An explorative study of the relationship between consumer feelings toward body positive advertisements and its influence on brand perception

Abstract

This research paper explores the nature of body positive advertisements through the perceptions of South African women and if it can influence how they perceive a brand. Body Positive advertisements are rooted in the body positive movement which started in the 60s and has evolved into upbeat, love yourself advertisements portraying models of differing shapes, sizes and ethnicities. Supported by substantial studies that investigated the harmful nature of thin-ideal imagery and photoshopped images, South African brands have been increasingly utilizing diversity in their model selection, particularly including models of larger sizes. Given the intricate nature of perceptions and feelings the researcher utilized qualitative structured in-depth interviews to truly explore and gain in-depth insight. Data was collected by conducting four in-depth semi-structured interviews of South African women within the Gauteng area. Due to the small sample size, the research cannot be generalized to the total population of South African women but rather grant meaningful insight into how they feel toward this rising trend of advertising. From a thematic analysis of the data, it was evident that the South African woman who participated in the study strongly linked their concept of body positive advertisements with the depiction of a diverse range of models. This influenced how they compared themselves to the models in the campaign and if they felt the campaign represented them. Interestingly, the researcher found in the absence of perceived similarity, if the perception of diversity was maintained, participants felt positive toward the advertisement and the brand. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed below.