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When I was younger I don’t remember any Old Spice ads or even remember it being the deodorant I would intentionally go out and buy. However, once I reached the middle of college something happened…Old Spice was the only deodorant I would purchase. What happened? How did they become cool? Why was I now exclusively purchasing their product?
Because its advertising is absolutely hilarious.
For today’s marketers, millennials are the holy grail – but my brethren can be hard to reach. But when it’s done right, humor can be a secret weapon with a golden bullet, especially when its delivered to us in the right channels through a smart digital content strategy.
Old Spice is a great example for this because they abandoned their original brand positioning and rebranded themselves in a way that made their full line of products exciting, new and relevant to an entire generation of young men.
So how did they do it?
In 2010 they released Youtube videos for Old Spice body wash that featured former NFL player Isaiah Mustafa in vacation settings. The digital video campaign featured their product as the epitome of manliness and was so ridiculous I couldn’t help but laugh. And then it happened…I began to purchase Old Spice.
It was no longer this:
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It was this:
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And this:
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Old Spice went from my dad’s boring and gross deodorant to the most badass stuff to wear in a matter of a year. They hooked me just as they did millions of other guys my age. I watched their ads like they were a featured Super Bowl spot, and I bought their deodorant exclusively (still do).
The insider’s analysis
Old Spice nailed it because they related to me through humor and left me with the anticipation of “what will they do next to beat this.” It’s that sort of emotional approach that can gain a following with a difficult-to-reach millennial crowd.
Good job, Old Spice….now take my money.
Other brands are following suit and using distinctive humor to appeal to millennial males (like Dos Equis ‘Most Interesting Man in the World’ campaign). Know of other brands that have successfully reinvented their identity using humor?
The post Why Old Spice is So Cool: Marketing to Millennial Men with Humor appeared first on Moosylvania.
