Mike Gross Brenda Adams
History The Old Spice brand has been around since 1937. It was originally manufactured as an aftershave by the Shulton Company founded by William Lightfoot Schultz. They established a nautical theme for the product with colonial sailing ships as a trademark. Proctor & Gamble purchased Old Spice in June 1990. They recently introduced many forms of deodorant sticks, body washes, and body sprays in a variety of scents.
Deteriorating Brand Image Old Spice found itself losing momentum over the past few years as Axe grooming products, owned by Proctor’s rival Unilever, have been experiencing rapid growth. In the 90s they saw their brand image was deteriorating, seen as “less sexy”. Who wants to smell like their grandfather when these other ads are promising instant female attention?
Wieden & Kennedy To appeal to a younger crowd (12-34) and compete with the new body sprays. Proctor & Gamble invested an estimated $100 million with Portland’s Wieden & Kennedy agency. Wieden & Kennedy are known for their offbeat campaigns for Nike, ESPN, Target and Miller High Life. Wieden & Kennedy have the capability and expertise to appeal to younger audiences “talking with them as opposed to at them.” according to Carl Stealey, the Old Spice brand manager.
“Experience Is Everything” After landing the Old Spice account Wieden & Kennedy started the “Experience Is Everything” campaign relying on “Heritage and Humor.” To differentiate themselves from Axe, W&K have taken a different angle towards the same niche by using the Old Spice brand legacy as a benefit rather than a burden. The product is “authentic” rather than trendy, masculine rather than “metro” and old school rather than just old.
“Experience Is Everything” They have linked the brand to worldly experience, and stated that it’s users are not swayed by fashion but by quality. Masculinity and classiness is strongly emphasized in both their print ads and TV spots.
“If your Grandfather hadn’t worn it, you wouldn’t exist.”
Blueprints
“What doesn’t kill you makes you better looking.”
“Experience is everything” should bring some renewed appeal to the brand because it appeals to long term customers and attracts new customers. “Timing was excellent because at the moment everyone appreciates authenticity, when retro is not necessarily a bad word.” “Previous generations loved Old Spice and had a more emotional attachment to it.”
Website Their nautical themed website features links to product information, news, and a page to test your “experience” to see if you are worthy of wearing Old Spice. For those who are not a “100% experienced man” they offer advice on things like giving a good handshake and how to avoid getting singled out in a police lineup.
Results Since the advertising campaign is relatively new it is still too early to tell if Proctor & Gamble’s $100 million move to Weiden & Kennedy will pay off. But early this year Adweek named Weiden & Kennedy the “Global Agency of the Year” for its culturally relevant, award-winning work so expectations are high.
Sources http://www.allbusiness.com/marketing-advertising/branding-brand-development/4677219-1.html http://www.nytimes.com/2007/01/08/business/media/08adcol.html?_r=1&oref=slogin
Video Sources http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Af1OxkFOK18 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yg6bZSM48vU http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Aj55sgudlc http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9t0z04Qz61Q