Posts Tagged Stephen Colbert
Archives
- Acura commercial Acura TL 2012 ads advertisement advertising American Indian armpits Ashleigh McIvor Axe Axe beach commercial Axe bikinis Axe commercial Axe shower gel Before and After Bella Swan Beyonce Beyonce run the world black man black stereotype black woman body Calvin Johnson Colbert Report colonialism colonial narrative color commercial critique Dove Dove ad Dove advertisement Dove before and after Dove magazine Eclipse Edward Cullen female stereotype feminism film First Date Go sleeveless Jacob Black Love Hurts Native American New Moon Pepsi Pepsi MAX Pepsi Max black woman Pepsi MAX Love Hurts Pepsi MAX sleep with her Quileute race racism Run the world (girls) sexism skin sleep with her Stephen Colbert Stephenie Meyer Summit Entertainment Superbowl Superbowl 2011 Superbowl commercials Superbowl Sunday Taylor Lautner The Colbert Report The Twilight Saga Twilight underarms Unilever vampire werewolf white privilege Who run the world women WTF
Advertisements
Dove Deodorant – Go Sleeveless ‘Shameovation’
Posted by rsedlak1 in Advertisement, Commercials, Social Commentary on May 31, 2011
This video by Stephen Colbert — called Buy and Cellulite, which aired a few weeks ago, (sorry about the link. Couldn’t get the video to embed) — takes a look at Dove’s newest ad campaign: Go Sleeveless.
“One of the secrets of sales is fulfilling the public’s need,” Colbert says on his show. “The other secret is inventing the public’s need.”
Indeed.
I mean, everyone wears deodorant. We all want to smell nice. Clean, fresh.
But making our armpits more attractive? I don’t know about you, but as a woman, I don’t think of my armpit as one of my more attractive qualities. Or even as a could-be sexy part of me. Hair, yes. Face, boobs, legs — we’ve heard it. But underarms?
Apparently Dove, and its parent company Unilever, think this is an invented need that will sell. But, considering the backlash, I’m not so sure.
“I thought,” Colbert says straight-faced, “we had reached the peak of making money off female insecurity.”
Far from it.
Dove’s next step in the Go Sleeveless campaign is to draw in “star status” in order to make girls and women aspire (perspire?) and buy the product. Jessica Szohr is a small-time celebrity best known for her annoying character on Gossip Girl, her brief relationship with co-star Ed Westwick, a part in the summer horror flick Piranha 3D, and a continually advertised fashionable life. Dove’s theory is that girls will see Szohr, design a sleeveless shirt (a tank top), win the challenge and go shopping with Szohr in New York City.
Star affiliation or promotion gives a product more legitimacy. And by using Szohr, Dove is clearly targeting a certain demographic: teenagers, girls who know who she is.
Dove is pairing this “beauty product” with stardom in an effort to make the deodorant more glamorous. It’s a pretty obvious gimmick, from my end, and I hope other people see it that way, too.
advertisement, advertising, armpits, beauty, Colbert Report, commercial, deodorant, Dove, Dove ad, Dove advertisement, Dove deodorant, girls, Go sleeveless, Jessica Szohr, product, Stephen Colbert, The Colbert Report, underarms, Unilever, women
Leave a comment