ACTIVITY 2

Subject: DMS301m
Lecture: Trần Phan Lan Anh

Team member
Lê Kim Ngân DS160112

Lê Thị Trà Ngọc Dương DS160196

Lê Thị Hồng Phúc DS160029

Hoàng Thị Như Quỳnh DS160403

Ngô Hoàng Anh Quân DS160148

Lý Trung Dũng HE163234

I. Introduction
Brand: Old Spice / Market: Personal care products / Time: 02/2010
Campaign: Communication “The Man Your Man Could Smell Like”

Brand History: Old Spice, founded in 1937, is an iconic American brand offering a range of
grooming products for men, including aftershaves, deodorants, body washes, and fragrances.
Its target customers are men of all ages who seek high-quality products with refreshing scents
and effective performance. Known for its memorable advertising campaigns and humorous
approach, Old Spice appeals to a broad demographic, from younger consumers to those
appreciating its nostalgic charm.

1. Background of Campaign
- In the 2000s, the men's personal care industry in the US saw overall sales of shower
gel surpass that of bar soap. Grasping this trend, many brands for men have rushed to
grab a piece of the lucrative "shower gel" cake. As one of the top-of-mind personal
care brands for men in the US, Old Spice is no exception.
- But, an established brand like ancient Old Spice started to appear "old" to the
Millennial generation, who at that point became the industry's primary consumer base.
AX , Old Spice's newest competitor, gains prominence in the meantime because of its
carefree, youthful vibe.
- When Unilever revealed that a massive promotion for Dove Men + Care shower gel
will begin during the Super Bowl in February 2010, things got even more tricky. The
fact that women bought more than half of the shower gel sold at the time, According
to a P&G survey, it was like a "goddamn blow" for Old Spice. And Dove Men + Care
will benefit greatly from having a sizable following of devoted female clients.
- Old Spice is therefore forced to alter its image in order to avoid being perceived as
"old" and to "confront" a new player such as Dove. Old Spice developed the "The
Man Your Man Could Smell Like" marketing campaign in an attempt to "rejuvenate"
and reclaim market dominance in the shower gel industry.

II. The digital marketing campaign

1. Campaign objectives
- Business goal: Old Spice sets the goal of annual sales growth of shower gel
exceeding the average growth rate of the industry. Specifically, the annual revenue
growth of the shower gel industry is 7%-8%.
- Competitive Differentiation & "Steal the Show": Old Spice aimed to differentiate
itself from its main competitor, Dove Men + Care. The ultimate objective was to
"steal the show" from Dove Men + Care's Super Bowl appearance by capturing the
attention of the target audience through social marketing tactics.
- Influencers Marketing: Instead of investing in a traditional Super Bowl ad, which
can be expensive, Old Spice sought to maximise its reach by leveraging the popularity
of influencers, Isaiah Mustafa.
 - Create Buzz Marketing and Controversy: Old Spice aimed to create buzz and
generate discussion around the controversial topic of "masculine scent." By sparking
conversations and debates surrounding this topic, Old Spice sought to draw attention
to its brand and products.

2. Campaign implementation
2.1. Insight
- In a large-scale survey of the men's shower gel industry, P&G discovered that
although the target consumers are men, the main buyers are women. Specifically, up
to 60% of shower gel for men on the market is purchased by women.

2.2. Creative Idea

- From the above insights, Old Spice realised that if it wants to increase sales, it needs
to convince female buyers while also impressing male buyers. Furthermore, shower
gel is a low-involvement product, so Old Spice will not achieve its business goals if it
simply increases awareness for both men and women. Therefore, Old Spice took
advantage of the popularity of social networks and created a story around the
controversial topic - "masculine scent". From there, remind consumers that sharing
shower gel is no longer "fashionable".
- The result was the birth of the advertisement "The Man Your Man Could Smell Like"
emphasising the importance of "masculine fragrance". In particular, "masculinity" is
an attribute that Old Spice has maintained for more than 40 years, helping to
differentiate the brand from other "players" in the industry.
- To increase the "viral" of advertising, social networks are the destination that Old
Spice chooses. Because in the 2010s, social networks began to become popular
among Millennials - the brand's target audience group.
2.3. Execution activities
a) Content Video
- A few days before the Super Bowl, Old Spice launched the ad "The Man Your Man
Could Smell Like" on YouTube and Facebook platforms.
- Influencer marketing: Content Video leads the audience through 33 exciting seconds
with the appearance of Isaiah Mustafa - former NFL athlete. Why, among countless
Influencers, did Old Spice choose Mustafa as the spokesperson for this campaign?
First, the campaign targets the female audience - the main buyer group of the shower
gel industry. It can be understood that this is the reason why the male athlete appears
somewhat "sexy" in the advertisement. Second, the inclusion of Isaiah Mustafa - a
famous player in the rugby "village", helps create appeal to the male audience.
Furthermore, this choice also helps the brand "fool" the audience that this is an
advertisement appearing at the Super Bowl.
- Buzz marketing: By launching a controversial advertising video content that
explores the topic of "masculine scent," Old Spice aimed to generate buzz and initiate
heated discussions surrounding their shower gel scent. This step helps the brand take
the "spotlight" from competitors' advertising, leveraging controversy to increase brand
visibility.
- 02/2010, TVC “The Man Your Man Could Smell Like” debuted.
Old Spice | The Man Your Man Could Smell Like
- 06/2010, TVC “Questions” Old Spice | Old Spice | Questions
- 07/2010, TVC “Boat” Old Spice | Old Spice | Boat
- 07/2010, Old Spice launches "Response" campaign
- 02/2011: “Scent Vacation” Old Spice | Old Spice | Scent Vacation

b) SEO ( search engine optimization )

