Beauty as a Marketing Tool

Angela Freeman
HON 410 Professor Choondassery

9 March 2013

Freeman 1 Acknowledgements

This paper is dedicated to my mother and father who always told me that I was beautiful on the outside but most importantly, focused on the beauty that lies within me. I would also like to dedicate this paper in the memory of my late grandfather Gerald Freeman. Thank you for always believing in me and my dreams. I couldnt have gotten to this point without you.

Freeman 2 Angela Freeman HON 410 Professor Choondassery 21 February 2013 Beauty as a Marketing Tool Introduction Beauty is a topic that can be seen as subjective and based on perception. Various ideals of beauty vary depending on race, gender, ethnicity, region, religious beliefs and other factors that are influenced by others. Marketers attempt to discover, define and understand these concepts of beauty in order to create and promote various products and services for consumer consumption. Advertisements on television and in magazines highlight ideals of beauty and create an image in consumers minds on what is considered physically appealing and what needs to be done in order to be seen in the same light as the individuals in said advertisements. Hours of research, planning and manipulation are done in order for the marketing campaign to achieve its desired affects but many times, minor details can be overlooked that can have a negative impact on an entire area or culture. It is necessary to make sure that promoting a product or service is targeted to the right group of consumers without offending and/or alienating others. In this manner, beauty is considered a marketing tool that if used properly can have a drastic impact on the masses and how they view themselves.

Freeman 3 What is Beauty? Before marketers can use beauty to advertise and promote their products and/or services, they must create a working idea on what beauty is. In Beauty in the Age of Marketing authors Bingqing Yin and Susie Pryor state that beauty is commonly considered a characteristic of individuals, objects, and places that is perceived pleasurably (Yin and Pryor) It goes on to say that Beauty is colloquially defined as attractiveness in advertising and marketing research, and has been measured on a continuum from attractive to unattractive (Yin and Pryor). There is no one definition when it comes to beauty and beauty can be interpreted differently based on the subject being discussed. Beauty is psychologically complex and reflects multiple dimensions which provide for the inclusion of facets of beauty that are described by consumers in varied terms, such as cute, elegant, sexy, etc. (Yin and Pryor)

Another term that is used interchangeably with beauty is physical attractiveness. Although many may think that both terms are synonyms, physical attractiveness does not have the general ambiguous focus that beauty has. Physical attractiveness generally includes the individuals analysis of specific characteristics including facial image, body proportion and shape.(Ying and Pryor) Physical attractiveness is related to beauty but differs because of the focus on specific attributes/traits of the physical being. A third factor that many mistake for beauty is aesthetics. Aesthetics concerns the nature of beauty, creation, and appreciation of beauty. Like physical attractiveness, it is related to beauty but not a synonym for beauty itself. Beauty has been used not only based on ones physical appearance but in nature and literature as well. The philosopher Plato theory of beauty varied from the ideals of beauty which are prevalent in our world today. Plato saw beauty as divine, revelatory, ineffable, and external to and removed from the

Freeman 4 empirical world of imperfection and mortality (Vacker and Key) In other words, Pl ato did not see beauty as something that could be created by humans because beauty is without flaws and imperfection. It is pure and cannot be compared to anything artificial because then it would lose its purity and essence which would in turn lose its beauty. Beauty in this case is not rated on any scale or level of appeal. Beauty is present in nature because it is unaltered, unmoving and exists because of forces outside of our control. Nature is beautiful by default. This theory of beauty does not work for the real world because it isnt objective. When beauty relates to human form, we base what is beautiful on appearance whether it is altered or not. Beauty is seen as objective and is compared to other objects in order to establish a code for what is beautiful. This is the only way that a concept of beauty can be created and developed in order for marketers to gear their advertisements to appeal to consumers.

