Unilever Extends Dove Online
Unilever’s latest Dove launch gets a double dose of video support, with a videoblog piggybacked to an ad contest.
Unilever is launching Dove Cream Oil Body Wash with a contest inviting consumers to create a 30-second TV spot for the new product. The winning spot will air during the Feb. 25 Academy Awards; the creator wins a trip to Los Angeles for a private viewing party of the awards and an Oscar after-party. (Two finalists also win a trip to Los Angeles for the viewing party; 10 semi-finalists each win a Dove-branded robe and tote bag and Dove products.)
The contest gets a boost from a videoblog that Dove body wash is sponsoring. The blog, “Starring Amanda Congdon,” is written by an actress who is also the co-president of Oxmour Entertainment. Congdon is a longtime blogger whose work appears weekly on ABCNews.com last year she traveled across the country and chronicled the trip via videoblog.
On her site starringamandacongdon.com, Congdon has asked viewers to collaborate on an entry for Dove’s ad contest. Viewers suggest ideas; Congdon will shoot and star in a 15-second for the body wash. Dove’s consumer contest began Dec. 14 and runs through Jan. 15. The new body wash hits stores nationally in February.
“The Dove brand is excited to partner with a great new media personality. Amanda’s experience in the videoblogging space makes her an excellent fit for a consumer-generated video campaign,” said Babs Rangaiah, Unilever’s USA Director of Media and Entertainment. “It allows us to tap into her viewership, which includes a large number of content creators.”
Congdon’s blog is powered by blip.tv, which distributes independent Web-based TV shows and videos. The site’s other sponsor is PalTalk, an online chat community
Dove has gotten enormous attention online this year. A one-minute commercial for the brand, “Evolution,” has drawn at least 200,000 views on YouTube and spawned at least one spoof, “Slob Evolution,” on the video-sharing site. Dove’s video, which shows an ordinary-looking model going through a time-elapsed makeover, including airbrushing, before having her photo posted on a billboard, promotes the Dove Real Beauty Workshops for Girls, run by the Dove Self-Esteem Fund.
