The Offer: To spread the word about güd (pronounced “good”), a natural bath and body product line launched by Burt’s Bees in January 2011, the brand, working with North Carolina-based agency Baldwin&, combined animated video content with old-fashioned scratch-n-sniff cards to create an interactive aromatic experience on Facebook. At key moments in the video — for example when the animated female protagonist passes a group of smokers — a number appears on-screen prompting viewers to scratch the corresponding number on their cards. güd also distributed $1 off coupons and, for a limited time, free samples. QR codes printed on the product packaging bring users to a mobile-adapted site for other free “güdees.”
The Data: The target for güd products are millennial women, ages 18 to 29. The brand’s Facebook page, launched at the end of 2011, had already amassed over 284,000 “likes” as of press time.
The Channel: In addition to email promotions and a heavy social push, full page print ads, including scratch-n-sniff cards and coupons, ran in Allure and Lucky magazines. Guerrilla street teams visited six large universities nationwide to hand out the aromavision cards.
The Creative: The scratch-n-sniff cards featured a variety of scents, some more pleasant — for example, güd brand “Orange Petalooza” body lotion, flowers and cotton candy — than others — diesel fumes and dirty subway steam. The object was to provide sniffers with a contrast that demonstrated the allure of güd products in a foul-smelling world.
The Verdict:
Yuchun Lee is VP of enterprise marketing management at IBM Industry Solutions and also serves on the DMA’s board of directors. Lee, founder of Unica (now part of IBM), began his first software company while still in high school. He was also a member of MIT’s notorious blackjack team. Read our Q&A with Yuchun for more.
This campaign really knows its audience. From its use of social media, mobile integration, and focus on creating a genuine consumer experience, Burt’s Bees gets to the heart of its primary demographic. An interesting, new take on the scratch-and-sniff tactic, but I’m a bit leery as to how this will play out in practice.