What makes someone beautiful? Many companies (especially ones that claim their products/services will enhance ones beauty) focus on features and attributes that others desire. Many of these attributes involve the face. Facial proportion, symmetry, and cultural face preference are a few attributes that change someones perception of beauty. Perceptions of facial beauty are affected by generic, social, cultural and environment [al] factors (Yin and Pryor). Even though these differences in culture and area may vary, facial symmetry, facial proportion and facial expression are the significant characteristics in the determination of facial beauty (Yin and Pryor). Researchers have noted that the level of symmetry is one of the fundamental factors that affect human face attractiveness and evolutionary biologists have proposed symmetry as a sign of health and high genetic quality that may be adaptive. (Yin and Pryor) Along with facial symmetry, cultures have their own

Freeman 5 facial preferences that are deemed as beautiful based on that culture. Many Asian women seek to have the ideal face by creating creases in their eyelids and creating a more prominent nose through cosmetic surgery. An eyelid without a crease and a flat nose indicate sleepiness, dullness, and passivity (Yin and Pryor) Asian women who believe in this ideal have altered their face and changed how they are perceived in the quest for beauty. By doing these things, they have erased most traces of their ethnicity and origin. More and more Asian women seek cosmetic surgery for double eyelids to get wider and bigger eyes and nose bridges for higher and smarter nose to avoid the stereotype oriental look and negative traits in their culture in order to be exotic and outstanding. They have abandoned the Asian features that are used to identify their culture in order to be seen as physically appealing not only to others in the culture but also a worldly ideal of beauty.

These stereotypes exist in other cultures as well. Skin tone plays a significant role in terms of what is considered beautiful in African- American culture as well. Skin color bias, especially within the African American community, reflects the difficulty, disadvantage and pain of darkskinned women. Attractive women are perceived to have lighter skin tones than unattractive women, and a darker-skinned woman may feel herself unattractive and think of herself as unsuccessful no matter how intelligent and inventive she is. (Yin and Pryor) White skin or anything close to it is perceived as being the ideal standard of beauty and as a result, African Americans have been conditioned to believe in conformity to a beauty standard that equates light skin with an easier and more rewarding life. (Yin and Pryor) Many African American women have gone to extreme lengths to alter their skin tone by using skin lightening creams and powders in order to achieve a lighter skin color that is associated with being beautiful. In

Freeman 6 contrast, many western Caucasians see tan skin as the ideal of beauty. Tan skin was once associated with the working class and farmers and was seen as undesirable but designer Coco Chanel changed the perception of tan skin in America. Chanel. American culture quickly adopted Chanels portrayal of tanned skin as not merely aesthetically pleasing and trendy but also come to equate it with good health, wealth, and prestige (Yin and Pryor) As a result, Caucasian women go to tanning salons to achieve this desired look because many women feel that tanning equals color, which is a sign of health and attractiveness for the opposite sex (Rawe and Scully).

The drastic measures that are taken in order to be seen as beautiful are not limited to face and skin color but also affect bodily perception. Studies consistently demonstrate that individuals compare their own levels of attractiveness with those of fashion models and several researchers over the years have reported that attractive body image, which can generally be represented by body shape, body proportion and weight, is a significant variable when comes to the general standards and judgment of beauty and effectiveness of advertisements (Yin and Pryor) These researchers go on to say that Attractive body image is seen as an indicator of interpersonal, material, and career success. (Yin and Pryor) The term thin is in seems to be the general consensus among eastern and western cultures and highly attractive underweight model images are pervasive. Both in western and eastern cultures, thinness as the ideal woman beauty standard have been stressed in media representations of beauty and slimness has been found to be related to elegance, self-control, social attractiveness, and youth.(Yin and Pryor) There are exceptions such as residents living in Uganda prefer heavier body shapes but overall, being seen as thin is more physically appealing to both sexes than an average weight or overweight person. As a

Freeman 7 result, many women turn to cosmetic surgery, and extreme dieting which has led to eating disorders such as anorexia nervosa and bulimia. Altering ones appearance through cosmetic surgery, creams ,UV rays from tanning beds and dieting have had serious and deadly side effects but many women who know and understand the risks still put their lives in danger all at the cost of the perception of beauty.

How Products and Techniques Are Used To Achieve Beauty The cosmetics industry is a multi-billion dollar industry that aims to cater to women and their need to appear beautiful in the eyes of others. Makeup as an adornment has been around for thousands of years dating back to Egypt. Egyptians were the first to use "cosmetics" as a way of accentuating a certain part of the body. There is evidence that Egyptians began using eye paint as early as 3000 B.C. (Hunt Fate and Dodds). The Egyptians had a major influence on the Greeks and Hebrews which as a result had a significant impact on women in Britain and other western European countries and spread throughout North America and the rest of the world. Adornments (such as makeup) are used to increase attractiveness and to obtain accompanying social benefits (Bloch and Richins). Adornments by use of women are associated by

attributions of attractiveness and femininity. Adornments are listed as: remedies, camouflages and enhancers and exist in order to add or take away from ones appearance to obtain a specific ideal of beauty. Remedies are adornments used to remove or significantly alter a mutable attribute that is thought to be unsatisfactory to others or self (Bloch and Richins) Examples of remedies are hair coloring and depilatory (hair removal) cream. Camouflages are adornments that conceal or downplay physical characteristics that the consumer is unable to change. Examples of camouflages are cosmetics such as foundation and concealer that hide imperfections

