Thursday, March 12, 2009

An Axe Campaign I Like?

Believe it or not, I really dig the new Axe campaign that's been airing for the last week or so. Rather than the tired and offensive depictions of women fawning over guys who use the soap/gels, unable to control themselves, these new spots are, pardon the pun, spot-on.

Sure, gals are still involved, but in a way I find more genuine than past efforts. Body spray and shower products serve two needs: hygiene, and, yeah, attracting the opposite sex. It's never been my problem that Axe caters to this second need. It's been *how* they do it. Rather than portraying women as mindless sexual beings upon catching the scent of Axe, the commercials have identified a realistic teen image issue: young men tend to use way too much product. And girls don't dig it. So — use Axe, fix your hair, attract the ladies. Too much gel? You and your over-gelled spikes are gonna be lonely.

My biggest beef with the campaign? Overexposure. It seems every other commercial on Comedy Central is a "News Brief" for "the hair crisis" our country's young men are facing. Potentially good campaign feature? A sort of "hot or not" semi-interactive tool on the campaign's site, where guys can upload pics of their 'do, and supposedly, Axe's team of 100 women will vote.

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