Christian Women: 3 Action Items to Consider if You Want to be Saved and Sexy

For Christian women, concerns about modesty and “appropriate” dress is nothing new, but in the days of Instagram imposed beauty standards, such looming concerns seems to be more relevant than ever, as we often find ourselves questioning: "Can I glorify God and still be sexy?" As a marketing student at Northwestern University and Christian woman who loves both fashion and God, I’ve found 2 pieces of content that will help you learn how to do just that.  

In the first article, "6 Bible Verses About Women's Beauty ~ It's Okay To Be Sexy," blogger and therapist Dr. Sophia Reed suggests that women of faith can indeed be sexy—but not in the way that the world typically views the term. In her opinion, being sexy does not mean you post sexually suggestive bikini pictures on Instagram. Instead, sexy is about confidently channeling your inner Esther: the natural allure that uniquely exists in every woman. Using supporting scripture, Dr. Sophia concludes that being both godly and sexy is about finding an appropriate, yet happy medium. At the end of the day, being godly doesn’t mean you have to cover up the natural curves and beauty that God gave you, while being sexy doesn’t mean over-flaunting that beauty.  

The next piece I found is a Fashion Nova Try on Haul by Christian YouTuber and fashionista MsNaturallyMary (aka Mary Bennett). While Fashion Nova is infamous for its trendy and often revealing fashionwear, Mary challenges herself to dig through the site and find tasteful clothing that compliments her thick and curvy body without being over-revealing. In the video, she tries on a range of outfits that could be appropriate for church, work, date night, and even a day at the beach. Ultimately, she shows women that they can be fashionable and sexy on any occasion without going over the top and attracting the wrong type of attention.

After reviewing these pieces and utilizing my experience as a­­­­ marketing student, I have developed 3 action items you should consider when thinking about how to channel your sexy in a godly way: 

• Everything in moderation – Sexy doesn’t have to be synonymous with minimal clothing—we can shop at Fashion Nova and slay without revealing everything our mamas gave us.
• Follow great bloggers – MsNaturallyMary and Drusilla Shay are two of my go-tos for fashion inspo, but I also love Pastor Sarah Jakes Roberts (yes, even pastors can be fashionable) and her Woman Evolve collection.
• Consider your intentions – You deserve to express your creativity and look and feel your best, but if you want to dress sexy solely to attract lustful attention, you might need to do a quick heart check. 

So ladies, next time you’re questioning if it’s okay to be saved and sexy, remember these three action items!

Danielle Underwood is a Northwestern University senior studying Radio/Television/Film and Integrated Marketing and Communications. She holds a leadership position in her Black Campus Ministry and serves as a Young Life Leader in the Chicagoland Northshore. She is passionate about encouraging people in Christ and has a YouTube channel with her best friend which is dedicated to documenting her faith journey and showing people how to glorify God and be culturally relevant. 

    

College Students: The Dangers of Fat Talk and How to Combat It

We’ve all heard it; we’ve all done it. Fat talk and muscle talk have reduced our precious words to
degrading our bodies and those of others. As a graduate student in the Northwestern Medill Integrated Marketing Communications(IMC) program with an interest in positive body image, I have examined two brilliant articles that delve into the dangers of "fat talk" and "muscle talk" and have provided 3 strategies to combat these degrading practices.

According to a 2014 Huffington Post article, "How Fat Talk Became a Social Epidemic – And How you Can Stop It," the term "fat talk" was coined in 1994 to describe how young women talked about their bodies in a "self-abasing and apologetic" manner. The term was later redefined by Notre Dame psychology professor Alexandra F. Corning as "self-degrading talk about the body, food or eating." Fat talk is a critical element within the phenomenon of "normative discontent" - a term describing how people are socialized to feel and speak negatively about their bodies. If my friend complains about her enormous thighs, I feel compelled to negate her comment and chime in with a complaint about my own body as an expression of empathy. People feel as if they must conform to these practice to provide and receive reassurance, garner acceptance from peers, and interact with others. A study conducted by researchers at Northwestern University reported that around 93% of college women have engaged in fat talk.

Fat talk is as damaging as it is pervasive. Fat talk reinforces the idea that certain body types are inherently bad. This idea, perpetuated by our favorite TV shows, movies, magazines, and clothing companies, instigates a fear and preoccupation with avoiding "fatness" that can quickly escalate into self-loathing. "We're so afraid that our bodies might be perceived as fat," stated "Fat Activist" Lindsey Averill "Fat is literally one of the worst things you can be in our culture, and it comes with so many different prejudices and negative effects, that when we look in the mirror, we're so afraid of crossing over into that category and we internalize that fear into hate."  Indeed, Northwestern researchers reported that those engaging in fat talk reported higher levels of body dissatisfaction and guilt than their body-positive counterparts. These heightened dissatisfaction levels are linked to higher rates of disordered eating and eating disorders.

A New York Times article "Fat Talk Compels but Carries a Cost" echoed these concerns and highlighted an important, but often overlooked, part of the equation: men. Renee Engeln, Director of the Body and Media Lab at Northwestern University stated that men often perseverate on different issues than women, such as thinness and muscular bulk, but are also susceptible to these damaging conversations.