Freeman 8 on the skin and even out skin tone. Enhancers are adornments that enhance or draw attention to innate physical characteristics that are viewed positively. Examples of enhancements are tight clothing that draws attention to a persons physique and eye makeup that highlights a persons eye shape and color. All of these adornments are either created or purchased to help ones overall appearance so he or she can be considered to be beautiful by that particular societys standards. Throughout history, men and women used various concoctions in order to obtain an appearance that was deemed socially acceptable and would separate themselves from the crowd. In the Renaissance Era, a pale face was considered to be the ideal of beauty so both men and women went out of their way to powder their faces with white power that contained ingredients such as lead. These powders were applied to the face and hands to reflect simplicity and beauty (Hunt, Fate and Dodds). Other early beauty practices include forms of hair dye with henna as well as paints and pigments made of animal fat and minerals such as chalk. Many times however, these concoctions were harmful to the body and caused hair and skin to be damaged and in extreme cases, death. In the early 1900s, makeup innovators such as chemist T.L. Williams (creator of the worlds first mass produced mascara, Maybelline) and legendary makeup artist Max Factor (creator of Max Factor Studios) helped bring products and techniques to the forefront so that all women could safely purchase and use products in order to achieve a particular look or style but many women still feel that this is not enough. Just as in ancient times, women seek drastic measures in order to alter their appearance to obtain a certain ideal of beauty. Cosmetic

enhancements such as Botox injections, (which contains the bacteria Clostridium Botulinum) which are performed to minimize the appearance of wrinkles) as well as more evasive procedures such as breast implants, skin lasering and liposuction are performed to obtain permanent results that regular adornments cannot provide. People are willing to go to various

Freeman 9 lengths in order to appeal to other because people feel that appearance is a key element in impression formation. As a result, people who pay more attention to appearance are more likely to use adornments to enhance it (Bloch and Richins). Cosmetics companies capitalize on this fact by creating products to alter the physical appearance of individuals, mainly women in order to make a profit. Specific attributes may vary by age group, race, ethnicity, etc. but there is always an imperfection for marketers to capitalize on. The key is to advertise products to the right target market in a way that piques the consumers interests enough to motivate them to purchase the product. This is where effective strategic marketing research comes into play.

Market Research on Beauty Before creating an advertising campaign, a marketer must first focus on what group(s) to target in order to have the greatest chance at initial sales as well as repurchase. The cosmetics industry is usually focused on women but not all women require the same benefits from particular products. For example, an anti-wrinkle serum would not be marketed to someone who is under the age of 25 because wrinkles are associated with women who are usually middle aged and older. Likewise, most acne cleansing products are not targeted to older women because acne is a skin issue associated with teens and young adults. Target markets can also vary by race and ethnicity. Most tanning lotions are usually marketed to fair skinned women so focusing on African American women and other races of a darker complexion would be pointless because tanning lotion would not drastically change the appearance of their skin. Besides age and race/ethnicity, traditions and beliefs in a particular area play a heavy role not only in what products are marketed but how they are marketed as well. In countries such as India, the cow is sacred and as a result, many of the residents are vegetarian. If a product that was marketed and

Freeman 10 sold in the area was found to contain animal products, not only would the product not sell but it would also be offensive to the residents in the area and could potentially cause a major backlash against said company. Marketers need to be aware of not only the physical attributes that people find appealing but also the underlying perceptions on what is appealing based on personal practices and beliefs. According to Brand Strategy, focusing on ones culture versus the area that they live in is essential to appealing to a wider demographic. The five dimensions that seem to cross cultural boundaries on what being a woman is all about are defined as: fun, vitality, achievement, freedom and discovery/experimentation but that each of these terms is defined differently depending on the culture in question. For example, emancipation from parental control is key to the Latin American woman, whereas survival and material safety (a different type of freedom) tops the list of the Thai, Chinese and Indian females' point of view.(Brand Strategy) Another difference that was noted is that Chinese, Indian and Thai women, are striving for female emancipation and are more skin and hair-focused in their beauty regimes whereas, at the other end of the scale, we have the UK, US and Brazilian female who is more body focused and sexually confident(Brand Strategy). For example, women in China may want a cosmetics company to advertise more products that improve the condition of their hair and skin because these are physical attributes that are important to them. On the other hand, women in the United States may desire a cosmetics company to create a lotion that gives their legs a natural glow that is appealing to the opposite sex. These differences may not seem that important to the average person but when marketing products and services that appeal to women, these differences are crucial and the way the marketing campaign is created and displayed will affect how a woman views the product/service, company and ultimately herself. It is not enough to lump women into one category because for every race/ethnicity, age group, religion and area,

