About Dove:
Dove is a self-care brand owned by Unilever, introduced in 1957 in the United States. They sell products for men, women, and babies to over 150 countries worldwide. Their products are manufactured in countries like Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, Egypt, Germany, India, Mexico, Thailand, the United States, etc. As of 1991, Dove overtook Procter and Gamble and now contributes to 24% of the market solely based on its revenue. Dove sells a whopping $331 million in soaps per year. Today’s topic- Dove Competitor Analysis.
Dove sells products for faces like soaps, face washes, and those for the body like body wash, lotions and moisturizers, and many more. They also sell products like deodorants and hair care products like shampoos and conditioners that cater to various hair types. Dove is the one company that sells soaps that do not dry the skin but moisturize it. This quality is what attracted customers by promoting having healthy and glowing skin.
Target customers and branding strategies:
Dove’s brand targets females from the age of 18 to 35, who value healthy and beneficial beauty products. That’s how Dove started but eventually, they started targeting men and babies too. Their customers look for products with no chemical effect on the skin and Dove does exactly that.
Dove appealed to a larger audience by going against the generic marketing strategy of hiring models and actresses to promote their product. Dove decided to promote their product through real customers which helped them connect to other customers worldwide. They didn’t just show their product through tall, fair, blonde women, but women of all ethnicities and put across the message that beauty comes in all shapes, colors, and sizes. Their brand focuses on healthy and moisturized skin. This created a distinct image for Dove and it stood out among all the beauty brands.
In the 1980s and 1990s Dove expanded their product line as they started to go global. As they reached the 2000s and the modern era, they started a ‘Real Beauty Campaign’. After doing their research, they found out that only 2% of the women in the world consider themselves beautiful. This alarming result pushed them to start this campaign of promoting their product through real people with different ethnicities, colors, shapes, and sizes. This made women realize their beauty and that Dove believes in all kinds of beauty.
Dove arranged a special event called ‘Real Beauty Sketches’. This event had one artist and women coming in explaining how they look. The artist would sketch out the women’s faces as they described them. Then either strangers or loved ones of the women described how they look to the artist and the difference between the two sketches was unbelievable. It made women realize that they were more beautiful than they think and they are the only ones seeing themselves as ‘less beautiful’ The portraits made when their loved ones described them were so much more beautiful. This whole campaign put so much into perspective that we are all beautiful and nothing can ever change that.
Dove’s Competitors:
Dove has numerous competitors like Olay, Nivea, L’Oreal, Johnson & Johnson, Clinique, and many more. Olay had a unique marketing strategy by not mentioning the product is a moisturizer or beauty product in its packaging. They only promoted users to have younger-looking skin. Nivea founded in 1911, was considered one of the leading brands in skincare. They offered products for all skin types and all ages, both for men and women.
L’Oreal a French company catering to skincare and cosmetics was founded in 1909. Some of its brands are L’Oreal Paris, Garnier, Maybelline New York, and many more. They are one of Dove’s top competitors and very popular in the cosmetic industry. Johnson & Johnson founded in 1954 in Chicago, USA focussed on providing quality and safety standard products as their target customers were babies and toddlers. They produced products like baby lotion, baby wash, diaper cream, oil, powder, shampoo, toothbrushes, and many more. Their primary objective was to provide products that are safe for babies and keeps their skin soft and healthy.
Himalaya started in 1930 in Bangalore. The company focussed on bringing Ayurveda back into society. It focussed on producing safe and natural solutions for its customers. It is recommended by over 400,000 doctors worldwide and has customers in over 90 countries. They are well known for their baby products like baby lotion, rash creams, baby bath soaps, baby shampoos; healthcare products like massage oil, pain balms, antiseptic cream, and they are also known for their product that caters to face care, body care, and hair care.
Dove faces a few competitors in soaps and shampoos like Lux, Pears, Sunsilk, Pantene, etc. Lux markets themselves through the various fragrances of their products. Pears first started in 1807, in London and were known for the first-ever transparent soap. They promoted this product with its gentle properties and skin softening properties. Their target customers ranged from children to middle ages women. Brands like Sunsilk and Pantene produced products for hair care. Their campaigns focus on users having thick, healthy, and shiny hair. They provided solutions for hair fall and produced products for various hair types.
Analysis comparing Dove to other Companies:
Although Dove has all these competitors in the worldwide market, its ‘Unique Selling Point’ lies in its soaps moisturizing the skin instead of drying it. Not only this, it promotes beauty in all its forms and has the infamous tagline, “ You are more beautiful than you think. Dove promotes women’s healthy skin and encourages women to believe in their beauty. It is the only brand that markets itself from a customer point of view.
Dove has created a clear advantage for itself by staying true to the customers and by not creating any unrealistic beauty standards. They launched their soap bars by emphasizing it contains one-fourth moisturizing cream. It is gentle on the skin and also helps it thrive. With its ‘Real Beauty Campaign’ in 2003, it made customers more aware of themselves and brought in a larger demographic from various origins.
Conclusion:
Dove has done so much for its customers by providing them with quality products and making them aware of what real beauty is. It has gone above and beyond the expectations of a beauty brand and makes every user feel special. In a world with so much negative energy, they have done their role by removing that hate and criticism from inside us. Only if we start seeing the beauty in ourselves, can we see the beauty in everything and everyone around us.