Dove brand book

T O A L LO W
us to speak with one voice.
T O H E L P
us sustain the level of growth
Dove has enjoyed in recent years.
T O I N S P I R E
us to produce work that makes
our consumers take notice,
that makes our competitors jealous,
and that makes us proud.
Why we created this book.
T O D E F I N E
what Dove is, what it isn’t,
what we want it to be.
T O I N F O R M
everything created
in the nam e of Dove.
T O P R O V I D E
a vision to guide us as we take
Dove into new categories.

This is Dove.
H O W D O V E C A M E T O B E 0 7
T H E TA R G E T 13
T H E I N S I G H T 2 5
T H E P R O M I S E 2 9
T H E D O V E W AY 3 5
V A L U E S & P E R S O N A L I T Y 3 9
V O I C E 6 9
B E A U T Y T H E O R Y 7 5
T H E D I S C R I M I N AT O R 10 5
T H E E S S E N C E 10 9
I N C L O S I N G 113

How Dove came to be.
1999,DOVEBAR,U.S.
6

I N 1981, Dove’s first direct marketing effort, which
included an at-home Litmus test, was mailed to
U.S. consumers.
I N 1988, a charismatic and memorable (and anything
but stereotypical ) “beauty” named Jean Shy joyfully
shared her discovery of Dove’s benefits with televi-
sion viewers, and Dove’s “Conviction of Users” testi-
monial campaign was born. Dove bar achieved its first
double-digit share in the U.S.
I N 1969, Testimonials from real women were used for
the first time to advertise Dove. With each decade,
more women heard Dove’s promise, more women
tried it, and more women were converted. Its creamy
pouring shot became a Dove brand property.
I N 1979, an independent clinical study proved the
Dove bar milder than seventeen leading bar soaps.
Dermatologists recommended it. Newspaper articles
featured it. Friends told friends about it. A year later,
Dove started its formal medical program in the U.S.
How Dove came to be.
I N 1957, T H E D O V E B E A U T Y B A R W A S I N T R O D U C E D I N T H E U N I T E D S TAT E S .
I T P R O M I S E D W O M E N T H AT I T W O U L D N ’ T D RY T H E I R S K I N
T H E W AY S O A P D I D. W O M E N T R I E D I T . A N D I T D I D N ’T. T H U S B E G A N A V E RY
T R U S T I N G R E L AT I O N S H I P B E T W E E N T H E B R A N D A N D I T S U S E R S .
1999,DOVEBAR,JAPAN

I N 1989, Dove was launched in Italy using the
“ Conviction of Users” testimonial campaign, as well
as the medical program. Test markets in France and
Germany followed in 1990.
I N 1991, Dove began its global rollout. A new adver-
tising idea developed in Canada —“Litmus Test”—
added a powerful weapon to Dove’s communication
arsenal: the use of objective proof.
1957,DOVEBAR,U.S.
1950S,DOVEBAR,U.S.
1980S,DOVEBAR,U.S.
1988,JEANSHY,U.S.
I N 1995, Dove took its ﬁrst signiﬁcant step outside
the cleansing bar category in the U.S. with the launch
of Moisturizing Body Wash. Around the world, addi-
tional categories swiftly followed: deodorants in 1997
and body lotions in 1998.
IN 1999, Dove was successfully launched in Japan.
And in 2000, the Dove Hair Care launch took place in
Taiwan, followed by an aggressive rollout during 2001
and 2002.
1989,DOVEBAR,ITALY
1991,LITMUSTEST,CANADA
1997,DOVEDEODORANT,ITALY
1999,DOVELAUNCH,JAPAN
2000,DOVEHAIR,TAIWAN
D O V E E X I S T S T O D AY in over 80 countries and is one
of Unilever’s fastest-growing brands. Dove is a brand
built on a simple and enduring principle: make the
consumer a real promise, and keep it. Consistently.

