Doves Campaign for Real Beauty Case Study Essays

Doves Campaign for Real Beauty Case Study Essays Doves Campaign for Real Beauty Case Study Essay Doves Campaign for Real Beauty Case Study Essay TABLE of CONTENTS TOPICPAGE Executive Summary1 Problem Statement2 Situation Analysis: Objectives and Goals, Background, Market and External Environment Analysis2 Situation Analysis: Competition Analysis3 Situation Analysis: S. W. O. T. Analysis4 Situation Analysis: Segmentation Analysis5 Situation Analysis: Consumer Analysis6 Key Success Factors and Uncertainties6 Analysis of Alternative Solutions7 Recommendations9 Action Plan and Contingency Plan10 Bibliography11 Executive Summary Kerstin Dunleavy needs to determine how to maintain the Dove brand’s momentum. The key objectives and goals of the Dove product line is to increase market share, develop a strong marketing campaign, retain functional strengths of the brand, maintain the image of the â€Å"Real Beauty† campaign, and staying ahead of competition. Due to the highly competitive industry, marketing communication is critical to ensure campaign momentum. Kerstin must decide how to keep the drive of the initial campaign going. This will be achieved by introducing a new campaign. Through the use of internet, billboards, and media advertising, sincere communication will be achieved by the use of the concept copy thrust. An analysis of how communication messages will reach target market, what the message should communicate, public relation tactics, and sales promotion will take place in order to ensure the objectives and goals of the second phase of the Dove campaign is successful. Case Study: Dove’s Campaign for Real Beauty Problem Statement: Unilever’s Dove beauty product has proven successful of its relaunch and repositioning strategy. Despite this success, Kerstin Dunleavy needs to determine how to maintain the brand’s momentum while staying ahead of the competition and continuing to redefine beauty by maintaining a sense of integrity in society. Kerstin Dunleavy is required to use different advertising, publicity and sales promotion strategies in order to continue onto phase two of the Dove relaunch campaign. Situation Analysis: Objectives and Goals: Initially, Unilever’s objectives and goals of rebranding Dove’s image were to increase market share, develop a strong marketing campaign and retain the functional strengths of the brand. Because of the success from the societal marketing techniques in Dove’s initial campaign, these objectives have expanded to include maintaining the image of â€Å"Real Beauty†, staying ahead of competition and improving communication about Dove’s products in order to increase the sincerity of their advertisements. Background Analysis: Unilever was one of the largest consumer products companies in the world. The company had modified its branding policies in recent years. These modifications have emphasized brand names and a new public image. Unilever have four product lines that are organized into Cooking and eating, Beauty and Style, Healthy Living and Around the House. The Beauty and Style product line had developed Dove in the United States as a non-irritating skin cleaner. An independent study found Dove to be milder than 17 leading soaps and eventually they expanded its product line to included body wash, facial cleansers, moisturizers, deodorants and hair care products. Revenues from this product line reached $3 billion in 2005. Market and External Environmental Analysis: The beauty industry is highly competitive, with well-supported brands, big advertising budgets and a high degree of product similarity. Because of these factors, marketing and communications are crucial to Dove’s success. The development of a strong ethical position has catapulted Dove into a socially sound campaign. In the beauty industry, there is a misconstrued social image of what beauty is all about. This image has had negative effects on women all over the world. Low self-esteem, narrow definition of beauty, and obesity has been the result of advertising campaigns by beauty product companies. The Dove Research Study provided an opportunity for Dunleavy’s team to recreate the beauty image. This recreation has proven to increase Dove’s social responsibility to help women feel good about themselves again. Dove had developed self-confidence work shops for women and girls, which are in line with its objective of maintaining the â€Å"Real Beauty† image. Using women from different ethnic background is also a good strategy for Dove to continue. This strategy welcomes international women differences and Dunleavy’s team gained a competitive advantage by using women of all shapes, sizes and color. Dunleavy’s team used technology in innovative ways to launch the website campaignforrealbeauty. com, online vote casting, chat rooms, electronic billboards and mobile marketing events. The use of technology to market