Hey, look guys -– a tricked-out mini-spaceship sailing 23 miles above earth! Also, go wash your greasy faces.
Personal care company Kiehl’s has made the connection between outer space and men’s skin care in a social media-based contest and a cheeky science-fair-on-steroids video that debuted this week.
So…what is the connection? There truly is one, promises Kiehl’s and its advertising agency, so try to keep up, OK?
One of the main ingredients in Kiehl’s Oil Eliminator, a new product in the heritage brand’s male-targeted line, is aerolite, one of the lightest man-made materials on the planet, also known for its porousness. NASA has used a formulation of aerolite in its space missions, including on the Mars Exploration Rover, for collecting space dust and insulating spacecrafts.
What better way, then, to introduce Oil Eliminator than to shoot it skyward?
“Because it’s part of the product, we decided to leverage the cultural zeitgeist of space,” said Alex Schwartz, copywriter at Night Agency, New York, who helped spearhead the campaign that’s been about six months in the making. “We wanted to use science and space as a way to talk to men about skin care.”
The promotion does dovetail with an upswing in space-related news and entertainment. Neil deGrasse Tyson stars in Fox’s well-reviewed remake of Carl Sagan’s Cosmos, and entrepreneurs Elon Musk and Richard Branson continue to pursue their space endeavors. NASA, meanwhile, had to scrap a “flying saucer” launch off Hawaii on Wednesday because of bad weather.
Kiehl’s, which uses its 1851 founding date prominently in its packaging, isn’t a traditional print or TV advertiser. It relies more on social media, sampling and word of mouth from its millions of loyalists, often described as a cult following. But it’s not above pulling an eye-catching stunt.
The new all-digital campaign uses the 2 1/2-minute video, dubbed "Put Space On Your Face (In Five Easy Steps)", along with behind-the-scenes footage on how the ad team created and launched the rig.
Those executives aren’t scientists or engineers, but they did need lab coats and goggles. And Schwartz said he dusted off some of his Astrophysics 101 from college to help inform their work. Among the challenges: FAA approval for a spacecraft reaching 120,000 feet and temperature control for video cameras and GPS trackers that would be exposed to temperatures that were minus-90 degrees Fahrenheit. The device couldn’t weigh more than 12 lbs. total, with the team launching and retrieving it in rural Pennsylvania last month.
When it did touch down in a grassy field, as shown in the video, one of the ad execs dabbed some Oil Eliminator on his mug, in essence, putting (the product from) space on his face. That product, much like women’s powder or foundation, aims to soak up the oil and cut the shine on men’s skin.
The next phase of the campaign will flip the initial concept on its head and put consumers’ faces in space. Night Agency will take photos submitted via Instagram, Facebook and Twitter and turn them into 3D printed astronaut avatars. (Snap those gravity-defying selfies, gentlemen, and tag them #spaceface #contest). The winning mini-astronauts will head to the outer limits in the months to come.
It’s not the first time that Kiehl’s has gone to great lengths and heights to promote its men’s products. A campaign called Everest 88 sponsored a climbing team that successfully scaled Mt. Everest, with Kiehl’s lip balm, facial moisturizer and other swag in tow.
“This campaign really fits their personality because it’s experiential, social and video all combined,” Schwartz said. “The brand has a real sense of adventure about it, and they’re not afraid to take the product to unlikely places.”
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