Use influencers

First came “the man your man could smell like”, with smoothest of the smooth actor Isaiah Mustafa on a boat, on a horse – extolling the manly scents of Old Spice aftershave.

Then, came engagement. Over three days, “the Old Spice guy” sent personalised messages to consumers of Old Spice and his fans. Many of them, such as Google Ventures venture partner Kevin Rose, have big followings on Twitter. In one message, Mustafa makes a marriage proposal on behalf of a fan after a request on Twitter, in another he has some advice for film star Ashton Kutcher on how to stay healthy.

Old Spice is now the top body wash and deodorant brand in volume and dollar sales in the United States, its owner Procter & Gamble claims.

“It’s not just about appealing directly to the masses but actually using key influencers to then drive their own community to interact with the same video, so the key influencers drive additional mass views,” digital agency VML Australia’s social media planner, Tiphereth Gloria, says.

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