is becoming increasingly popular and Dunleavy should continue to be cutting edge in this category. The website chat rooms will give light to what women want in products and it will also develop a database to help accessing the target market preferred with mass advertising. Since the Unilever Company sells its products internationally, Dunleavy must be aware of many countries advertising legal requirements. This could pose a challenge from the Western Advertising campaign and the Eastern Advertising campaigns. The Internet campaigns with the new Canadian privacy laws may also have different legal restraints that will need to be carefully researched. For example, some chat forums and personal information may need to be protected. The beauty industry has continued to grow. In fact, even in a recession, the beauty industry has flourished and has not been impacted by a decline. With the advances of new technology and ew product awareness, the beauty product industry has been able to deliver products to its customers at reasonable prices. Competition Analysis: Because the beauty industry is highly competitive with similar products, competitors have turned their advertising emphasis from product-related variables to consumer-related variables. This means appealing to the consumer’s emotional psyche and situational influence has become increasingly important. Dove has stepped out of the box and went against its competitors in order to separate themselves and gain a competitive advantage in order to appeal to these emotional psyches. S. W. O. T Analysis: Strengths:  ·Established in 1957, Dove was found to be milder than 17 leading bars of soap.  ·Unilever is one of the largest consumer product companies in the world.  ·The Dove product is a pioneer of its type of product.  ·Unilever has devoted a big advertising budget to rebrand the Dove line and its product image.  ·The first phase of the relaunch of the brand has proven successful.  ·Unilever has quality products and is well positioned.  ·Dove was the first company to redefine the image of beauty; this gives them the competitive advantage. They are now seen as an industry expert with top-quality brands.  ·The creation of the Self-Esteem fund was established and other Not for Profit groups have flourished and women and girls are feeling better about themselves. Weaknesses:  ·Similar product qualities as competitor’s products.  ·Because Dove was the first to redefine beauty, all eyes are on them as a new industry leader.  ·Highly competitive pricing; therefore, leads to small profit margins Opportunities:  ·Redefining Beauty allowed the Dove campaign to distinguish themselves as a quality product and socially responsible company. The new image of what women perceive beauty to be is an opportunity for Dove to develop a strong ethical position and realign ethical and social strategies with their products.  ·Since the campaign, sales have continued to rise, but high product saturation suggests that the industry is in its maturity stage.  ·Technology has allowed the Dove Campaign to reach women internati onally.  ·Free Media coverage by means of journalists, TV shows (Oprah), high profiled debates, and open forums have given Dove free press on their products and their public image. Threats  ·Highly competitive environment. The relaunch campaign could fizzle away and competitors could imitate Dunleavy’s campaign.  ·Since there is a lot of free media coverage, Dove is unable to control this coverage and some negative publicity could be reflected on them. Segmentation Analysis: Segmentation Chart for Dove Beauty Products SegmentYoung WomenMid Aged WomenPrime Time Women Qualifying Dimensions Who? Girls and Women Age16 to 29Women Age 30-39Women Age 40 and older What? Moisturizing creams, tanning enhancer creams, acne creams, cleansers, SPF ProductsMoisturizing creams, cleaners, SPF productsPro-Age wrinkle creams, cleansers, Oils Why? Used to treat different skin problems at different stages of life. Reduce the acne and moisturizeUsed to treat different skin problems at different stages of life. Example reduce the appearance of the start of fine lines and wrinklesUsed to treat different skin problems at different stages of life. Example reduce appearance of wrinkles TrendsGrowingGrowingGrowing Determining dimensions Benefits soughtTo promote a habit of proper cleaning patterns and applying sunscreenTo promote a habit of applying sunscreen and how to prevent early appearance of wrinklesTo reduce the appearance of wrinkles and to properly moisturize Consumer Analysis: Dunleavy’s first phase of the campaign targeted 30 to 39 year old women. This target market is selected because these women have not yet tried skin-firming products. The broader segment is any woman who uses creams, soaps and lotions. In order to convey its message effectively to its target audience, the Dove Research Study revealed that all women