Freeman 11 there are specific sets of ideals and preferences that women look for to fulfill their beauty expectations. The media also plays a part in what is deemed as beautiful and greatly

influences advertisers by helping them decide who, what and how they portray beauty in advertisements.

The Medias Influence on What Is Perceived as Beautiful The media has a powerful influence on the way people see themselves and everything around them. It can distort a persons own reality by creating a false world where everything is perfect and in balance. Actors, musicians, models, athletes and other celebrities are shown in a light on television and in magazines and other forms that appeal to the masses. Their physical appearance as displayed in these various mediums has had a significant impact on what is considered beautiful. According to psychology professors Susan Darlow and Marci Lobel, High frequency of universal social comparison, or comparing ones appearance with that of highly visible targets in society, such as models in advertisements or celebrities on television, is a predictor of low appearance, self-esteem, body dissatisfaction, dieting to lose weight, and unhealthy weight control habits in studies conducted in countries such as the United States and Australia( Darlow and Lobel).The media also acts as agents of socialization, perpetuating certain global beauty standards such as thinness and institutionalizing such conventions as photographic poses (Frith, Cheng and Shaw). The media goes further to project this idea of perfection in a term called beautyism which is the belief that physical appeal prevails knowledge, value, or anything personable(The Mercury). Many women fall victim to this belief that anything is attainable as long as they are physically appealing to those that hold the power. As a result, they grow up within easy reach of the propaganda machinery - the partnership between the media and the

Freeman 12 beauty industry that normalizes the manipulation of images designed intentionally to create an ideal that most cannot live up to(The Mercury) . A study done on the cultural encoding of beauty types on television and in magazines stated rightly or wrongly, mass media consistently reinforce assumed linkages between women's appearance and their feelings of self-worth (Englis, Solomon and Ashmore). Marketers know that images seen in mass media publications greatly affect womens self-esteem and body image and leave an impression on what attributes and enhancements a women deems physically attractive. Advertisements are created to appeal to women who feel that they are missing a physical quality that only a certain product or service can help. Marketers must then figure out what products to marketing and how to do so in a way that is subtle yet powerful and leaves an impression on the consumers mind.

How Marketers Use Beauty Types To Advertise Products and Services The term beauty is complex and can be defined in many ways as stated earlier. In order for marketers to advertise a particular product or service in a specific way, they need to come up with working types of beauty. An experiment was conducted in 1992 by Michael Solomon, Richard D. Ashmore and Laura Longo in order to determine the various types of beauty. They assembled a set of photographs of models employed by major U.S. fashion agencies and presented them to a sample of U.S. fashion magazine editors who were then instructed to sort the models into piles based on similarity of looks. The results yielded relatively distinct beauty types: Classic, Feminine, Sex Kitten /Sensual, Exotic, Cute, Girl-Next-Door, and Trendy. A woman with the physical attributes of a classic beauty is thought to have perfect physical especially facial features A woman who is considered a feminine beauty has a soft and/or romantic look A woman who is considered a sensual or sex kitten beauty has a sexual look

Freeman 13 but sex kittens are more overt and youthful. A woman who is seen as an exotic beauty is thought to be non-Caucasian. A woman who is seen as a cute beauty possesses child-like features or attire. A woman who is seen as a Girl-Next-Door has a natural unmade appearance and simple attire A woman who is seen as trendy has an offbeat look that may be flawed or asymmetrical in contrast to a classic beauty type. Since these 7 types have been accepted by most advertisers, the next step is to figure out what type best represents the product or service that is being advertised. If a company such as Johnson and Johnson wants to advertise a new acne face wash in their Clean and Clear product line, they would most likely show females who appear to be in their teens in their advertisements. Acne is associated with youth and out of all the beauty types, a teen that possesses cute features would most likely be placed in the advertisement because cute is also associated with youth as well as vitality. On the other end of the spectrum, if the lingerie company Victorias Secret wants to promote a new line of bras, they would most likely pick models that are perceived as the sensual/sex kitten type because lingerie is associated with sex and sex appeal. A woman who fits the sensual/sex kitten type would be ideal to advertise this type of product. A model whose type of beauty and associated image matched the product with which it is paired will provide a coherent message, which, if consistent with the consumers desired self-image, may enhance acceptance of the advertisement(Hukeba).

