Consumer Behavior Change

Dove Real Beauty Campaign ‘Searching’ for Teen Self-Esteem in Australia

Unilever Australia’s latest iteration of the Dove Campaign for Real Beauty focuses on the internet search terms used by young girls, which highlight the prevalence of negative body image and eating disorders.

By Sustainable Brands | Published 9 years ago | About a 2 minute read

Unilever Australia’s latest iteration of the Dove Campaign for Real Beauty focuses on the internet search terms used by young girls, which highlight the prevalence of negative body image and eating disorders. The campaign, titled “Searching,” aims to reach 100,000 more young people through the Dove Self-Esteem Project in partnership with Australian grocer Coles and the Butterfly Foundation.

The Butterfly Foundation engages young people in schools and community organizations through interactive workshops and other education services to help boost body confidence and provide support for Australians experiencing eating disorders. Dove Self-Esteem workshops in schools have already reached over 500,000 Australian youth. While the “Searching” campaign speaks to girls’ self-esteem, the workshops are for all teens, not exclusively for young women.

“Searching” kicked off with two 30-second television commercials and a two-and-a-half-minute short film entitled, “What is your daughter searching for?” The 30-second spots feature teenage girls Mei and Ella, and search terms including “Am I ugly?”, “Will boys like me if I’m skinny?”, “Am I fat?” and “Do boys like a thigh gap?” Both girls ‘searched for’ whether teens can get cosmetic surgery.

Simon Langley, the executive creative director of the Sydney-based agency behind the campaign, J. Walter Thompson (JWT), told Mumbrella that the ads aim to highlight the reality of the pressure faced by girls and where they looked for answers.

“At face value ‘What is your daughter searching for?’ talks to girls’ online searches, but the real lesson is about their emotional needs,” Langley said. “Dove’s research shows that girls use the internet to research body confidence issues rather than talk to their parents. As a result, this is a question that most parents simply don’t know the answer to.”

“Searching” complements another campaign Dove is currently running in Australia (and abroad), #MyBeautyMySay, which features stories of women who stood up for their own beauty and overcame judgements about their appearance.

It is the twelfth year of the Dove Campaign for Real Beauty, Unilever’s global marketing campaign to improve the self-esteem and confidence of women of all ages.