Guest Author - Laurie Pawlik-Kienlen

This campaign is newly launched in Turkey; it's all about celebrating women of all shapes and sizes, ages and appearances. Photos of everyday women are plastered all over billboards, bus shelters, television commercials, and mass transportation hubs.

Even in Turkey?
Especially in Turkey, women are more concerned with beauty and youth than other cultures, says Sociology Professor Nilufer Narli (Bahcesehir University). The cultural aspect is strong: women should please men with their attitudes and bodies. An influx of Russian sex-workers over the past decade has increased the emphasis on physical beauty in Turkey.

Happy with how you look?
According to a Dove survey in 2006, 98% of women are unhappy with their appearance. This number seems awfully high – are we really this dissatisfied with our sizes and shapes? If so, all the soap and moisturizer in the world won't help us, nor will plastic surgery or even weight loss. What will help is learning to love and accept who we are regardless of what we look like.

Real beauty
One of the real models in this campaign, Mevhes Aslan, stated that "Real beauty is the feeling the person has about themselves more than physical appearance." Your perspective, attitude, and self-esteem is what makes you beautiful! Your skin tone, nose shape, or the size of your thighs is irrelevant.

A woman in her late 60's told me that she looks at pictures of herself at 30, and she can't believe how great she looked! She was always dieting and chastising herself for her weight and appearance, when all along she was so much more beautiful than she thought. She said if she were to do it all over, she would focus more on enjoying life and people than her body and weight.

Not everyone supports this campaign
Some women's groups and pro-family organizations are boycotting Dove because of the photos of the nude grey-haired woman. They state that Dove is sexualizing women as a commercial tool and exposing children inappropriate nudity. It's using female nudity to sell products – what's the difference if it's an older or younger woman?

Dove states the campaign isn't about nudity. It's about honesty and celebrating women for who they are – because they're beautiful just as they are.

Increased sales?
Even if Dove doesn’t directly benefit from increased sales, women all over the world may feel better about their own shapes and sizes. In fact, Dove's brand manager in Turkey reported that there hasn't been a jump in sales because of this campaign, but the image of Dove is being recreated.

Seeing "real" women all over the place may make us regular women feel good about who we are – and give us hope for aging well in the future (just like fine wine).

Your thoughts?
What's your opinion on this campaign? Join our forum and let's toss some ideas around!