Light Bladder Leakage (LBL) is a topic that most women associate with stigma, shame and an admission of growing old. But after last night’s episode of Keeping Up with the Kardashians, perhaps a few more women will be willing to address a condition that affects 1 in 3 women.
Kris, a spokesperson for MMC client Poise pads, was featured this year in a Poise campaign as Rosie the Riveter, an American cultural icon who represents millions of women who also may have dealt with life’s little leaks but didn’t let that hold them back from doing great things.
Sunday’s episode of KUWTK showed how the benefits of working with a spokesperson who embraces a topic can pay off. Although Poise did not sponsor the show, much of the episode focused on how Kris, the business-savvy mom of the famous Kardashian sisters, embraced her condition by turning it into a business opportunity. After being teased by her daughters about LBL as she experienced its multiple triggers – jumping, laughing and hugging, Kris negotiated her relationship with Poise (referred to as a pad for “light leakage.”) The final scenes included a clip from Kris’ Rosie the Riveter video shoot.
MMC’s Health & Well-Being Practice lead, Diana Littman Paige, was quoted in the February, 2011 issue ofPRWeek regarding an article on the increasing convergence of pharmaceutical and consumer lifestyle messages in PR campaigns to effectively reach the more sophisticated, health-conscious consumer. The article highlights MMC’s campaign for Kimberly-Clark’s Poise, featuring webisodes with Whoopi Goldberg and Novo-Nordisk’s diabetes campaign with race car driver Charlie Kimball.
EW.com recently posted an article on why Jersey Shore is a hit. This got me thinking … there are some learnings marketers can also take from this nationwide phenomenon:
Emotional resonance: EW.com states it simply: “the show makes people happy.” It’s why people watch and it is why people keep coming back for more. No one watches or talks about a show they feel “neutral” about. Same goes for a product or service. Marketers want the equity driver of “I love this brand.” Make people uniquely happy with your product or service and they’ll love you back.
It’s causing a dialogue: Love it or hate it, everyone has an opinion on the show. The ratings have grown tremendously because viewers are sharing their perspectives with their online and offline communities. Word of mouth is one of the most powerful purchase drivers across most categories. Empower and enable your “fans” to talk about your brand. Ratings & Reviews, a Facebook page, forums . . . there are lots of possibilities.
New twist to an existing formula: The premise of Jersey Shore is not new. The format started almost 20 years ago when the Real World began telling a similar story of eight strangers, living in a house, working together and having their lives taped. Sound familiar? Innovation doesn’t happen every day. It’s finding that unique, noteworthy angle to make your brand relevant. With Jersey Shore, it was casting genius and a new vernacular. It could be anything from a third party partnership, a relevant spokesperson, leveraging a trend. Some good examples from the MMC roster of clients include Poise’s use of humor and “real talk” to make light bladder leakage and their existing pads/liners relevant. Or Head & Shoulders partnering with Cosmopolitan to transform their existing product into a beauty essential for women.
We are not shy in the Well-Being Group at MMC, so when Kimberly-Clark’s Poise brand posed the challenge of de-stigmatizing light bladder leakage (LBL), we didn’t think twice.
LBL is probably the last women’s health taboo, and it’s more common than you would think. One in three women of all ages and life stages experience LBL, but many women are too embarrassed to talk about it. Interestingly, focus groups conducted by K-C showed that although women were first reluctant to admit experiencing LBL, once the conversation was started among several women, they couldn’t stop talking! One of the other observations from the groups was that humor truly opened the dialogue around this often uncomfortable topic and women were relieved to hear they weren’t alone.
Drawing from these insights, MMC worked with K-C and their digital and advertising agencies to spark a national dialogue about LBL using a light and humorous approach. The integrated campaign, “1 in 3 like me,” included new advertising and the launch of a Web site about LBL that establishes how common it is and helps women embrace the issue and solutions. The brand also enlisted Whoopi Goldberg to star in a candid Webisode series that would make women laugh and open up about LBL. Go to www.1in3likeme.com to check them out.
MMC launched the campaign with a dynamic consumer event in NYC where women were invited to watch Whoopi unveil the Webisodes, learn more about LBL and be among the first to start the conversation! The next day, Whoopi, along with the founder of Women’s Health Foundation, Missy Lavender, continued the conversation on The View.
Despite a snow storm on the day of the event (even Whoopi was snowed in but we Skyped her into the event), the campaign is off to a great start! Until now, light bladder leakage has received very little media attention, with most press avoiding the topic altogether. As a result of our work, outlets including People, More and Parents covered the campaign and trade press has touted Kimberly-Clark as a marketing force in AdAge and MediaPost. And this is only the beginning!
Attendees at the event told us that after watching the Webisodes and being around other women with LBL, they felt more comfortable discussing it. The View’s discussion boards have been buzzing with conversation and women have been calling K-C’s consumer hotline just to say thank you.
Although we faced quite a challenge when we developed this program, we couldn’t be more excited by the results and the conversations that we see taking place. Of course, our work doesn’t stop here. We’re now busy preparing for 1,000 parties nationwide with House Party™, taking place on April 10, where women will have the chance to continue this important discussion (and laugh a lot!) with their friends.
What’s the next conversation MMC Well-Being should start?
