Durex Connect
RB
Issue 35 | June 2015
Agency
Havas Worldwide London
Creative Team
Executive Creative Director Mark Fairbanks Creative Director/Art Director Christian Sewell Creative Director/Copywriter Andy Mcananey Agency Producer Katie Wood Business Director Julian Ashley Global Account Director Ainhoa Wadsworth Global Account Manager Mihiri Kanjirath Account Executive Alice Martin Senior Planner Gemma Hamilton Junior Planner Freya Bronwin
Production Team
Clearstory Russell Barnes Molly Milton
Other Credits
Senior Vice President and Global Category Officer, Health at RB Camillo Pane Global Head of Sexual Wellbeing, RB Volker Sydow Global Head of Brand Equity RB Ukonwa Ojo Global Media Effectiveness Manager, RB Jo Krzeczunowicz Client Services Director, Premier Joanne Granville PR Director, Premier Leigh Debbage Digital and Social Strategy Director, Premier Chris Rice Account Manager, Social Fuel Shehleeza Khan Senior Digital Project Manager, Loop Olivia Ulbing Global Digital Strategy Director, Dentsu Aegis Lucy Barbor
Date
March 2015
Background
Earth Hour was the perfect time to promote Durex. The lights were off, you could...well, you know. But with over 50% of people unsatisfied with their sex lives, the task was to do something that would resonate at Earth Hour and beyond. Something that meant more than just switching off the lights.
People were obsessed with their mobile phones. Fear of missing out meant that they were almost always glued to their tiny screens even though this often meant they were neglecting their partners, the people who meant most to them.
Idea
In phase one of the campaign, the idea that technology could bring new magic to the sex lives of couples around the world was seeded in the press.
In partnership with Silicon Valley entrepreneur Susie Lee, a biochemist and biophysicist, Durex suggested they had found a way anyone's smartphone could trigger an orgasm.
A website was set up so that intrigued couples could sign up to be BETA testers.
Millions responded.
In phase two, the couples selected to be testers were filmed as they were shown that the secret to a great sex life on their phone was... the off button.
Just as they committed to switching off their phones to spend more time with their partners, so too did thousands of others following the campaign.
In phase three, couples were encouraged to 'Turn Off to Turn On' during Earth Hour and an app was created that allowed their phones to sleep together so they could too.
Results
The film was the most watched viral ad in the world for three consecutive weeks. It also made it to the top 5 most watched CPG viral ads ever.
There were 75 million views (62 million on You Tube alone).
There were also 3.2 billion unpaid PR impressions and 3.9 billion total impressions, 80% of which were earned.
There was a substantial increase in brand awareness and an 86% increase in purchase consideration.
Our Thoughts
The massive success of their campaign isn’t because, oo-er, it’s about sex but because it’s about a simple and true observation: the more we engage with the content served up to us on our tablets and phones, the more disengaged we become from real life.
This is a bit of a meme right now. Dolmio have created ‘The Pepper Hacker’, a device that switches of the wi-fi and closes down the TV at dinner time so families can actually talk to each other. Disconnect to connect. Their film has had almost as many views as this film.
Selling sex should be easier than selling dinnertime but a host of regulations designed to protect children from content that might be too suggestive or too explicit make it really quite difficult. And quite right too. Few people want the internet to be totally unregulated. Full credit, then, to Mark Fairbanks and his team at Havas for negotiating all the pitfalls.