is and be true to your brand. you have to have a
clean voice, one that your brand has the authority and right to speak in.

stacie bright, dove

marketingdaily,cpg marketeroftheyear:unilevers dove,january 2,2007

beauty sketches (2013)

parody
beauty patch (2014)
 final thoughts
on one hand, social media allow for the anthropomorphization of the firm/brand making
possible unprecedented interaction and trust

it is critical to acknowledge, however, that, as with interpersonal relationships, in the

world of social media, authenticity and consistency are required and enforced

this extends far beyond just firm messages but includes as well product quality and
design
theory: some believe it is becoming more and more difficult to go to market with inferior
products

my (ironic) observation: social media are increasingly bringing discipline to (and are,
thus, improving) the traditional firm-to-consumer communications that they were, in
part, predicted to circumvent

finally, essential to hold true to the media-independent communication and strategic

objectives: what are you trying to communicate and to whom!