Abby O’Brien
Society convinces people through endless signals and motifs that age is something to fear and battle against. Women are consistently told that ageing should be prevented through 9 step beauty projects or preventative fillers/surgeries. This reinforces the idea for younger generations that aging is bad, which creates preconceptions and feelings of dread and anxiety about growing older.
In a survey of 45, 68.7% of women said they felt a sense of dread and gloom about getting older, expressing worries over their future appearance and life experiences. In contrast, through the same survey, women over 40 expressed different expectations they had before ageing and how most turned out to be false, finding ageing to be empowering and finding new ways to be confident when getting older. 76% of these women aged 35+ responded that they do not feel represented within the media.
Shine a light is a campaign aimed at turning those feelings of worry and anxiety into positivity, excitement and empowerment. By showcasing real women and authentic stories, illuminating the truth about aging can help the Gen-Z generation feel more relaxed about the realities of aging. It’s time to change the narrative of aging. By using the voices and stories from everyday women, this campaign can get women involved and help them shine a light on the positives of it. From real women it feels more trustworthy and authentic which will help Gen-Z.
The two touch points of this campaign are both interactive: on the website and in a pop-up experience. They are both focused on changing perceptions about what aging means by physically writing a worry about aging and turning the light on (a physical experience) to reveal real stories and experiences from women.
The campaign brand signifies the change in perception, and that feeling is kept consistent over the website. Getting out of the dark into the light is meant to signify the change that Gen-Z girls are experiencing as they go from their negative preconceptions into the positive, real ones.