Marketing Decoded

We all love the commercial that re-invigorated the tired Old Spice brand and has generated 180 million Youtube hits.  Isaiah Mustafa, a former NFLer turned model and Old Spice pitchman, has broken all viral video records and become a pop icon.  But has all of this record breaking, water cooler talk turned into sales for Old Spice?  Turns out, Old Spice doesn’t really know.

The men’s body wash category has grown 8.6% this year and prior to Mustafa’s ad, Old Spice’s share was flat.  Old Spice has had gains in the category since the ads started but aren’t sure whether it is due to the ads or the extensive use of coupons.  The ad, which has won major international prizes, has had a positive impact and has helped Old Spice gain back market share losses.  Add to the ads Mustafa’s highly publicized, personal response videos which generated 29 million views in a week and Old Spice had a new hit on its hands.

Industry watchers are questioning whether it is the coupons that are responsible for the increase in the Old Spice’s sales, not the TV ads or the social media campaign.  In this era of Social Marketing, aren’t they missing the boat?  Aren’t we trying to integrate all aspects of marketing:  coupons, tv ads, personal responses from Mustafa himself to create deeper levels of engagement with the brand to move it from an old man’s brand to a brand that young men think of when they choose body wash. The social media campaign just started in July.  The TV ads in Feb.  The social media campaign can’t be judged yet on ROI.  The timeframe to measure ROI for the social media campaign is too short.  The other issue to consider is has there been a change in the market buying Old Spice?  This campaign will be viral for a long time and Old Spice can ride it for a while, refreshing as it needs to, if they continue to connect with a younger audience.