“ O N E I S N O T B O R N A W O M A N ; O N E B E C O M E S O N E .”
— Simone de Beauvoir
the target15

the target1716
S A F F R O N “I’m very happy with the way I am.
I certainly don’t go around
thinking, ‘Oh my God, does my bum
look big in this.’ ”
There is a point when a woman discovers who she is. When she
stops the frantic search and accepts herself, imperfections and all.
When she is guided by what feels right to her, not by what feels
right to others. This understanding comes to some women at 20,
to others at 50, to some, never.
Our target is more mature, more accepting of herself. That’s not
to say she’s perfect, or without her share of insecurities. It just
means she is more centered.

the target19
The “center of gravity ” of her self-esteem lies more in how she
feels than in how she looks. It has more to do with how compe-
tent she feels in dealing with life ( be it work, play, relationships,
or parenting ) and with how good she feels about herself.
She will be ﬂattered by a compliment about her looks, but she
may not notice if she does not get one for a few days. She is
unlikely to check her lipstick several times in a day.
F E R N A N D A “When you have an active life, when you’re ﬁne
with your family, you get more open to
meeting people. I think you get more beautiful.”
18

the target21
The fact that how she feels is paramount to our target doesn’t
mean she’s given up on how she looks. She’s keenly interested
in beauty. But she won’t use it as a tool, nor need it as a crutch.
Is she willing to transform herself in the name of beauty? Yes.
Just not into someone other than herself. Is she willing to spend
enormous amounts of time or money, or to withstand pain for
the sake of beauty? No. Hers is a beauty quest with limits.
“I’d do things for beauty
but I wouldn’t go to
an extreme, you know?”
D A N I E L A

the target23
She can discern hype from quality, and will happily pay a premium
for the latter. She is in that group of women who could be called
“beauty pragmatists.” To her, the cost of a beauty product isn’t the
main issue. What she is interested in is whether it is going to work.
“ I’d rather have fewer quality items than
a whole wardrobe full of cheap T-shirts.”
J U L I A
22

the insight27
T H E W O R L D I S E X P L O D I N G W I T H T E C H N O L O G Y, fake ingredients, pseudo solutions, and virtual everything.
Credible authorities are harder and harder to find, in any culture. There is decreasing opportunity for real human
contact, for real answers, for the joy of real sensation. As a result, consumers are increasingly attracted to the
authentic, the “un-hyped,” to people, institutions and brands that represent the real deal.
D O V E ’ S G U I D I N G I N S I G H T I S : T H E Y E A R N I N G F O R T H E R E A L
Dove can answer this yearning. Without any redefining, without
any stretching. Dove is firmly rooted in reality. From its earliest
beginnings as a cleansing bar, Dove delivered real benefits, real
satisfactions, both functionally and emotionally.

the promise31
F U N C T I O N A L P R O M I S E
Dove will constantly elevate and therefore redeﬁne the standard
of care in every category it enters. Dove promises its consumer
that it will make no product that does not genuinely improve the
condition and feel of her skin / hair.
W H AT A D O V E P R O D U C T W I L L D O : _It will work. It will be highly efﬁcacious.
_It will be perceivably superior.
_It will make a genuine, noticeable difference in the skin / hair feel.
_It will have “endorsable” mildness.
_It will look and feel good. The product and package will be
beautifully tactile, and will reward the senses.

the promise33
E M OTI O N A L PR O M I S E
Dove gives a woman a highly personal, unexaggerated, uplifting
little feeling about her own beauty. And because it is a private and
small feeling, it is actually bigger and more meaningful to her.
32

the dove way37
There is a distinctive Dove Way, and it informs and guides every-
thing to do with the brand. It encompasses: Dove’s values and
personality, Dove’s voice and Dove’s point of view on beauty.
I T I S W H AT M A K E S T H I S B R A N D W H AT I T I S .

