Self-directed Advertising Campaign
Explore Yourself
Creating an advertising campaign for a taboo product can be a complicated thing. This proposed campaign achieved just that. The combination of modern slang and tasteful illustrations produced cheeky innuendoes that are innocent enough to be viewed by the public across print and digital media. The campaign used Pink Cherry’s existing branding and inspired by their humorous campaigns that take the shame out of purchasing sexual health and wellness products. Explore Yourself received an honourable mention from RGD for Advertising Design.
The Challenge
The purpose of the campaign was to promote the vast selection of vibrators available through Pink Cherry. Since the campaign focuses on adult products, the treatment of these products had to be mindful, especially in cases where the imagery would be visible to all ages. The campaign also had to incorporate a real company’s branding and function across print and digital mediums. This included:
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Billboard
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Social Media
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Youtube Bumper Ad
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Flyer
The Concept
Pink Cherry is well known for their cheeky billboards, this campaign sought to capture that spirit. One obstacle consumer face within the sexual health and wellness market is the shame that surrounds purchasing such products. The main goal of this campaign was to address and reduce the taboo surrounding masturbation, especially with female or non-binary folks.
What’s your vibe can ask about your emotional state, your aesthetic, the energy you put into the world, or even a vibrator. This prompts the viewer to think about themselves, what they need. The addition of the call to action “Explore Yourself” enhances this prompt and empowers the viewer.
Project Background
The primary audience for this campaign was single adult women and non-binary folk. Whereas the secondary audience is couples. This is accomplished through:
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Maintaining softened look of previous campaigns
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Avoiding gendered language
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Sexual innuendo
Research into the available products was conducted, establishing vibrators as the campaign’s focal point due to their use by all genders and the variety offered.
Further research established what type of marketing campaigns are most effective for e-commerce websites. Campaigns that employed print and digital strategies were more successful, as they have a wider reach. For example, billboard campaigns are most successful with commuters, whereas Instagram campaigns are most successful with young adults. Campaigns that include follow-up content, such as a thank you for purchasing, also have a higher customer return rate.
The Process
The floral elements were created by combining the most popular vibrators, incorporating toys for any person from anal vibes to cock rings. The palette uses tints and shades from the three colours used in the main logo so it aligns with the brands overall image while still creating visual depth.
The software used for included:
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Adobe After Effects
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Adobe Illustrator
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Adobe Photoshop
This project required carrying design elements across platforms, sometimes using all three tools at once.
Certain mediums, such as social media, can be age-restricted. In these cases, real product images were used in combination with illustrated products.
Results
Explore Yourself hits multiple touchpoints to connect with its audience across print and digital platforms. The same basic design was applied across all mediums, with adaptations made to accommodate the purpose of the deliverable, such as including product images in the Instagram campaign or changing the slogan in the flyers. The addition of print-flyers included in product packaging increases the potential of return-customers, while the presence of the campaign on both billboards and social media allows it to connect with a wider audience.
Due to this successful application, campaign was given an honourable mention by RGD in the Award for Advertising category.
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