Analysis of Persuasion in Dove Real Beauty Sketches - Essay Example

? The Stance of the Fatimids towards the Crusades and Analysis of Persuasion in Dove Real Beauty Sketches Introduction The Dove Real Beauty Sketches is an advertisement that the Unilever Company produced with the objective of describing to women that they are beautiful naturally. This is because women think that they are less beautiful than they should be, therefore, they search for artificial beauty in the world. The company created the film while conducting a research that indicated that only 4 % of the women in the globe describe themselves as being beautiful (Dove, 2013). The film, which compares, the images of women and strangers about various women uses numerous persuasion techniques to capture the attention of the viewers. An analysis of the persuasion techniques that the film uses is essential in understanding the reason why the video captured a market of fifteen million viewers within one month. Cialdini’s Weapons of Persuasion Cialdini describes successful marketing as a science rather than magic or luck. The author argues that public proof is one of the principles of successful persuasion, and marketers should make use of it by proving to their customers that other people have also tried their products or services (Cialdini, 1993). The Dove film uses social proof by showing the viewer the participants of the research, and how they described themselves. A viewer sees the women who took part in the research, and how they described themselves while behind a curtain. Viewers can also see the artist who sketched the appearances of the women as well as the strangers who described them during the study. This creates an impression in the mind of the viewer that there are other people who believe that they are beautiful more than the way they think (Perloff, 2010). Thus, women who view the film begin to view themselves as more beautiful than they think because they peers who took part in the research do so after the study. Cialdini also argues that consistency and commitment are other techniques of persuasion that can enable marketers to capture larger market shares than their competitors (Cialdini, 1993). The film by Dove uses this technique by ensuring that the women who take part in the study are asked the same questions, by the same artist, and in the same location. The strangers who describe the women also take part in the study in the same location and they answer the same questions (Dove, 2013). The viewers of the film think that the experience is real because of this consistency that the firm maintained throughout the study. Therefore, the audience is persuaded by the reality factor in the film, and they begin to view themselves in a more positive way. Older women also begin to view themselves as young and enthusiastic beings as Cialdini argues that they are more prone to inconsistency (Sullivan, 2008). The researcher argues that they prefer consistency and commitment more than the young because of their old age, which takes away most of their energy. Therefore, the consistency in the film may capture the attention of the elderly more than the young. Aristotle’s Artistic Proofs Aristotle argues that speakers have to persuade to their audience using their personal characteristics, proving to them, and ensuring that they influence their minds (Heinrichs, 2007). The lack of these elements is unproductive leading to low sales and profits for marketers. Ethos is the first technique that Aristotle describes as the art of creating authority and credibility to the audience (Oshaughnessy, 2004). This means that the audience is persuaded by speakers who have the qualifications to perform the tasks. The Dove film uses ethos in that the artist who sketches the women has the knowledge of sketching images in a perfect manner. Gil, Zamora, the artist is a forensic sketch artiste who has experience in drawing the sketches of over three thousand criminals (Dove, 2013). The artist also speaks in an authoritative way as he asks women to describe their faces, jaws, and heads. These details persuade the audience that the artist has the know-how to sketch the women according to how they describe themselves, and this means that they can trust the advice from the findings. Pathos is another technique that Aristotle advices marketer to use and it is a way of influencing the emotions of the audience (Perloff, 2010). This means that pathos persuade people because the emotions that they experience after listening to a speaker or viewing an advertisement enable them to feel that what they see or listen to is real. The Dove Real Beauty Sketches persuades the viewers of the film by using this technique. The viewers of the film are influenced by the descriptions of the women, for example, one of the participants argues that she has a round face while another one says that she has a protruding jaw. The audiences who hear these descriptions react to these words that the women use. The audience creates these images at the back of their minds while they listen to the descriptions. This enables the viewers to feel that they are part of the undertaking and it persuades them to follow the advice of the film. The Dove film also shows the