Dive Overview:
- In a news release obtained by Marketing Dive, Dove has teamed up with Drew Barrymore to combat the social media trend of young girls prematurely flocking to anti-aging skin care products.
- The #TheFaceof10 campaign aims to boost self-esteem among kids who are beginning to feel insecure about their appearance, and in a new sponsored post, Barrymore, a mother of two daughters, reminisces about growing up in the makeup chair as a child actor but argues that the anti-aging obsession has gone too far.
- Unilever’s marketing company is also working with experts to develop a guide for discussing anti-aging with Gen Alphas, a strategy that could bolster Dove’s positioning as inspiring confidence and give the brand an edge over rivals who have inadvertently been caught in the middle of a high-profile issue.
Dive Insights:
Amid fierce debate about the negative impact of social media on teen mental health, Dove is addressing a worrying trend related to its personal care business: Some Gen Alpha and Gen Z girls are becoming obsessed with luxury anti-aging products like Drunk Elephant, flocking to retailers to try them out. These brands are not targeted at teenagers, but they have been caught up in the ensuing controversy.
Dove is using the opportunity to ramp up its purpose-led marketing efforts to tackle the negative impact social media has on girls’ self-image – it estimates that around a quarter of girls aged 10 to 17 feel criticised about their appearance.
“When does a 10-year-old start worrying about wrinkles and aging? It’s time to highlight the absurdity of this and speak out to protect children’s self-esteem,” Dove global vice president Firdaus El Khonsari said in a statement.
Unilever’s flagship brand has its own line of anti-aging products, and taking a stand now could help it distance itself from potential backlash and set itself apart from competitors. The company has run its “Project Self-Esteem” for decades, which promotes body confidence.
To that end, the marketer partnered with Barrymore on a series of sponsored social posts in which the actress and talk show host candidly shares her views on the issue. In the #TheFaceof10 video, Barrymore details how she spent most of her childhood surrounded by beauty and makeup, but instead tried to focus on the fun side, like sticking glitter and stickers on her face. She points out that aging is not a privilege that everyone gets to experience, and is opposed to the concept of anti-aging in general.
“You can never do anti-aging. If you’re lucky, you can actually grow older,” Barrymore said in an Instagram video, “but young girls don’t need anything anti-aging.”
Additionally, Dove enlisted body image expert and psychologist Philippa Diedrichs and dermatologist Marisa Garshick to create “Generation A Anti-Aging Talks,” a video for its social channels to help discuss sensitive topics with Gen Alpha. Dermatologist Mona Gohara also worked with the brand.
The push for #TheFaceof10 adds to a busy year for Dove on the marketing front: The soap and skin care company returned to the Super Bowl in February for the first time in 18 years, airing a spot with a positive message encouraging young women to pursue sports.