As stated earlier, different cultures and regions have their own sets of traditions and beliefs on what is beautiful and advertisers have to be mindful to not represent women in advertisements in a way that may be seen as rude or offensive to their target market. Seventeen Magazine is a popular beauty magazine that caters to teenage girls. The magazine has publications in the

Freeman 14 United States, the UK, Japan and other parts of the world. Although it would make sense to assume that since the magazines target market is teenage girls, the same type of cute girl can be used in advertisements in the various countries. Unfortunately, it is not that simple because of cultural differences that exist in these areas. Marketers have to take note of these differences and adjust/alter the advertisements and campaigns accordingly. In a study of images of young girls in the Japanese version of Seventeen, the researchers reported that the Japanese models were posed as cute and girlish (smiling and giggling), whereas the Western models were posed with more serious expressions, looking more defiant and independent This would suggest that although both groups of models may have fit the cute type, the way that they were port rayed varied because women in Japanese culture are usually seen as feminine and demure compared to their American counterparts were are seen as more aggressive and determined. A similar observation was detected between the cultures of Singapore, Taiwan and the United States. According to Hofstede (1997) Singapore and Taiwan are both traditionally under the influence of Confucianism and thus strongly collectivist and feminine, whereas the U.S. culture is individualistic and masculine (Frith, Cheng and Shaw). Advertisements in Singapore and Taiwan are more likely to portray women in roles that are considered feminine such as cooking and taking care of children where as women in the United States can be seen in roles that are traditionally considered to be masculine such as building and fixing items. Current advertising theories state that in order to resonate with a target audience, message designers must match the models, the clothing, the accessories, as well as headlines and body copy with the values and needs of the target audience(Frith, Cheng and Shaw). Empirical research has supported that advertisements that reflect local cultural values are indeed more persuasive than those that ignore them (Frith, Cheng and Shaw). To ignore the cultural influences that reside in a

Freeman 15 particular location can hinder an entire marketing campaign. Paying attention to these details is essential in order for the product/service to be presented the right way. This is crucial for any product related to beauty because ones appearance can be a very sensitive subject. An advertisement is supposed to appeal to a target market without offending that market or any other group of people. The end result is supposed to drive consumers to purchase, enjoy and repurchase the product/service for consumption.

Beauty Ideal Backlash In this age of modern technology, companies have been able to alter the images we see in television and in advertisements by way digital manipulation tools such as Photoshop which allows a person to change various features such as skin color, height, weight etc. in pictures and in videos. The finished result usually differs greatly from the original presentation. An article in Race, Gender and Class sociology journal states that research, though, remains scant that recognizes that the thin ideal is also accentuated through digital manipulation and not only the selection of very slender models. Moreover, thin models are not only rendered waif-like through computer alterations, but their bodies are also digitally elongated, and lightened or darkened in their skin tone (Hitchon, Park and Yun). The article goes on to state that the Digital Revolution has extended the ability for fake bodies to be falsely created on a computer screen. Problems of unreachable standards of beauty are now compounded by women trying to emulate not only the thin ideal but also photo-fakery (Hitchon, Park and Yun). These digital changes allow creative directors to imagine women who are thinner and more perfect. Digital manipulation can easily stretch body torsos and legs, digitally liposuction fatty areas, and miraculously grow muscles on a body that is later perceived by readers as belonging to a living woman. It can alter a model's