- Step by step implementing the "show stealing" strategy, Old Spice conducts SEO
( search engine optimization ) by identifying key keywords related to the campaign,
thereby driving traffic to the video content.
c) PR
- After successfully launching video content that attracted the attention of a large
audience, the campaign aims to create debate between men and women. Instead of
deploying on TV channels in the usual way aimed at young men, Old Spice decided to
appear on shows that couples often watch together. Such as Lost, Vancouver Winter
Olympics, American Idol...
- In addition, Old Spice actively brought male athlete Isaiah Mustafa - spokesperson of
the campaign, to participate in shows watched by many Millennial couples such as
Ellen Show, The Today Show, Good Morning America , ESPN…
Link Ellen Show: Isaiah Mustafa Loses His Shirt!
Link Today Show: Old Spice MANta Claus | The TODAY Show Cameraperson
Link ESPN: Isaiah Mustafa on ESPN First Take Part 1
d) Social
- Influencer marketing:
+ Building on the success of the campaign, Old Spice continues to challenge
itself to interact with audiences in a more intimate way. The brand took
advantage of the growing popularity of social media to have Mustafa literally
talk to his fans.
+ This desire led to the decision to expand the campaign, launching a 2 and a
half day activity called "Response" in July 2010. Old Spice left simple
messages on Facebook and Twitter, and fielded creative questions from the
audience. After a few minutes, the main male recording brand Mustafa
answered those questions and posted it on YouTube. In 2 and a half days, the
campaign made 186 videos.
+ “Response” helps customers feel more interested and interact on digital
platforms. This activity contributes to increasing the wave of word of mouth
about the campaign that is spreading in the market.
3. Results
- Marketing results:
+ Old Spice has succeeded in dominating the discussion on digital platforms. In the first
three months after the campaign launch, Old Spice accounted for 75% of the online
buzz (more than half of which came from female audiences).
+ In April 2010, the ad "The Man Your Man Could Smell Like" received more than
10 million views, 10 times higher than the number of views of Dove Men's ad
broadcast at the Super Bowl.
+ Meanwhile, “Response” also achieved impressive results:
● Day 1: Campaign received 5.9 million views on YouTube.
● Day 2: 8 of the 11 most popular videos on the web belong to Old Spice.
● Day 3: Campaign reaches 20 million views.
● Day 7: More than 40 million views within a week.
+ Not only that, “Response” also promotes a large amount of user participation and
interaction with the brand on social networks. Specifically, in 1 month, the brand
recorded:
● Twitter followers increased by 2700%.
● Facebook fans increased by 60%, Facebook interactions increased by 800%.
● Oldspice.com website traffic increased by 300%.
● YouTube subscribers more than doubled from 65,000 to 150,000.
+ After 6 months, the campaign recorded a total of 1.7 million impressions across
traditional and online media.
- Business results:
+ According to Nielsen, in May 2010, Old Spice Red Zone shower gel sales
increased 60% over the same period last year. By July 2010, sales more than
doubled compared to the previous year, with an increase of 125% - the highest
level ever at the time of the brand's campaign.
III. Conclusions
1. Success or failure? Reasons?
- The success of the "The Man Your Man Could Smell Like" campaign comes from the
ability to understand and fully exploit consumer insights. At the same time, Old Spice
knows how to take advantage of marketing strategies such as Buzz Marketing to
create controversy to stand out themself and Influencer Marketing when they focus
on the psychology of female target customers, so they invited male athlete Isaiah
Mustafa to appear with a "sexy" part in the ad and the presence of Isaiah Mustafa - a
famous player in the rugby "village" also helps create appeal to male audiences.
2. Lessons
- The content is short but sufficient: Most of Old Spice's TVCs are under 60 seconds,
the shortest video is only 17 seconds. But all of these videos fully convey Old Spice's
message.
- Identify the right target audience: Without looking at statistics, everyone would
think Old Spice has a problem, because no one sells men's products by marketing to
women.
 - Personalization: Old Spice's team creates personalised responses for each person,
making fans both excited and surprised.
- Real-time response: Over two days, Old Spice Guy responded to Fan questions with
186 real-time videos, to maintain interaction between the Brand and Fans.
- Don't stop marketing: Old Spice doesn't just create content and wait for it to go
viral, but they also promote videos across media channels such as social networks and
newspapers, KOL,... They make their TVC appear everywhere.
- Leveraging Controversy: Old Spice effectively leveraged controversial topics to
generate buzz and initiate discussions surrounding its products. This highlights the
importance of understanding how controversial topics can captivate attention and
drive engagement, but also the need to approach them with sensitivity and strategic
planning to avoid backlash.
- Harnessing the Power of Social Media and Influencers: Old Spice recognized the
potential of social media and influencers to amplify its message and reach a wider
audience. By partnering with influencers who had a significant following, Old Spice
was able to extend the reach of its campaign and foster authentic connections with its
target audience.
IV. Recommendations
- Suggestions for Old Spice to improve:
+ Diversify Targeting: Explore targeting specific demographics within the male
consumer base and consider expanding product offerings.
+ Enhance Social Media: Invest in social media listening tools, encourage
user-generated content, and foster community engagement.
+ Innovate Products: Invest in research and development to introduce new offerings that
meet evolving consumer preferences.
+ Sustainability Initiatives: Incorporate more sustainable practices into operations and
product offerings to align with consumer values.
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