audience the two pictures of every woman that the artist had drawn. These pictures propel emotions in the minds of the audience because of their enormous differences. The women also cry when they find out that their descriptions of themselves were worse than those of strangers (Dove, 2013). This also sends impulses in the bodies of the viewers and it convinces them to accept the fact that they are attractive. Aristotle also advises marketers to use reason to persuade their audience. The reasons used in pathos are mainly scientific, but they can also be human as long as they persuade consumers (Oshaughnessy, 2004). The film uses reason to convince the viewers when Zamora the artist who sketches the women asks them whether they think that they are more beautiful than they thought before taking part in the study. One of the women argues that women spend most of their time fixing things that are not right instead of appreciating them. This woman also says that she thinks that she is more beautiful than she thought. These arguments of the participant provide viewers with reasons to believe that they are also more attractive than they thought. The film also uses logos when the women describe the sketches that Zamora had drawn from their descriptions and those of strangers. The women who had earlier described themselves as having protruding jaws and round faces argued that the sketches whose descriptions belonged to strangers were more appealing and real than theirs. This is a proof and it is a reason that women should view themselves more positively after viewing the film. The fact that it is the participants who describe the pictures by themselves also provides viewers with foundations to think that the same would happen if they were the ones taking part in the study (Sullivan, 2008). The fact that the artist who draws the pictures of the women is experienced also provides viewers with the reason to believe that he draws images perfectly. This is also an efficient reason because Zamora has experience in sketching the images of over three thousand criminals while working in the forensic department of the state. Argumentation The sketch film also uses arguments to convince viewers. The arguments are portrayed when Zamora asks the women to describe the sketches that he drew from their descriptions and those of strangers (Dove, 2013). The women who described themselves as having rounded faces and protruding jaws argued that the sketches that were described by strangers were more perfect and appealing. These arguments by the participants induce the audience to act according to the final advice of the film. Nero-Linguistic Programming This is another technique of persuasion that is used in therapies to control the communication between therapists and their clients. Richard Bandler argues that therapists who have efficient communication skills have qualifications such as flexibility, respect clients, are precise in their actions, and they respond to the non-verbal communication of their clients (Perloff, 2010). Zamora the artist in the film respects his clients and he pays attention to the words that they use to describe themselves so that he can sketch their faces. However, the artist and the clients do not see each other; therefore, he is incapable of identifying their non-verbal communication. Despite this, the artist draws images perfectly based on the descriptions that he gets from the women. The organized communication and the use of clear words between the artist and the client convince viewers because they understand the activity that is taking place. Conclusion The Dove Real Beauty Sketches film was created by Unilever from the proceedings of a research that the firm conducted to determine whether women view themselves to be as beautiful as they are naturally. The film uses persuasion techniques such as the principles of Cildani, arguments, and rhetoric that was proposed by Aristotle. The film uses consistency and proof rules of Cildani to capture the attention of viewers, for example, when it ensures that the participants undergo the sketching from one location by answering similar questions. The film uses ethos, pathos, and logos. For example, one of the participants argues that the differences in the sketches gave her reason to view herself as appealing. This also provides the audience with the foundation to believe that they are gorgeous. The use of these persuasion techniques enabled the film to capture the attention of fifteen million viewers when it was posted on the internet. Bibliography Cialdini R., 1993. Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion. New York: William Morrow. Dove, 2013. Dove Real Beauty Sketches. You tube, [online] available at: [accessed 1 December 2013]. Heinrichs J., 2007. Thank You for Arguing: What Aristotle, Lincoln, and Homer Simpson Can Teach Us about the Art of Persuasion. New York: Three Rivers Press. O'Shaughnessy J and O'Shaughnessy N., 2004. Persuasion in Advertising. London: Routledge. Perloff R., 2010. The Dynamics of Persuasion: Communication and Attitudes in the Twenty-First Century. New York: Routledge. Sullivan, L., 2008. Hey, Whipple, Squeeze This: A Guide to Creating Great Advertising. Hoboken: John Wiley and Sons. Read More