Students Love Dove....(Mostly)

A sample of college women at the University of Georgia preferred a Dove “Real Beauty” print ad compared to a Neutrogena ad featuring an “idealized” woman. Dove’s recent campaign has gained a lot of attention because it eschews slender, air-brushed models for images of women sized six to 12.

For their honors Introduction to Advertising project, Haley Jag and Leigh Valentine asked 49 female students to view one of the ads. The Dove ad was evaluated more positively, and was perceived as more credible and meaningful than the Neutrogena ad. All differences were significant.

Another interesting finding, however, was a correlation between the respondent’s perceived health (“Rate your level of health.”) and evaluations of the Neutrogena ad. The healthier one considered herself, the more she liked the Neutrogena ad and found it more credible. In other words, images of “real” women are preferred by most young women except those who consider themselves fit. Healthier women may be more motivated by idealized models in ads for personal care products.