T H E D O V E W AY
Values & Personality
the dove way3938
“ P E R S O N A L I T Y I S A N U N B R O K E N S E R I E S O F S U C C E S S F U L G E S T U R E S .”
—The Great Gatsby

Dove is Real.
Dove is a Keeper of Promises.
Dove is Beautifully Uncomplicated.
Dove is Optimistic.
Dove is Timeless.
the dove way values & personality4140

Dove is Real.
D O V E S E E K S RE A L M E A N I N G. RE A L RE L E VA N C E.
Dove won’t make a product unless it understands its deeper
meaning and relevance in a consumer’s life. Dove will be better
than its competitors at uncovering true insights. Dove’s product
and advertising concepts will hold meaningful promises. Its cre-
ative briefs will offer the clearest direction to creative teams.
Dove is “alive”, aware of the issues facing its consumers. And it
will often share a point of view about them. Dove draws its cre-
ative inspiration from lived experiences and emotions. It will never
use “ad-land” speech. Because it believes that language drawn
from reality will always hold more meaning.
N .B . Dove’s Real is never ugly or depressing. Nor passive or boring. Real is not a value to be talked about,
it is a value to be demonstrated. It is much more than a look or feel.
D O V E I S F IR M LY C O N N E C T E D TO T H E RE A L W O RL D.
42

Dove is a
Keeper of Promises.
Dove’s performance drives an enduring relationship with its users.
Unlike what she does with most brands, the Dove consumer feels
little, if any, need to “discount” the promises made by Dove to a
level she is prepared to believe in. There is a perception that “if Dove
says it, it must be true.” This should be nurtured and protected.
D O V E ’S P R O M I S E S A RE TA N G I B L E , P E RC E I VA B L E A N D P R O VA B L E .
44

Dove is Beautifully
Uncomplicated.

the dove way values & personality beautifully uncomplicated49
Self-assured enough to be uncomplicated. It is clean. Pure.
Elegantly simple. Its simplicity doesn’t translate to cold, basic
or boring. Rather, there’s a modernity to it. A stunningly simple
beauty. A look and fe el that lacks e mbellishm ent, because it
simply doesn’t ne ed it.
D O V E I S C O N F I D E N T E N O U G H T O B E U N C L U T T E R E D.
48

Dove’s simplicity doesn’t need
gratuitous touches.(T O P )
…And should never feel cold.(B O T T O M )
Dove’s simplicity should never
be basic or boring.
T H I S I S . T H I S I S N ’ T.T H I S I S . T H I S I S N ’ T.
52

Dove is Optimistic.

the dove way values & personality optimistic57
It sees the potential in its consumer and sets out to make the
most of what she has, rather than to ﬁx what she doesn’t. Dove
is uplifting, right down to its name. It is a brand name that sym-
bolizes hope, happiness, peace and all things positive. There is
nothing contrived or over the top about Dove’s optimism.
D OV E I S A BE A RER O F G O O D N E W S .

the dove way values & personality optimistic61
Dove’s optimism isn’t the superﬁcial
“spring in your step,”“happy face” kind.
T H I S I S N ’ T. T H I S I S N ’ T.
60

Dove is Timeless.

the dove way values & personality timeless6564
D O V E I S N O T T H E F L AV O R O F T H E M O N T H . R AT H E R ,
I T I S I C O N I C. I T I S E N D U R I N G.
Because it is enduring, Dove’s
timelessness can be very “hip
But not trendy, funky, or trying
too hard to be modern. Dove is
a contemporary classic.
.”
64

the dove way values & personality timeless67the dove xxxxxxxxx & xxxxxxxx: xxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxx 66
Dove should never be seen as trying to be trendy,
or trying too hard to be modern.
T H I S I S . T H I S I S N ’ T.
66

the dove xxxxxxxxx & xxxxxxxx: xxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxx69the dove xxxxxxxxx & xxxxxxxx: xxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxx 68
T H E D O V E W AY
Voice
68 the dove way69

the dove way voice7170
Whatever Dove says must ring true. Its voice is clean and clear,
pure and uncluttered. It is eye level and unpretentious.
Dove speaks only when it has something to say. Its vocabulary con-
tains no mumbo jumbo, no “ad-land” clichés, no hype, no puffery.
Dove doesn’t “sell itself ” or boast. This in no way means Dove
doesn’t indict its competition. This is the brand that was built on
indictment. (“Dove doesn’t dry your skin the way soap can.”) But its
purpose in using indictment is to let the consumer know what un-
met need has now been met, not to point a ﬁnger at the competition.