The pervasive and escalating nature of fat talk makes it difficult to break.  We have become comfortable with self deprecation that confidence is perceived as "unsympathetic" and "arrogant."  Confidence, however, remains an important catalyst for changing the conversation.  Based on my experience with Body Positive Activism and Fitness I have provided three important steps, based on the findings of the articles discussed, to combat fat talk and promote positive-body image.

1. Break the Cycle - The first step to defeating fat talk is not partaking in it. When those around you speak disparagingly about their body or those of others, don't engage. Instead, redirect the conversation.  Reassuring your friends that they are "not fat!" only reinforces ideas that fat is "bad."  A more compassionate and productive way to support your friend would be to ask directly what they're actually thinking or feeling...the likelihood is that their verbal expression of body discontent is related to something deeper.

2. Leverage Your Relationship With the Person

Your response to people in these conversations should depend on your relationship to him/her.  You talk differently with your best friend than you do your classmate.  Shutting down fat-talk follows the same rules.

3. Change the Way You Talk 

In order to stop fat talk, you have to monitor your own language. Don't say anything about yourself that you wouldn't say about your best friend. Educate yourself on the media's body shaming tactics and don't ascribe to them.  Carolyn Bates, a senior at Notre Dame, doesn't say that she doesn't fit into clothing, but rather, that the clothing doesn't "get" her. This lighthearted positive attitude, is refreshing in an all-too critical world. By serving as a strong role-model for body acceptance and positivity, others are sure to follow. 

Fat talk is pervasive and harmful. It detracts from the quality of our interactions with others, our self-esteem, and our mental health. By practicing the above three steps, we can work to stop the cycle of fat-talk and engage in more productive conversation.  In doing so, we not only protect ourselves from the harms of fat talk, but those around us who may be affected second or third hand. Fat talk stops with you.

Huffington Post - Rebecca Adams
New York Times - Jan Hoffman

Colleen Daly is a M.S. Candidate in Integrated Marketing Communications at the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University.  She is the Co-Founder of Embody Carolina, an organization that trains college students to serve as compassionate and effective allies for those struggling with eating disorders.  She is a nationally certified fitness instructor and personal trainer, and body image advocate. 

Beauty Industry Executives: 3 Steps to Integrate Technology into your Business

If you’re a beauty industry executive, you are seeing the train take off toward digital, social, and mobile technologies, but you may be unsure of how you can incorporate it into your brand or if your brand fits. As a student in the Medill Integrated Marketing Communications Master’s program at Northwestern University, studying marketing trends and customer value, I have researched two articles that show that the beauty industry is headed toward technology integration to stay ahead of consumer needs.

Beauty industry managers need to start meeting their customers at every touch point. Vlogs are becoming increasingly popular with beauty professionals and influencers demonstrating make-up, hair, skin, and nail tips as stated in Deanna Utroske’s article Women’sMarketing Outlines Top Trends for Personal Care Brands from CosmeticsDesign.com. Women are looking for content that is relevant to them and easy to navigate. Sites like YouTube, Instagram, and Facebook have attracted popular beauty brands to create accounts where they give tips, tricks, and how-tos on their products. Real connections are being made between brands and their consumers through social media and digital applications.

Photo Courtesy of VRWorld

Furthermore, in the article How Technology is Transforming the Cosmetics Industry from The Telegraph, Sophie Curtis states that cosmetic companies are starting to partner with technology firms to produce apps and other digital content for their consumers. Customers seeking beauty products still like the tangibility of in-store purchasing, however, with these digital technologies customers can accurately try products on their own face with their cellular device. According to Curtis, 87% of people are expected to be shopping online and 45% of people via mobile phones by the year 2020. With a growing population in mobile shopping, cosmetics companies must learn to give their consumers the tangibility they seek with the ease of purchasing digitally as well.

After researching these two articles along with my graduate learnings in the Medill IMC program, here are three action items I recommend you consider:

1.      Embrace digital: Computers and laptops are becoming outdated as more users switch to their mobile phones and tablets to surf the Web. Creating content that is adapted to those devices means your brand is being seen in more places.

2.     Vlog to gain credibility: Seeing someone red carpet ready is different than knowing how to make that look happen for yourself. Consumers roam the internet in search of trustworthy beauty insights and it will also make your brand visible in yet another way.

3.    Meet the customer at every touch point: With the amount of brand saturation in the marketplace, companies need to be able to connect with their customer at each point of contact. This will ultimately make the purchasing decision easier for the customer.

As a beauty industry executive, incorporating these steps into your businesses will create long lasting customer loyalty which will increase revenues and profits. Not only will customers be loyal to your brand, but they will become brand advocates because you are what they need you to be, when they need you to be it, how they need you to be it.

Christiana is currently a 2015 graduate candidate for the Master of Science in Integrated Marketing Communication at the Medill School at Northwestern University. With a Bachelor from the Walter Cronkite School at Arizona State University, Christiana focused her early career on public relations in start-up’s and major corporations. Realizing she had a passion for the customer, she switched to a career in consumer event management. Christiana would like to find work with building stronger, sustainable beauty brands.