want to be beautiful, but was feeling pressure from beauty product advertising to convey to an unrealistic image of beauty. Unilever used this research and insight to have women look at themselves and open a dialogue on what beauty is. Due to this newfound beauty image, consumers have reacted to the Dove product line by switching from competitor’s products. Consumers are becoming loyal and consumer retention is high. This increase in market share gives Dove an opportunity to retain this specific target market in the future. If consumer retention is achieved, then a new target market could be established for women 40 and older. At this age women would start to see the effects of aging and creams geared specifically to this new stage of life could be promoted. See Exhibit 1 for additional information. Key Success Factors and Uncertainties Key Success Factors. The main factors, which are vital to the success of the continued momentum of Dove’s campaign, need to include a sense of integrity in its repositioning strategy, and to complete a value-driven marketing communication strategy, in order to increase the sincerity of their advertisements. Maintaining the image as the â€Å"industry expert† and â€Å"top-quality† brand is also a key success factor. Key Uncertainties. The biggest uncertainty with the phase two of the relaunch of the Dove Campaign is how the competition will react to the campaign and if they follow suit, what Dove can do to stay a step ahead. Analysis of Alternatives Screening Criteria: Three decision criteria will be applied to each of the suggested alternatives to select the best fit for Dunleavy’s phase two of the relaunch campaign. Those criteria are:  ·the alternatives ability to market effectively to the desired target market.  ·the alternatives ability to effectively convey the sense of integrity and positive attributes of what â€Å"Real Beauty† should portray  ·the alternatives ability to remain an industry expert and product quality image Alternatives: Alternative #1 – Develop and present a strong presentation to continue the â€Å"Real Beauty† campaign Pros:  ·Presentation will convey the positive aspects of the current campaign by highlighting key factors of success. The campaign would continue to be used as a promotional tool, which focuses on the ability to reach a mass target market.  ·A strong social and ethical presence is created and brand loyalty and longevity is established. Cons:  ·Since the campaign has proven to be such a success, competitors may follow suite with a similar campaign and Dove may find themselves blending with them. This alternative is considered to be a viable alternative as it meets all of the decision criteria; however since competition is fierce in this industry, it is likely Dove’s competitors will follow suit and Dove would then lose their competitive advantage. Alternative #2 Develop and present a strong presentation to introduce a new campaign, with the continued use of internet, billboards and media advertising. Special attention will be given to the concept of copy thrust, in order to improve the sincerity and communication that is desired with the Dove products. Pros:  ·Presentation will introduce a new campaign, but focus on key objectives and goals sought by Unilever.  ·Keep ahead of the competition by being unpredictable in its marketing campaigns and also by being an industry leader.  ·Campaign could be directed at a new target market, which would increase market share  ·New campaign can use already established media and technology to promote its products and connect with its target market. Cons:  ·A new advertising campaign can be costly. There is a risk that the new campaign will not be successful and will be over shadowed by phase one of the â€Å"Real Beauty† campaign, that is, high expectations to live up too. This alternative is considered to be a viable alternative as it meets all of the decision criteria, it is considered to be a stronger alternative than alternative #1 because it allows Dove to remain an industry expert and stay a step ahead of its competitors. It also allows Dove to control the communication me ssages to its target customers. Evaluation of alternatives. Alternative 1 satisfies some of the evaluation criteria, by continuing to provide good branding image. It will also continue to enforce the new idea of the â€Å"Real Beauty† image. Alternative 2 is the best option, as it will allow Dove to step ahead and create a new target market. Because of the success of the first campaign, Dove is in the public eye and how messages are reaching the target audience is crucial to keeping the momentum alive. Analysis of Alternatives Decision Matrix To determine the best alternative a weighted decision matrix and rating scale is used. For rating the alternatives, 1 is a low rating and 5 is a high rating. Alternatives Evaluation criteriaWeight12 #1-Market effective the desired target market25%34 #2-Convey a sense of integrity25%34 #3–Retain strength of the Dove brand25%44 #4-Ability to remain an industry expert25%35 Weighted Total 100%. 