The Salvation Army is using the buzz over #TheDress to bring attention to violence against women.@SalvationArmySA
Black and blue or gold and white? A maddening optical illusion had Internet users engrossed in debate last week over the perceived colours of a certain party dress. Now, a Salvation Army ad campaign is taking advantage of the buzz generated by the divisive dress, and is redirecting it to a far more serious topic: violence against women.
Shared widely on Twitter, the ad depicts a woman modelling the now-famous lacy dress, with a black eye, split lip, and bruises on her knees, thigh and wrist. Referencing the original colour debate, the accompanying copy reads: "Why is it so hard to see black and blue: The only illusion is if you think it was her choice. One in 6 women are victims of abuse. Stop abuse against women."
According to Adweek, the ad is the brainchild of South African agency Ireland/Davenport. Compared with numerous other marketing efforts to capitalize on #TheDress, this one seems to be turning heads. Though to what effect remains to be seen.
The initial tweets from The Salvation Army South Africa account showing the ad have since been retweeted more than 10,000 times. Support for @TheSalvationArmySA doesn't appear to have kept pace, with roughly 1,500 followers. And despite praise from Twitter users about the cleverness of the campaign, it's hard to tell whether it translates into meaningful conversations about violence against women that stretch beyond 140 characters.
Wency Leung