Unilever

Canadian guys use good old-fashioned bar soap, but Axe wanted them to consider a line of shower gels with fragrances such as Dark Temptation and Vice.

Axe understands how the mating game has changed – girls must be active participants – so they came up with an icebreaker for guys to use. Under the guise of “showering with friends and like-minded acquaintances,” Axe Showerpooling delivered a water conservation message to 18- to 24-year-old guys who largely tune out environmental issues. The 11,000 fans on Axe Canada’s Facebook page were used to spread the message. An environmental-style video explained the idea, and showed guys that being environmentally friendly didn’t have to be a chore. The “Start a Showerpool” app allowed users to invite their friends to become Showerpooling buddies. And because it was all for a good cause, the girls readily agreed. Further, the “Showerpooling Introduction Service” app allowed guys and girls to be introduced to each other through a mutual friend.

Media support came as banner buys and homepage takeovers leading up to Earth Day (April 22). This included rich media banners that ran the Showerpooling video, all driving directly to the Axe Facebook page.

Axe Canada got 103,042 page views, and the video garnered 147,277 views. The tenor of the conversation also changed, with a ratio of 24:1 positive to negative online mentions. And it’s going global: Portugal is next.