Contact Christiana through Twitter or LinkedIn.

Beauty Marketers: How natural beauty brands can make a greater ‘social’ impact

As a beauty marketer, you are witnessing a major shift from traditional media to social to connect with the beauty conscious woman. As a marketing and communications graduate student at Northwestern University passionate about living a healthy lifestyle, I have found two articles which provide interesting insights into social media and the marketing of beauty brands. 

In an interesting article in Forbes Magazine titled, How Social Media is Fueling The Next $1B Beauty Brand, entrepreneur Jane Park discusses how she uses social media to create, test and sell new products. Since many of the businesses in this industry operate on a small scale, social media is the best tool to create awareness and generate mass appeal. In addition, there's a growing mistrust in mass-produced products, where consumers are avidly reading labels and demanding chemical free alternatives. Therefore, social media is a good tool for organic/ naturally based beauty brands to offer consumers reassurance.

Another article recently printed in the New York Times, entitled Younger Skin Through Exercise, emphasizes how running can help keep you skin looking younger. Consumers making the commitment to invest in natural products often want ideas on how to live naturally in other aspects of their life. For example, many beauty enthusiasts are constantly looking for ways to improve their appearance overall without having to resort to chemicals or surgery. It’s not enough to just be on social media to grow your customer base; it’s important to continually aggregate content that appeals to this audience.  Who wouldn’t choose to work out over paying thousands of dollars for Botox? 

Based on my analysis of the two articles, here are three action items I recommend you consider in developing you future social strategies.

• Think multi-channel- Sometimes video is more impactful than text or pictures bring your product to life. Whatever the case, be sure to explore and evaluate the best social media platform(s) you think will help consumers connect with your product.

• Think beyond your product- When deciding to invest in naturally based products, the decision doesn’t usually just apply to one aspect of their life. A lot of times they might want to start eating healthier, exercising more or even using chemical-free cleaning products. Establish your company as a thought leader on adopting a healthier lifestyle so you can serve a resource to learn more about natural ways of living.

•  Engage in social communities- People like to share their ideas and receive recommendations from those that are like-minded. Participating in social communities is a great way to see what people are talking about and trending topics.

Of course, there are many more ways to connect to this growing customer base through social and digital media. You can use social media to take a legislative stand against the labeling of organic products, which is currently a hot topic right now. Another idea, since many companies in this industry are locally based, would be to use social media to tap into other geographical markets that might not have direct access to your product. There’s no doubt social media can help your business stand out amongst mass-produced chemically based products and will help you guide consumers to leading a healthier, more fulfilling life. 

      

Jennifer Marzett previously worked in the Global Marketing Organization for AT&T Inc where she served as Lead Corporate Communications Manager and Associate Director of Executive Operations. Jennifer is currently pursing her M.S. in Integrated Marketing Communications from the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University and holds a B.A. in Marketing from the University of Oklahoma.

Twitter Contact: @Miamarzett
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Brand Managers - Drive Passion Using Your Brand Essence

Brand Managers are perennially in search of ways to not only maintain their standing with their customers, but increase excitement and strengthen passion for their products.  I have found articles reiterating the importance of allowing insight gained from your customers to drive innovation; ideas introduced to me as a graduate student at Northwestern University's Medill IMC program.

In the beauty world, there is the tale of two entities. There are the main industry titans and the newcomers garnering lots of buzz with their unique perspective yet both are fighting to attract customers, old and new. The most important action for each is to build desire, a thought expressed by Revlon’s CMO Julia Goldin.  This desire for the newest shades, trends and products helps your brand remain relevant. This is the charge for your brand; build, create and sustain desire.

After listening to your customer, the next and most crucial step is what you do with what you've discovered.  Translate this newfound information into customer-friendly innovation improving the customer experience with the products as done by cosmetic titan, L'Oreal.

How do we create this elusive desire?  The aforementioned articles and my studies in IMC have guided me towards these three items to implement and achieve your desired results. Listen to what your customers are saying and uncover what they are not able to express directly.  This can be done in several ways but none more important than engaging via social media, which provides a unique opportunity to learn more about the ways customers interact and use your product.  Capitalize by listening to your brand community on sites where they interact with each other most; the major social media sites such as Facebook, Twitter or Instagram. Read comments left on YouTube video tutorials and gain a deeper understanding never before accessible.  Respond accordingly to customers needs and employ cutting-edge technology to create their desired iterations of products helping you retain and attract them.

In the cosmetics world with infinite possibilities for self-described "beauty junkies" companies are faced with the daunting task of differentiating their brand from competitors. Using the above actions will help your brand achieve the distinguishing qualities that build desire to draw your customer in and keep them coming back for more.

Jaclyn Bivins

@jaclynbivins

Jaclyn Bivins hails from Chicago, Illinois and is a graduate student at Northwestern University in Medill's Integrated Marketing Communications program. After graduation, she hopes to work in brand management and marketing strategy in the cosmetics and beauty industry.