Freeman 16 skin tone so that it becomes impossible to discern the true coloring, and what is being sacrificed for her to conform to the norms of a dominant culture (Hitchon, Park and Yun). These new advancements in technology have allowed advertisers to create expectations in consumers minds that they can achieve this look of perfection if they purchase the product or service being advertised. Unfortunately, unrealistic expectations cause women to go to drastic lengths to achieve what they assume is an authentic look. If said product or service does not work, they may go to other lengths in order to achieve a similar look. As stated earlier, cosmetic surgery is one route many women have taken in order to achieve an ideal of perfection similar to the ones in the images on television and in magazines. Statistics compiled by the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS 2010a) reveal that 12.5 million cosmetic surgery procedures were performed in the United States in 2009, representing more than $10 billion in physician fees alone(Hennink-Kaminski and Reichert). Another route taken in order to achieve the unrealistic body types seen in advertisements are extreme dieting which can lead to eating disorders such as anorexia nervosa and bulimia. Various studies of female adolescents and adults in the United States, Canada and Australia found that High frequency of universal social comparison, or comparing ones appearance with that of highly visible targets in society, such as models in advertisements or celebrities on television, is a predictor of low appearance self-esteem, body dissatisfaction, dieting to lose weight, and unhealthy weight control habits in studies conducted in these countries (Darlow and Lobel). These unrealistic ideals of beauty can have a detrimental effect on a womans perception of herself over a period of time. It is hard to decipher what is real and what is unreal just by looking at an image because of the flawlessness that technology provides. At first, the blurred lines between image and reality can work in the favor of marketers but over a period of time, this false sense of reality can have a negative impact on a woman and

Freeman 17 how she views herself. The products and services that were created to help her feel better about her own self-image can backfire and lead her on a road to destruction. This is why it is essential for marketers to present realistic images that women can identify with and embrace.

A New Type of Beauty In the past few years, many have spoken out against the unrealistic representations of women presented in advertisements solely for the purpose of selling products or services. These advertisements do not represent the population and someone who is not aware of the statistics may be led to believe that the waif like size 0 model plastered on her favorite perfume advertisement is the norm not the exception. According to Martha Waggoner of msnbc.com, The average U.S. woman wears a size 14, and an estimated 56 percent of American women wear plus sizes, which start at size 14 or 16, depending on the brand.(Waggoner) If over half of the population is considered plus size, shouldnt this be the new normal? If so, advertisements need to be created to represent this growing figure of women who are not overweight but do not fit the thin is in ideal that advertisements around the world continue to promote. A few companies have stepped up to the plate in order to challenge this ideal and bring real women representations to the forefront. In 2004, Dove Inc. a leading beauty and personal care company created a Campaign for Real Beauty In the advertisements displayed on television, magazines and billboard around the globe, real women (meaning the women in the advertisements were not models or celebrities but regular everyday women) both young and old ranging from sizes 412 appeared and showed the world that beauty comes in all ages, shapes and sizes. This concept of displaying real women in advertisements wasnt something completely new as various celebrities have been photographed showing their flaws and imperfections in major magazines

Freeman 18 but for a company such as Dove whos main idea is to sell products to enhance or alter a womans appearance decided to take a different approach and focus on a womans natural beauty was a dramatic difference from the typical beauty advertisements that have been released throughout the last 50 years. Dove deviated from the norm in order to shock consumers and make them take notice of this new type of advertising. By showing older faces and curvy shapes, Dove may contribute to a changing definition of beauty advertisements in the future. Changes could include new ways of thinking about female beauty (e.g., older women can be beautiful, too), societal beauty standards (e.g., women are not going to put up with this anymore), and advertising (e.g., not all big corporations are evil) (Millard). Dove has also had to take on the challenge of helping women feel beautiful as they are while trying to encourage them to buy something in order to enhance their appearance. Many critics would say that the ad defeats the purpose of marketing any item pertaining to beauty because why would someone who is comfortable with the way they look buy a product to enhance their looks. Dove has answered critics doubts of the advertisements purpose by saying that Dove promises beauty in a bottle as other beauty advertisements do, but with a twist by suggesting that their products enhance what is already there with little additional effort (Millard). This new approach comes across as less harsh and abrasive and gently encourages the consumer to purchase the products being so because she is already beautiful naturally but by buying this product, the natural beauty that exist will already be enhanced. Unlike many companies advertising strategies, Dove has proven to show transparency with their Campaign for Real Beauty and if this is a sign of what is to come, other beauty industries will follow suit.