751. 25 Alternative 2 offers the greatest match to the evaluation criteria as it received the highest weighted total in the decision matrix. Recommendation: While both of the alternatives meet the decision criteria and are considered viable alternatives, a choice between the alternatives should be made based on their order of effectiveness from the decision grid. Alternative two offers an introduction to a new target market, improved communication strategies and maintenance of the â€Å"top brand quality† and â€Å"industry expert† image. Dunleavy needs to follow specific advertising, publicity and sales promotion strategies to ensure the new campaign continues the required momentum that Unilever is looking for. The following action plan will explain how to achieve these desired objectives and goals. Action Plan: Short Term (0-6 months): Analysis of the how the communication messages will reach the target market. Dove’s promotion method should be to communicate brand and product information to its potential target market and influence their behaviour and attitudes. Dove has accomplished this successfully by means of mass selling. This method should be continued in the new campaign as it has the ability to reach a large audience at the same time, which proves to be cost effective. The new campaign should focus on institutional advertising, that is, continue to promote the company’s image and reputation. Since Dove is at the maturity stage and brand insistence is increasing, Dunleavy should promote the new product by reminder advertising. Since the new market of women over 40 is being targeted, the Dove Pro-Age product line should be the main product promoted. The development of new billboards, a new product website, and advertising campaigns are communication tools that need to occur. Analysis of copy thrust, that is, what the message should communicate. Dunleavy needs to listen to the research and use the AIDA model to help guide what messages should be on the Billboards, new website and advertisements. Attention – Continue to use real women in advertising and billboards. Holding Interest – the use of women over 40 is a must and their experiences and attitudes must be portrayed in order to set the tone of the ads desired. Arousing Desire – the desire to stay looking young, yet embracing age will be a key requirement in the ads as well. Obtaining Action – is the desired end result that the Dove product is looking for. By using direct-response ads to encourage consumers to research or encouraging Pro-Age instead of Anti-Age may be a technique to spark buying behaviour and it will keep in line with the original â€Å"real beauty† image. Increase Public Relations Continue to work with media to generate positive publicity of growing old gracefully and embracing the prime time stage of life. This type of advertising strategy has work well for dove in the past and it has many benefits. For example, it is free; highly credible with consumers, uninvasive, and the audience is more attentive. Dove will need to ensure the copy thrust of publicity is what it is intending to say. The one draw back of free publicity is that Dove will not be able to totally control what is said; however, they can steer the media into the right direction. Since the current image of Dove associated with media is favorable, this should be a relatively easy task. Sales Promotion A sales promotion should be used to generate and stimulate the new target market. This can be done by customers going onto the new product website, to access free products or coupons. Sales promotion will only last for a short time, but may entice customers to switch from a competitors brand, or try a new product. Longer Term: Once the communication strategies are in place, Dove should continue to support its Not for Profit groups and foundations. By showing this continued support, Dove is showing how committed they are to ensuring confidence in woman is important to them. This will increase brand insistence, consumer loyalty, and company image. Monitoring website traffic, forums, and comments should also continue. This will give Dove insight to creating new products, and learn the new trends in marketing. Contingency Plan: If the new campaign does not flourish the â€Å"Real Beauty† Campaign should continue and new ideas should be generated in order to stay ahead of competition. Dunleavy needs to be consistent in her communications to the public and each message should be carefully analyzed in order to portray the proper image. Bibliography 1. Perreault, William. , McCarthy, Jerome. , Meredith, Lindsay. , Ricker, Lynne. , (2007). Basic Marketing A Global-Managerial Approach 12th Edition. 2. Web site www. doveproage. com 3. Web site www. campaignforrealbeauty. com