5 Best International Women's Day Marketing Campaigns to Inspire You

Every year on March 8th, people around the world celebrate International Women's Day. This is another great opportunity to show all the wonderful women in our lives how amazing, powerful, and beautiful they are. It is also a day to empower them to dream and achieve more.

This day is also an excellent opportunity for marketers and brands worldwide to get themselves out there and show the world that they are advocating for gender equality and do their fair share to empower women. Some approach this day as a marketing opportunity, some as a way to manifest themselves as a force of good and promote an important message, and some do both.

The results of these efforts are powerful marketing campaigns that attracted and empowered millions. In this article, we are taking a closer look at 5 of those campaigns that made an impact.

Campaign 1: Women’s Aid, “Look at Me”

Let's start with the wonderful campaign from Women’s Aid, a charity working to eliminate domestic abuse towards women and children. Their "Look At Me" campaign was a series of interactive outdoor billboards that were displayed on large screens in crowded areas around the United Kingdom. Featuring images of bruised women who were victims of domestic abuse. The images were not static: if the passer-bys ignored the billboard, the image stayed the same. If they stopped and looked at it, the bruises would slowly fade and eventually disappear. The campaign drew public attention to the issue that is often swiped under the rug. They also transferred an important message: your actions matter, don't be indifferent.

The campaign was a result of collaboration between Women's Aid and two creative agencies, WCRS and Ocean Outdoor to ideate and realize the campaign, which later went on to win different awards, and reach almost 330 million people.

Campaign 2: Nike, “Dream Crazier”

The next one on our list of best International Women's Day campaigns is Nike's "Dream Crazier." The video features female athletes who have broken barriers and opened doors for future generations of athletes to achieve their dreams.

"Dream Crazier" Serena Williams, Simone Biles, Kathrine Switzer, and other famous athletes who've pushed the boundaries of female sports and achieved success and worldwide acclaim despite adversities. To make it even better, Serena Williams, arguably one of the best tennis players to ever live, narrates the video.

We love the campaign for its powerful message and how it celebrates women and inspires them, instead of pushing a product or trying to increase sales during the holiday. The campaign showed actual footage of women around the world in their vulnerable moments and emotional outbursts, during which they are likely to receive criticism, and aims to turn that criticism into a source of inspiration.

Campaign 3: PayPal, “#BalanceForBetter”

Let's talk business. Or, more specifically, the “#BalanceForBetter” campaign by PayPal for International Women’s Day 2019.

For this campaign, PayPal created a video featuring businesswomen holding leadership positions across different companies. In the video, they share their experiences in the business world, as well as talk about their attempts to bring balance to the workforce (hence the campaign name!) Starting with some crucial statistics about the gender imbalance in the business world, bringing the attention of the viewers to the issue. The video then moves on to fun but enlightening discussions between Louise Pentland, PayPal's executive vice-president for chief business affairs, and two other businesswomen about diversity and inclusion in the workspace.

Interesting and inspiring, the campaign is a wonderful tribute to all the women who pave a way for other women in the men-dominated world of business. And the fact that the video was created by a team consisting entirely of women is just the cherry on top.

Apart from the video, as part of the campaign, which ran from 8th to 23rd of March, PayPal made significant donations to businesses that supported women and drew attention to the fact that they have an equal pay policy for all their teams across the world.

Campaign 4: Dove, “Real Beauty”

Dating back to 2004, the "Real Beauty" campaign by Dove is one of the more well-known International Women's Day campaigns. The key theme of the video campaign is the women's perception of themselves.

In the video, an artist sketches women without seeing them, first based on their description of themselves, and then from the description of others. The women then compare the two sketches, and in most cases, the one based on women's descriptions of themselves resulted in a worse-looking picture. This helped to highlight the gap in perception women have about themselves and how they often judge themselves harsher than necessary.

Dove has long been a brand that through its products and campaigns worked towards empowering and liberating women, helping them to live a comfortable life they love. With this emotional campaign, already a marketing classic too, they did a wonderful job in spreading their brand message and value.

Campaign 5: Barbie, “Close The Dream Gap”

The next one we want to discuss is the brilliant campaign by Barbie dedicated to International Women's Day in 2018. The company has based their campaign on the research showing that starting from age 5, girls start to have self-limiting beliefs, which Barbie called "The Dream Gap." These limitations led them to grow up with belief that they are less capable than boys.

The video features young girls and is based on previous research on the matter. It kicks off with important statistics showing how these beliefs stem from the attitude of surrounding people, either consciously or subconsciously. In addition to the touching and insightful video, the same year Barbie also launched The Dream Gap Project to help battle these limiting beliefs. Through the campaign, the company raised $250,000 which they donated to charities supporting girls and women and providing them with tools to achieve their goals.

The company has also successfully integrated the campaign as part of their larger operations: Barbie has been regularly creating dolls of inspirational characters, such as doctors, engineers, and scientists. As part of "The Dream Gap," they've increased the line by introducing dolls of para-athletes, Olympic champions, and other inspirational women. As part of the campaign, Barbie has also introduced new dolls based on inspirational women.

"The Dream Gap" was well-accepted and loved because of its powerful message that women can have any dream and can achieve it, and they shouldn't be told otherwise. The campaign also benefited Barbie, showing it as a brand committed to empowering women.

Wrapping Up

Taking a stance on social issues becomes more and more important, and brands realize they cannot remain neutral. We hope these brands and their powerful campaigns inspired you to create your own International Women's Day Campaign.