Freeman 19 The Self- Esteem Act Some people feel that even with advertising campaigns like Doves Campaign for Real Beauty showing a different image of beauty, many women will still fall for the unrealistic ideals of beauty that are presented in retouched pictures will have a negative impact on the way women view themselves. According to CBS2 News, critics are proposing legislation that would force companies to inform customers when the models in their ads have been photos hopped in order to improve their appearance (newyork.cbslocal.com) Seth Matlin, founder of self-empowerment website offourchests.com is the driving force behind the Self Esteem Act, which seeks to make consumers more aware of the digital enhancement that occurs in advertising (newyork.cbslocal.com). Matlin goes on to say that he believes that digitally enhanced advertising creates unrealistic expectations for young women and that advertisers are giving young girls the impression that they will never be good enough. He argues that by focusing on physical beauty, and by photo shopping already beautiful models, entire segments of the population is being excluded (newyour.cbslocal.com). If the Self Esteem Act were passed, it would place truth in advertising labels on ads or on editorials that have materially chan ged the human form by photo shopping or airbrushing. This would allow women to have a better understanding of what really goes on behind the scenes when creating the presentation for a product or service. Women would be able to see that what glitters is not always gold. Photo shopping in advertisements create an illusion that greatly differs from reality. In many ways, it can be seen as a form of magic with technology being the magician. The Self-Esteem act would uncover the curtain behind all of the tricks and techniques used to create these perfect images and would bring truth back to an industry that for many years has been misleading to its consumers. People who are against the Self Esteem Act claim that it would raise a serious

Freeman 20 freedom of speech issue. Nat Ives, an editor at Ad Age, says, Nobody wants the government to tell them what to say and they will say that this is forced speech that they have the right to express their product accurately however they want (newyork.cbslocal.com) There is a fine line when it comes to deciding whether an advertisement is an artistic expression that can be seen in a multitude of ways or whether marketers display advertisements that are meant to be seen in a specific light and as a result, can lead others to believe in exaggerated claims.

FDA/ASA Crackdown on Misleading Advertisements The Federal Drug Administration (FDA) has been adamant about protecting consumers rights especially when it comes to what can be considered as false or misleading advertising. FDA spokeswoman Tamara Ward stated FDA is concerned that consumers are being offered products with claims that are not supported by scientific data. FDA wants to ensure that labeling for cosmetic products is appropriate and that the products do not include claims that are not allowed."(latimes.com) In the United Kingdom, the British Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has taken drastic measures to make sure that consumers are not being misled by false advertising. In the last couple of years it has banned ads by Lancme, Maybelline, L'Oral Revitalift Repair 10 and DiorShow New Look Mascara starring such high profile celebrities such as Julia Roberts, Christy Turlington, Rachel Weisz and Natalie Portman, for being so extensively airbrushed or digitally altered that the product marketing claims were misleading, showing results too perfect to be true.(latimes.com) The FDA and ASA have also sent out warning to these companies to make sure that the claims that are stated in the advertisements are proven true. For example, if an anti-aging serum advertisement states that women saw a 43% reduction in the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles studies and tests must be shown to prove

Freeman 21 this statement. Just as photoshopped pictures can be deceiving; the claims can also fuel the fire and have a negative impact on a womans self-esteem.

Conclusion For thousands of years, women have wanted to be perceived as beautiful in the eyes of the opposite sex, their peers and most importantly, through their own eyes. Different cultures have their own ideals of beauty but one concept seems to remain constant. In order to be a happy and successful person in life, attain a certain ideal of beauty should be high up on ones list. Various products have been created to enhance positive attributes and diminish negative ones so that this ideal of beauty that they wish to attain is possible. Unfortunately, over time, these ideals of beauty have changed and have gone from realistic expectations of what one can look like to unrealistic expectations that can only be created through the magic of technology. Although a negative self- image cannot solely be attributed to the mass media, misrepresentation in advertising does little to improve the self-esteem of women and in fact contributes to the ongoing desire for women to be identical to what they feel others expect to see from them in order to be considered beautiful. In reality, many of the women in these advertisements do not fit the ideal of beauty that they portray to millions of women. Imperfections and flaws are not only masked with adornments but also with the claims that these women are exactly who they are shown to be and in order to be seen in the same positive light, one must go to whatever lengths to achieve these ideals. This could be doing something as simple as going to the local department store to purchase foundation or taking extreme measures such as getting rhinoplasty in order to have a slimmer more defined nose. Many of these decisions can be harmful not only to a womans self esteem but also to her health. In order for women to be able to buy products and services

Freeman 22 confidently, marketers have to bring awareness and truth in their advertisements to all the potential situations that can occur. This includes highlighting the good but most importantly, making sure that women know that there can be consequences to every action taken.

