health and beauty aids

With New #FaceAnything Campaign, Olay Muscles Into Dove Country


While there’s no shortage of strong-woman creative out there, Procter & Gamble’s Olay is charging into the throngs of the empowered, throwing its first social-media punch in a campaign called #FaceAnything.

The ads focus on the way women are often called  “too” much of something: too emotional, too driven, too opinionated or too ambitious. In the copy, the "too" is crossed out, affirming that women have exactly enough of these traits.

Among the featured celebs are gymnast Aly Raisman, closely allied with the #MeToo movement, who has 2.3 million social media followers. Her ad is a play on “Too Strong." The ad for comedian Lilly Singh, with more than 7 million followers, crosses out the too in "Too Outspoken.” And plus-size model Denise Bidot’s ad likewise affirms she is not “Too Emotional.”

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The new campaign, kicking off in a big way with Times Square billboards, video  and a large spread in the all-important September issue of Vogue, represents a significant shift for the leading mass-market skincare brand.

Rival brands, notably Dove, with its long-running #RealBeauty campaign, as well as L’Oreal’s “You’re worth it,” have often positioned themselves as defending women against the onslaught of haters and critics. But Olay has usually limited its crusades to age spots and fine lines. 

The new effort, from Badger & Winters, is aimed at millennial women and the soul-sucking side effects of social media. P&G says its research finds that 84% of women say social media defines beauty and that the average millennial woman will take 25,700 selfies in her lifetime.

The new approach comes at a good time for Olay. Despite P&G’s well-publicized recent struggles, sales in its skin and personal-care division are strengthening, up 7% in its most recent quarterly results, driven both by Olay, its mass brand, and its super-premium SK-II.

Mintel and IRI, which track sales of skincare products, report that while anti-aging moisturizer sales fell from $1.9 billion in 2015 to $1.8 billion in 2017, overall moisturizer sales are on the rise, as more products make specialized claims, including anti-aging, anti-acne or fading and bleaching properties. Sales of mass moisturizers rose to $909 million last year, from $780 million in 2015.

Campaigns like this one represent a shift in thinking, says Alison Gaither, Mintel’s beauty and personal care analyst.

“Before the inclusivity and empowerment movement taking place today, brands were competing over efficacy,”  with one product claiming to be 10 times more effective, until a competitor retaliated with an “11 times as effective” claim, she tells Marketing Daily.

Now, she says, the efficacy arguments have moved over to influencers, who promote products through social media.

The considerable success of Fenty Beauty, Rihanna’s cosmetic line, has made all beauty and skincare lines realize they need to step up their inclusivity game, too, Gaither adds.

Increasingly, consumers demand that companies stand for something bigger than minimizing crow’s feet. Gaither says Mintel’s research finds that 64% of consumers expect companies to have a moral or ethical viewpoint.

“Today’s consumers are taking brands to task for not stepping up or making a statement on certain issues,” she says.

Of course, the main point of the Olay push is hardly altruistic. The campaign includes something it’s calling the Olay 28-day challenge, with all nine women (as well as other beauty influencers) using a custom bundle of Olay products for four weeks. They’ll then walk the runway makeup-free (albeit Olay slathered), facing perhaps the nastiest critics ever: The New York Fashion Week crowd.

Will women buy the message, and therefore, more Olay? It depends, Gaither says. “Today’s consumers are able to tell a brand that is truthful and authentic in its messaging, apart from brands looking to profit off a cause. And they act accordingly.”

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