Working in advertising behind the scenes of marketing campaigns, sponsored galleries, and curated content that aligns perfectly with the launch of a new product or to build awareness for a well-established brand, I find that the challenge usually lies in extracting something that will be truly beneficial to the readers, the users, the viewers, essentially you, the audience.
This video from Always does not fit the usual template, the typical shot of the product is missing, the call out of the benefits of said product appear nowhere to be found, yet it has given the audience something more: something to think about.
Always challenges both men and women to act "Like a Girl". The director instructs the participants to run, throw, and fight "Like a Girl," the results of course are comical, yet we realize the fault in our initial response to the question once we meet the young girls who show us what its really like to act "Like a Girl" and I could not be more happy to see their responses, as I'm sure many of you were.
This campaign echos what we've seen in recent Dove "Camera Shy" commercials where unexpected women are being followed around and of course while lounging around their house they refuse to be in the camera shot, however once again, the younger generation of girls happily pose for the camera. The tag line "When did you stop thinking you're beautiful?" flashes and we are reminded of the innocence of self confidence.
It is my hope that these messages force us women to change and return to how we used to see ourselves. After all, if beauty is in the eye of the beholder, only our opinion of ourselves is what matters the most.
What I really like about the "Like a Girl" campaign is that women are not just objects of beauty, it reminds us that we are strong, we can win races, we can be whoever we want to be.
To me #LikeAGirl means finding out who you truly are as a woman and being proud of that. For me it means realizing your full potential and being able to achieve any goal you decide upon. Our dreams and ambitions are just as important and I highly advise women to strive to run companies, to become top engineers, to discover the secrets of science, and unlock the next greatest technological advancement. Being #LikeAGirl is not a choice, we are born as girls, what we do with that is up to us.
I hope these commercials inspire you as much as they have for me and I leave you with powerful words from a powerful woman, whenever you need an extra push listen to this song and I promise you will rule the day.