Freeman 23 Works Cited "BRAND PAPERS CULTURAL MARKETING: Culture Versus Country." Brand

Strategy (2006): 34-. ProQuest Central. Web. 7 Mar. 2013. "Slaves to Ideals of Beauty." The Mercury: 8. Aug 08 2012. ProQuest Central. Web. 7 Mar. 2013 . "Truth In Advertising: Act Seeks To Place Warning Labels On Enhanced Photos." CBS New York. CBS Radio Inc., 27 Nov. 2011. Web. 25 Feb. 2013. Darlow, Susan, and Marci Lobel. "Who is Beholding My Beauty? Thinness Ideals, Weight, and Women's Responses to Appearance Evaluation." Sex Roles 63.11-12 (2010): 833-43. ProQuest Central. Web. 1 Mar. 2013. Dawson, Alene. "Clamping down on Beauty Product Claims." Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles Times, 28 Oct. 2012. Web. 01 Mar. 2013. Englis, Basil G., Michael R. Solomon, and Richard D. Ashmore. "Beauty before the Eyes of Beholders: The Cultural Encoding of Beauty Types in Magazine Advertising and Music Television." Journal of Advertising 23.2 (1994): 49-. ProQuest Central. Web. 2 Mar. 2013. Heidi, J. Hennink, and Tom Reichert. "Using Sexual Appeals in Advertising to Sell Cosmetic Surgery: A Content Analysis from 1986 to 2007." Sexuality & Culture 15.1 (2011): 4155. ProQuest Central. Web. 1 Mar. 2013. Hitchon, Jacqueline Bush, Sung-Yeon Park, and Gi Woong Yun. ""You can Never be Too Thin" -- Or can You? A Pilot Study on the Effects of Digital Manipulation of Fashion Models' Body Size, Leg Length and Skin Color." Race, Gender & Class 11.2 (2004): 140-. ProQuest Central. Web. 7 Mar. 2013.

Freeman 24 Huckeba, Jennifer. "Emotional Response to Beauty." Florida Virtual Campus Library Services. Florida Virtual Campus, May 2005. Web. 3 Mar. 2013. Katherine, Toland Frith, Hong Cheng, and Ping Shaw. "Race and Beauty: A Comparison of Asian and Western Models in Women's Magazine Advertisements." Sex Roles 50.1-2 (2004): 53-61. ProQuest Central. Web. 18 Jan. 2013 Kenneth, A. Hunt, Jennifer Fate, and Bill Dodds. "Cultural and Social Influences on the Perception of Beauty: A Case Analysis of the Cosmetics Industry." Journal of Business Case Studies 7.1 (2011): 1-10. ProQuest Central. Web. 7 Mar. 2013. Millard, Jennifer. "Performing Beauty: Dove's "Real Beauty" Campaign." Symbolic

Interaction 32.2 (2009): 146-68. ProQuest Central. Web. 4 Mar. 2013. Peter, H. Bloch, and L. Richins Marsha. "You Look "Mahvelous": The Pursuit of Beauty and the Marketing Concept."Psychology & Marketing (1986-1998) 9.1 (1992): 3-. ProQuest Central. Web. 18 Jan. 2013. Rawe, Julie, Scully, Sean, "Why Teens Are Obsessed With Tanning?. Time 7 August 2006: 5456. Print. Solomon, Michael R., Richard D. Ashmore, and Laura C. Longo. "The Beauty Match Up Hypothesis:Congruence Between Types of Beauty and Product Images in Advertising." Journal of Advertising 21.4 (1992): n. pag. JSTOR: Journal of Advertising. JSTOR. Web. 02 Mar. 2013. Vacker, Barry, and R. Key Wayne. "Beauty and the Beholder: The Pursuit of Beauty through Commodities." Psychology & Marketing (1986-1998) 10.6 (1993): 471-. ProQuest Central. Web. 18 Jan. 2013.

Freeman 25 Waggoner, Martha Is TV finally accepting average-sized women? Msnbc.com, 26 August 2009. Web. 28 Feb. 2013. Yin, Bingqing, and Susie Pryor. "Beauty in the Age of Marketing." Review of Business & Finance Case Studies 3.1 (2012): 119-32. ProQuest Central. Web. 25 Jan. 2013.