Billie is a company that provides high-quality shaving supplies and body products without any pink tax. Thus, providing body care products at a more affordable price. Pink tax is the tax that women have to pay for certain things such as dry cleaning and personal care products.
Project Body Hair was started as a result of the organization’s realization that there was an absence of commercials and adverts from women's razor brands that show body hair. It is a campaign that promotes the idea that body hair on women is normal and should be normalized by society.
The tagline is “However, whenever, if ever, you want to shave, we’ll be here.” It allows for women all over the world to stop being ashamed of their body hair by posting pictures online using the hashtag #projectbodyhair.
The portrayal of body hair is the first in 100 years (as stated by the website/co-founder). This creates a tone to the audience that they are “witnessing history” or that “they are a part of something great”.
Other competition razor brands usually show models “shaving” their already smooth skin. The co-founder of Billie, Georgina Gooley mentioned that releasing a campaign that normalizes body hair, changes the one-dimensional way in how women are portrayed in mass media as only showing smooth and hairless legs in advertising represents women in an archaic way.
The shock factor registers to the target audience of teenage women and middle-aged women who feel the need to shave because of societal norms. The fact that the ad makes people uncomfortable supports the statement that because we have seen razor ads or shaving ads or anything similar to this, we already have a set-notion of why this ad is “wrong”.
Consumers nowadays buy products from companies that share the same ideals, following the idea that humans always have an innate need to belong. By playing on this concept, marketers are able to create more effective ads and commercials. Similarly, releasing an online platform through the hashtag, it encourages women to be proud of who they are. This is the time for a change and for Billie as a company to recognize this, allowing for a large outpour of support from women all over the world as seen through social media platforms. It encourages women to be “a little fuzzier”.
Companies use “shock marketing” in order to spark interest by their wide population of readers. In the case of Billie, they are a new company that wants to get attention from potential customers, thus, by creating an ad that breaks the fourth wall and proves that they have the same ideals as women from across the globe, it was able to spread rapidly. Also, it generated a lot of buzz since the ad will stick to the consumer’s mind due to the uniqueness of it, in terms of the ad itself.
The ad features women of different skin tones and shapes as well allowing for the company to show that they are inclusive. Billie uses political activism to engage their target audience as they are trying to present their beliefs, attitudes, and ideologies of their goals towards the audience. The diversity of the models demonstrate that the brand is for everyone as every woman can see someone on screen that looks like them.
Pastel colors and dreamy aesthetics are used to portray a more feminine atmosphere contrasting the background song, Tomboy by Princess Nokia. Essentially, the song is about reclaiming your femininity and being proud in your own skin which is what the brand tries to exemplify.
The ad was done extremely well, both in aesthetics but also in the way the message was conveyed. This is definitely one that will forever stay with me as one of the most uplifting and beautiful ads in history.