WARSAW, POLAND — Women in Poland are hearing the word NO too often. In contrary, the YES brand wants them to hear YES more often. In their latest campaign I am a Woman featuring Aleksandra Żebrowska and Katarzyna Zillmann, among others, says YES and gives a tribute to all the women, their diversity, courage, independence, strength, emotions, and sensitivity. Only TVP public television in Poland, control of the right-wing Law and Justice (PiS) party said NO to the campaign created by 180heartbeats + JUNG v MATT agency.
The main characters are strong and exceptional women, and the film tells the story of each of them: businesswoman and a mother of three children Aleksandra Żebrowska; rower and Olympic runner-up Katarzyna Zillmann with her girlfriend Julia Walczak; Aleksandra Wiederek-Barańska, who for over five years has been encouraging people to get tested and prevent breast cancer; Christina Flagmeier, who became a model at the age of 74, and Bogna Golec, a plus-size model. Campaign combines also from “I am a woman, because I feel like one” sponsorship billboard, featuring Neo Mosa, a gender fluid person who will be the face of the brand in March.
TVP was the only station to say NO to broadcast the campaign, explaining that it is harmful to its viewers and their sensitivity. TVP demanded the removal of shots with non-heteronormative couples, as well as nudity (a breastfeeding woman and a woman after mastectomy). However, the so-called nudity could be tolerated by TVP after 8 PM, but non-heteronormative couples could not be tolerated at any time
YES Jewellery brand has been LISTENING to women’s voices for years:
“As a brand co-created by women we want to meet their real and authentic needs,” says Justyna Lach, marketing director of YES Jewellery. “To listen to women, not to tell them what they should be like. We are open to all various aspects of femininity – being a mother, single, part of the LGBT+ community, at any age, regardless of skin color, appearance, etc., as shown by the heroines of our newest campaign. We do not want to create a world in which women do not find themselves. It is women who now have the voice and speak out loudly about how they want to be portrayed, including in advertisements. Nobody should ignore the voice of women – they constitute half of humanity,” she emphasizes.
Unfortunately, more than half (59 percent) of the women surveyed say that many ads show an outdated image of women, and 76 percent suggest that they see mostly very thin women in ads. The women featured in the ads also tend to be young, and 68 percent say there are not enough older women in the ads.
Most women (68 percent) also don’t feel represented in ads, with the vast majority (81 percent) emphasizing that they would like to see all types of women used by brands.*
There is a lot of research on the impact of marketing and how powerful it is – young women receive around 10,000 messages a day from brands. Many advertisements repeat the same damaging messages over and over again, typically: be slimmer, be more feminine, and look younger, which has a destructive effect on not only women but girls as well.
“We love working for brands that want to change the status quo and are not afraid of bold topics,” says Radosław Smorga, business director at 180heartbeats +JUNG v MATT. “Until now, marketing often encouraged women to please others, not themselves and feel good in their own skin. This often involved brands identifying something that was supposedly wrong with women and then offering to help them improve that flaw. We wanted to break that with our approach. We also didn’t say our last NO on this topic. We hope this is the beginning of a great collaboration with YES and in that spirit, we want to create more campaigns together,” he adds.
The digital campaign is available on the Internet, social media, and VOD platforms. YES brand spots – 30” and 15” versions, as well as sponsorship billboards, will be available on TVN and Polsat channels as well as Cinema City (onscreen) from mid-November. Moreover, the spots will also be broadcast in Yes stores – the campaign will be carried out in Poland and the Czech Republic.
The campaign also included a photoshoot made by Gosia Turczyńska. Photos will be used in digital, ooh, press, and YES salons.
The spots were directed by Krzysztof Grajper. Production was handled by F25, with post-production by Xantus. The video uses fragments of the Habanera aria from Georges Bizet’s opera “Carmen” – the music was licensed by Massive Music Warsaw. Media planning and buying was done by MullenLowe MediaHub.
Women featured in the “I am a Woman” Yes Jewelry campaign:
Aleksandra Żebrowska – Influencer, businesswoman, mother of three. In her online activity, she shows the pros and cons of motherhood. With original and authentic content, she makes her audience realize that being a mom doesn’t have to be perfect. She focuses on naturalness and authenticity.
Katarzyna Zillmann – Polish rower, Olympic vice-champion, world, and European champion. She is a declared lesbian, for many years living in a happy relationship with her girlfriend, Julia Walczak. She has the courage to speak out about her orientation, and fights for the rights of LGBTQIA+ people.
Christina Flagmeier – She became a model at the age of 74. She appeared, among others, on the cover of the Polish edition of Elle magazine. She shows that beauty is not to be defined by age.
Aleksandra Wiederek-Barańska – She has been battling breast cancer since she was 29 years old. Despite the disease, she lives her life to the fullest, fighting for her health every day. Through her story, she promotes knowledge about breast cancer, encourages prevention and regular examinations.
Bogna Golec – Plus size model. Breaks the commonly accepted canons of beauty and makes people realize that being a woman has no limits and no predetermined size. She promotes body-positivity movement.
Neo Mosa – they are fluid gender and cannot be locked into one identity: “Sometimes I feel male, the next day female, but I am always both,” they say. “Pronouns are not a problem for me because the essence of my being is that I am a soul, and soul has no gender.” It is similar to what they do in life. They create multidisciplinary art and gets excited about finding different ways to express themselves through music, drawing, or dressing.
* Data: https://www.marketingweek.com/sneaky-sexism-advertising/
