10 years ago Dove set out to redefine what beauty is after a discovery that only 2% of women around the world believed they were beautiful.
Unbelievable…only 2%… but now a decade later, “Dove has uncovered through a major study in the US that 62% of women feel they are responsible for influencing their own definition of beauty. Women believe the definition of beauty has evolved to become more inclusive and have taken on the role of defining the standard for themselves and each other.”
Dove’s powerful real-women ad campaigns have garnered more social media chatter than Kim Kardashian’s back side and have helped to make huge advances in the way women see themselves.
You probably remember the powerful viral ad campaign last year in which an FBI-trained forensic sketch artist drew a woman as she described herself, and then drew her as a total stranger described her, resulting in dramatic differences.
For this year’s campaign Dove conducted research which revealed 63% of women believe social media is influencing today’s definition of beauty more than print media, film and music.
To mark the 10th Anniversary of the ‘Campaign for Real Beauty’ Dove wanted to address this growing social media influence so they partnered with Sundance Institute and Academy Award-winning filmmaker Cynthia Wade on a 7-minute documentary short film called, “Selfie” where they interview a series of teenagers and their mothers about their insecurities.
“Selfie focuses on a social media challenge, #BeautyIs, in which the film’s participants explore their vulnerable self-images and take selfies which prominently feature what they perceive as their personal physical flaws. With the help of a professional photographer, the girls build the courage to create art by embracing their least desirable feature thus expanding their definition of what beauty is. Exhibiting these images in a #BeautyIs selfie photo gallery, the young women share their newly discovered beauty with women of all ages in their community.”
At the selfie gallery show attendees leave positive post-it messages on each photo stating what they think makes each girl so beautiful.
Dove encourages you to pick up your phone and take an honest selfie. No filter, no edits.
What? No filter! I know you are freaking out! I just had a conversation last week with a group of friends about how we are all starting to believe we actually look the way we do in our Instagram photos- after 2 filters, a little cropping and blurred diffusion across our face.
Dove wants to celebrate the REAL you. The non-filtered you and how beautiful you are!
Take a selfie.. a real selfie and give it the hashtag #BeautyIs then spread the word on #BeautyIs and leave some positive messages on other’s selfie’s like “your hair is stunning” or “you are absolutely fabulous”. I promise it will bring a smile to someone’s day!
Maybe you’ll even get an empowering note from Dove like I did.
What does beauty mean to you?