According to the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery (ASAPS), nearly 11.5 million cosmetic surgical and nonsurgical procedures were performed in 2006—92% of those were performed on women. Over the years there has been a steady increase in the number of plastic surgeries performed on women—with nonsurgical procedures increasing 749% since 1997. Even those not interested in going too such beauty extremes are spending major dollars to make themselves look good. From organic cosmetics and anti-aging skincare regimes to increased gym memberships and a growing number of weight loss programs, women mean big bucks to the beauty industry.
Authentically Beautiful
Studies have shown that women, more so than men, are often insecure about the way they look and the beauty industry (along with its media sisters) has seemingly played into those fears. While Kate Moss-models with flawless skin and perfectly shaped bodies make for beautiful advertising, do they really sell products? Obviously, they do—as noted by the continued growth of the billion dollar cosmetic industry. Yet, one of the greatest marketing-to-women success stories, Dove’s “Real Beauty” campaign, went against the grain of traditional beauty advertising and used real women—with real imperfections–in their ads.
While many felt the success of the “Real Beauty” campaign came from the brand’s ability to redefine beauty, marketing-to-women guru Marti Barletta in her book PrimeTime Women feels differently. “To me, women’s explosive reaction to the campaign feels more like ‘Finally! Someone understands!’ than like ‘Really? You think I’m pretty? Honest?’” Dove successfully connected with women by affirming what they already believed about themselves, not creating a new definition. With all the campaign’s success, Dove took some hits from those who believed there was a contradiction of messages—after all, the product being pushed was Dove’s “Intensive Firming Cream.” When pressed on the issue in a Salon.com feature, a Unilever spokesperson said, “…lots of women want firming products. It’s about feeling good about yourself.” The spokesperson went on to say, “Let’s face it, if you had a firming product, and you had a size 2 woman selling it, that would really be the contradiction.”
There appears to be a fine line between authenticity and aspiration and no one has walked that line more than Dove itself. The brand emerged last year with another iteration of the “Real Beauty” campaign. This time around the brand targeted “Boomer” women and used women over 50 in their campaign promoting a line of “pro-aging” products. While the original “Real Beauty” campaign caused an uprising in consumer support, this new version caused a small divide. Not every consumer wanted to see older women and their real bodies on billboards and magazine ads and some felt the brand was once again sending women contradictory messages—having women that were seemingly “pro” aging pushing products that sounded more like the traditional “anti-aging” movement. But with its core target—women 50+–the campaign clicked.
It clicked because these women understood and appreciated the appearance of their aging bodies and while they were not pining for their younger selves while looking in the mirror, they were looking for brands that could help them care for their changing appearance—not hide it from the world. They saw beauty on those billboards and ran in droves to the brand’s website and to purchase the products in stores.
PrimeTime Beauty
It would seem like a great time to be in the anti-aging business—after all, the same generation that proclaimed Jane Fonda “Queen of Fitness” is now looking to conquer the signs of aging. Really? According to Barletta, PrimeTime women are comfortable in their skin. “You may be surprised to learn that, in fact, 72% of all cosmetic surgical and nonsurgical procedures are performed on patients under 50,” says Barletta. And while older women may not be consumed by body changes, “they are certainly not averse to a little help here and there,” says Barletta. Products such as hair color, body shapers and cosmetics are set to boom with today’s female boomers, but they better have the messaging right.
A recent Dove study found 91% of older women feel the media and advertising need to do a better job of representing realistic images of women over 50 and 60% believe that if magazines were reflective of a population, a person would likely believe women over 50 do not exist. If brands want to connect with this powerful generation of female consumers they need to make sure their anti-aging messaging isn’t coupled with a 30-something model. Says Barletta, “Women in general don’t relate to perfect, “aspirational” women to begin with. They are more likely to respond to advertising featuring people who look like they could be the next-door-neighbor—the good-looking next door neighbor, maybe, but definitely not someone who would make it on the catwalks.” And, according to Barletta, that sentiment doubles for women 50+ who have a “strong inclination toward authenticity.”
Bottom line: When it comes to beauty, real does not mean ugly. Women of all shapes, sizes and ages are inspired by seeing other women morph into healthier bodies and age gracefully. From plastic surgery and Botox injections to organic cosmetics and anti-aging creams, women will give big bucks to those brands that don’t try and define beauty for them, but help them feel good about their own beautiful definition of self.
