After winning double-honors at the advertising Grand Prix in Cannes for its candor and message, the Dove Online campaign evolution goes into its second round with onslaught. Dialog Solutions of Hamburg is responsible for both seeding strategy and spreading concept of a clip that is designed to grab a female target group (young moms - and those who want to become young moms) by the heartstrings.

The video onslaught, which needs to fulfill that challenging task, is the result of clever planning by Ogilvy Mather in Toronto: As the camera focuses onto the innocent and open face of a cute redheaded child, the seconds seem to stretch and build anticipation for what surely is to come… a thought supported by the repeating lyrics 'here it comes' of the underlying song 'La Breeze' by Simian.

What follows is a whirlwind of pictures and sequences from ad posters, model- and celebrity-pictures, TV-spots for weight loss drugs, scales, images of anorexia and yo-yo-dieting, and plastic surgery.

Eventually, refocusing on the face of the little girl, the final claim leaves no doubt about the dangers of today's beauty cult and hyped expectations: 'Talk to your daughter before the beauty industry does.'

The impressionability of young minds and the value of Dove's tools for real beauty and self-acceptance are at the core of this campaign. Dove is thereby actively looking to work against the current trend of unrealistic visuals and position its brand as a leader in socially responsible beauty advertising - something that should resonate particularly well with young mothers.

To make the message take viral flight, the clip was placed on fifteen different online portals and on forums related to the topic. From these breeding grounds on forward, the ad avalanche is spreading among young mothers and young girls alike.

Of particular interest is also the landing page for the campaign at www.initiativefuerwahreschoenheit.de. Contrary to conventional wisdom, it does not present product information, but psychological tests and tools designed to raise self-awareness and self-confidence. This reflects the unusually honest and consequent approach to branding that Dove takes.

Hamburg, 10th of October 2007

›› You can find the clip here.