Too Much Pleasure

Background

In a sector that had traditionally sold itself on the idea of contraception, Manix was the first to differentiate on the idea of pleasure and to market their condoms as being able to stimulate the senses. However, now that other manufacturers have also moved into this space, Manix was keen to recapture its original territory. It therefore launched the Manix Xperiences pack, which brings together several new features to provide even more pleasure. The challenge was to use the launch of this pack to win back the brand’s position as market leader, yet with a far smaller budget than that of its competitors.

Idea

Proximity BBDO’s solution was for Manix to focus on the idea of extreme ecstasy in order to regain its monopoly over the pleasure territory. By emphasising the addictive effect of the Xperiences pack, the aim was to change consumer behaviour such that they reach for a condom not because they have to but because they want to: the Xperiences pack, you would rather make love with it, than without it. Leading with the challenge, ‘are you ready for this much pleasure?’, they created the website www.tropdeplaisir.net.

The website launches with a clip created by CLM BBDO, which frenetically and ecstatically announces the approaching end of the world as a result of falling birth rates (nobody wants to have sex without Manix condoms anymore). Different areas of the site allow the visitor to get tips on how to enjoy their Manix experience to the full (by, for example, taking a year’s sabbatical leave), warn users of the costs of having children (‘tamagotchis are good too’) and provide explanations on the various characteristics of the Xperience condoms. A competition - ‘sex where there isn’t any’ - invites users to send in their best photos of suggestive imagery (eg bananas) in order to win a year’s worth of condoms.

Results

The website received 20,000 visitors within the first 24 hours of its launch and 50,000 in the next 13 days. The clip has had 70,000 viewings on broadcast 2.0 (YouTube / DailyMotion), has been mentioned in 468 blogs and the dedicated page at www.wat.tv has had 4,482 viewings.

Our Thoughts

A few years ago, Manix ran a TV commercial demonstrating the thinness of the rubber they use. A finger inside one of their condoms is still able to leave a clear finger print. Very restrained. Now, in their website and with this viral, Manix have, to our Anglo-Saxon eyes at any rate, reverted to a more typically French attitude to sex. That is to say, less restrained. Make sure you watch it on the accompanying DVD-rom. We think you’ll enjoy it.