MUMBAI: There has been some exemplary advertising from Dove from the house of Unilever for over a decade now. The brand has endeavored to define beauty in a meaningful manner through its communication strategies.

The latest is a digital film which goes on to say that “Beauty is just a state of mind”. It features a two week-long social experiment by New York Times bestselling author, psychologist and body image expert, Dr Ann Kearney-Cooke, inviting women to wear a custom-made ‘beauty patch’ to help them feel more beautiful. The ladies give personal accounts of how the patch variously made them feel ‘more confident’, ‘refreshed’ and so on. At the end of the experiment, the patch is revealed to contain nothing, proving that beauty is more than just skin deep. Not surprisingly, the film which is running on YouTube garnered more than 15 million views within one week.

Not just the digital film but most of Dove’s advertising carries significant marketing lessons for other beauty brands. Here’s looking at some of them…

Stories win hearts

Advertising with a strong storyline always works. Consumers connect with a product line if it is endorsed by people with a story. Dove has successfully taken care of this aspect locally and globally.

Be constant

For people to remember advertising, it is essential for brands to be consistent in the way they project their ideas through communication. Dove over the past few campaigns has gone digital and this has helped them get greater reach.

Have a clear line of thought

Projecting an idea sharply helps. One of the reasons why Dove pops up in people’s minds is that it almost always supports a strong line of thought.

Take the video route

In the age of social media, creating visual campaigns is a plus. More importantly, videos can be shared and help measure feedback instantly. Tracking the success of the campaign becomes that much easier, and Dove seems to have got that right!

Use subtle marketing plug-ins

While rolling out digital films, brands need to go subtle on plug-ins. Two things that work best on digital platforms are curiosity and a good amount of hype. Dove has got just the right amount of both.