the dove way voice7372
Dove is never presumptuous or patronizing. It doesn’t take it
upon itself to tell consumers that it “knows what they want ” or
what to think. Dove is never judgmental. And though it’s sincere,
it’s far from overly earnest. Dove has a sense of humor, but it
doesn’t try to be “funny.”
Dove speaks to one person at a time, no matter how many peo-
ple may be listening. Its voice is personal, intimate. It makes the
consumer feel she’s being talked to as an individual.
Often, and as much as possible, Dove will embrace the voice of
its users, rather than impose its own. When Dove users speak for
the brand, it is a voice of shared discovery — one woman to
another— about how Dove has proved itself to her.
When Dove offers objective evidence, it is just that — objective.
It presents the facts and lets the consumer reach her own con-
clusion. It is never an onslaught of information, rather, an offering.
And as Dove begins to speak in new voices, these should feel
fresh and new, but still true to Dove.

the dove xxxxxxxxx & xxxxxxxx: xxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxx75the dove xxxxxxxxx & xxxxxxxx: xxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxx 74
T H E D O V E W AY
Beauty Theory
74 the dove way75

the dove way beauty theory is7776
Unlike its competitors, Dove makes it clear that it sees beauty in
imperfections, and doesn’t worship stereotypes. Dove’s beauty
is self-deﬁned, beauty with brains, democratic. Dove recognizes
not only the exterior, but also the woman within. There is depth
of character behind the eyes, a strength and vitality of person-
ality showing through.
Dove doesn’t insult women by depicting them with arrows or
squiggles drawn across their faces. Although it is natural, Dove’s
beauty does not look like the cliché of natural beauty, of “fresh
faces,” or of “ wind blowing across the face .”
A N D I N C A S E YO U A R E W O N D E R I N G ,
D O V E ’ S B E A U T Y L O O K S B E A U T I F U L .

When Dove captures a moment of emotion, it feels
unguarded and very personal. It is never faked.
C A P T U R E S A M O M E N T

C A P T U R E S A M O M E N TC A P T U R E S A M O M E N T

Dove’s beauty should be portrayed with uncluttered
photography that does not camouflage the depth
of a woman’s beuty.
S T Y L E O F P H O T O G R A P H Y

S T Y L E O F P H O T O G R A P H Y

Dove’s beauty captures the strength
of character behind the eyes.
S T R E N G T H O F C H A R A C T E R

S T R E N G T H O F C H A R A C T E R S T R E N G T H O F C H A R A C T E R

S T R E N G T H O F C H A R A C T E R

the dove way beauty theory is not9594
Dove’s beauty is not the cliché,
fresh, natural beauty.

Dove’s beauty is natural,
but never unattractive.

Dove’s beauty is not the seen-everywhere,
undistinctive, clean look.

Dove’s beauty should never
feel posed.

Dove’s beauty is not the stereotypical
model beauty.

106 the discriminator107
_In each of its categories, Dove will have an important, meaningful
functional discriminator of superior care. This will most often be
related to moisturization.
_Dove’s value of Real.
_Dove’s Beauty Theory.

110 the essence111
Beauty Without
Artiﬁce
This Essence guides us to build Dove into a true beauty care
icon, while honoring our unique point of view on beauty, steering
away from puffery, cluttered messages and clichés. It guides us
to give our consumers beauty promises and products that hold
real meaning and performance.

in closing115114
“ I F Y O U S E A R C H F O R T R U T H , Y O U W I L L F I N D B E A U T Y .
I F Y O U S E A R C H F O R B E A U T Y, Y O U W I L L F I N D V A N I T Y .”
—Moishe Safvie

in closing117116
This book has been developed by the Dove Global Brand Teams
(Skin, Hair, Deodorants)—to inspire our efforts to build Dove into
a 4 billion beauty care brand by 2006. It is dedicated to all those
whose past efforts have made the brand what it is today, and to
those whose future efforts, passion, imagination and persever-
ance will make this brand even greater.
C

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