Hearing about the Dove Campaign for Real Beauty reassures me. It’s comforting to know that while the media is busy producing misleading messages, there are some like the Dove Campaign that make an effort to correct people’s view of what they see in the media and other campaigns, such as Axe.
The Axe Effect commercial makes me both laugh and roll my eyes. There’s a lot of sexism with this campaign – it makes women come across as shallow, desperate animals that will travel great lengths for a guy who (supposedly) smells good. It annoys me how they show women treating a guy like he’s a god; for doing nothing but dumping a bottle of Axe on himself. As if the Axe is all that matters.
Seeing this commercial makes me wonder about the producers: did they purposely try to make it so tremendously lame that it’s funny and would appeal to viewers, or did they honestly think some people would be naive enough to believe this and buy the product? When I take target audiences into consideration, I realize that perhaps this is who the campaign is aiming for –- naive people, specifically young children, who would believe anything they see. It’s a sinister way of marketing their products, but hey, it’s business. It is only expected, unfortunately.
Before I read the original blog post, I had no idea Dove and Axe were under the same company. When I learned they were, whoosh. There went my admiration and respect for Dove’s efforts in their campaign. Well, I suppose not all of it. It’s still nice knowing Dove is trying to raise self esteem and encourage real beauty, but once I knew the background information (that they were both under Unilever), I began to question Dove’s concern. Is their view of real beauty really genuine, or is it just another marketing scheme?
The parent company, in this case, Unilever, has full responsibility in ensuring that all their sectors have the same views. It’s completely hypocritical to say, “If you love your natural beauty, others will too. But in order for other people to love you entirely, you need a strong, overpowering smell. Buy Axe.”
In the past, I was happy buying a Dove product knowing it contributed to the Self Esteem Fund. Now, I’m more reluctant. Unilever is so hypocritical that for all I know, my contribution could be intended more for marketing or advertising than the actual charity.
The Axe Effect commercial makes me both laugh and roll my eyes. There’s a lot of sexism with this campaign – it makes women come across as shallow, desperate animals that will travel great lengths for a guy who (supposedly) smells good. It annoys me how they show women treating a guy like he’s a god; for doing nothing but dumping a bottle of Axe on himself. As if the Axe is all that matters.
Seeing this commercial makes me wonder about the producers: did they purposely try to make it so tremendously lame that it’s funny and would appeal to viewers, or did they honestly think some people would be naive enough to believe this and buy the product? When I take target audiences into consideration, I realize that perhaps this is who the campaign is aiming for –- naive people, specifically young children, who would believe anything they see. It’s a sinister way of marketing their products, but hey, it’s business. It is only expected, unfortunately.
Before I read the original blog post, I had no idea Dove and Axe were under the same company. When I learned they were, whoosh. There went my admiration and respect for Dove’s efforts in their campaign. Well, I suppose not all of it. It’s still nice knowing Dove is trying to raise self esteem and encourage real beauty, but once I knew the background information (that they were both under Unilever), I began to question Dove’s concern. Is their view of real beauty really genuine, or is it just another marketing scheme?
The parent company, in this case, Unilever, has full responsibility in ensuring that all their sectors have the same views. It’s completely hypocritical to say, “If you love your natural beauty, others will too. But in order for other people to love you entirely, you need a strong, overpowering smell. Buy Axe.”
In the past, I was happy buying a Dove product knowing it contributed to the Self Esteem Fund. Now, I’m more reluctant. Unilever is so hypocritical that for all I know, my contribution could be intended more for marketing or advertising than the actual charity.
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