One of the best ways a brand can get an audience on its side is to show it is on the audience’s side. This is exactly what P&G’s Always brand did in its recent “Like a Girl” video marketing campaign, which has spread its message far beyond the feminine hygiene products the company seeks to sell.
In the #LikeAGirl video, producers ask a group of young men and women to perform one or more actions – such as running, fighting, or playing a sport – “like a girl” would. The predictable – yet dismaying – behaviors that follow include a great deal of hair flipping, wrist flopping, and anemic running.
Then the producers bring out a group of young girls and make the same requests. The girls oblige with energy and athleticism, showing their perception of what it means to be a girl differs significantly from that of their predecessors.
When the older participants view the recordings of the younger ones, they realize their error and participate in a brief dialogue about why doing something “like a girl” takes on such negative connotations.
The Widespread Reach of the #LikeAGirl Campaign
On YouTube alone, the video has garnered over 47 million views. Social media uptake and response has been massive, with millions of Facebook shares and Twitter retweets. In addition, multiple media outlets – including Time magazine and virtually every new network – are engaging in discussions about the video and what it means for young women everywhere.
Always has started a website encouraging visitors to “Join the Movement” to spread awareness about confidence and empowerment in young women. With such a serious conversation occurring across so many different channels, it becomes easy to forget it began as part of a marketing campaign – which is what makes it so effective.
The Benefits of Empowerment in Marketing and Branding Videos
The #LikeAGirl campaign has brought positive attention to Always for several reasons, to which other brands ought to pay close attention. These include:
- It’s not about the brand. Yes, the company name is in the video, but the focus remains on the girls, the audiences, and the message. Always shows viewers they care more about the bottom line – they want to make girls’ lives better.
- It empowers audiences. Confidence is a powerful motivator, and girls walk away from the video with a different perspective of how they want to be perceived. For years to come, they will associate those positive feelings with the Always brand.
- It uses video to make its point. A written or static photo ad could never send as powerful a message as the #LikeAGirl video has. It shows real people acting out the behaviors they have learned or developed. The moment of realization on the faces of the older participants presents a particularly profound moment to which audiences can relate.
Without a doubt, internet users will continue to discuss the #LikeAGirl video and the issues it raises for a long time to come.
About which important issue or cause might your next video marketing campaign center?