I TOUCH MYSELF X SERENA

Short List
TitleI TOUCH MYSELF X SERENA
BrandBERLEI
Product / ServiceBREAST HEALTH
CategoryE05. Influencer / Talent
EntrantWUNDERMAN THOMPSON Sydney, AUSTRALIA
Idea Creation J. WALTER THOMPSON Sydney, AUSTRALIA
PR THE MINT PARTNERS Sydney, AUSTRALIA
Production COLLIDER STUDIO New York, USA
Production 2 HOGARTH WORLDWIDE Sydney, AUSTRALIA
Production 3 SONG ZU Sydney, AUSTRALIA

Credits

Name Company Position
Sinead Roarty Wunderman Thompson Creative Director
Simon Langley Wunderman Thompson Chief Creative Officer
Alexandra Antoniou Wunderman Thompson Head of Art
Charley Drayton Freelance Music Director
Amanda Slatyer Wunderman Thompson Senior Producer
Tracey-Lee Permall Hogarth Senior Producer
Paul Everson Wunderman Thompson Managing Director
Ana Lynch Wunderman Thompson Client Services Director
Carly Yanko Wunderman Thompson Head of Strategy
Jack Blades Wunderman Thompson Senior Account Manager
Ellie Sutton Wunderman Thompson Account Manager
Bronte Rohrig Wunderman Thompson Account Manager
Samantha Daley Hogarth Executive Producer
Daniel Askill Collider Director
Lucy Pilkington Collider Executive Producer
Lucy Bidwell Collider Executive Producer
Patt Thrall Freelance Music Producer/ Programmer /Mix engineer /Guitar/ Visual music arranger
Koo Abuali Freelance Voice Coach
Zoe Hayes Berlei Senior Marketing Manager
Miranda Bryce Mint Partners Senior Strategist – PR
Chontelle Clark Berlei Brand Manager
Andrea Michelle Berlei Senior Marketing Manager

Background

1 in 8 women will get breast cancer. Yet the earlier you detect breast cancer, the better your chance is of beating it. For Breast Cancer Awareness Month, October 2018, the Australian bra brand Berlei wanted a breast health awareness campaign that would demonstrate their brand promise to support women everywhere as well as show their ongoing commitment to Breast Cancer Network Australia. However, they had very little budget and no media spend so we were tasked with creating a campaign that would gain massive earned media coverage. The objective was to raise awareness of the importance of self-examination for the early detection of breast cancer with a simple message delivered in an unexpected way to young women: touch yourself. At the same time, the campaign is proof of Berlei’s brand promise in action – to support women’s breast health.

Describe the creative idea

In 2014, the I Touch Myself Project transformed the Divinyls’ hit song into a breast health anthem to inspire Australian women to self-check. In 2018, Berlei wanted a campaign that would reach women in every corner of the globe. We decided to create a new version of the song, not with a singer, but with a super influencer who would be willing to front the project for no fee. We approached one of the world’s greatest influencers who, despite not having sung professionally before, agreed to become a champion for women’s health. With an influence score of 98%, it meant that when Serena Williams sang, women listened and it was essential to the idea that Serena would post the video on the eve of Breast Cancer Awareness Month.

Describe the strategy

Despite their awareness of breast cancer, women self-exempt rather than self-examine, thinking ‘it won’t happen to me’. So, how do you get the sensitive subject of self-examination out in a way that cuts through the clutter and pink-washing? By connecting with women through the things they love such as music, sport and celebrity. To get this kind of reach, the project needed an influencer with scale and gravitas. Someone women from all backgrounds looked up to and respected, who could cut through the clutter and connect. There aren’t many people on the planet who have that kind of pull, but there was one woman who does: super-influencer Serena Williams. It wasn’t just Serena’s superstardom and undiscovered vocals that made her a perfect candidate. Her audience was a perfect match to our target demographic: young women most unlikely to perform breast self-examinations.

Describe the execution

We created a raw and deliberately simple music video that starts with super close-up of Serena and slowly tracks out to reveal her holding her breasts while she’s singing straight to camera, imploring women to touch themselves. Serena kicked off the campaign with her first post-US Open interview on The Sunday Project on September 23. The world was watching. The interview had reach of over 460 million people as she stayed firmly on message, using her platform to encourage women to ‘touch yourself’ and shared an excerpt from the music video. Serena then posted the full music video on September 30 to her 10 million+ followers on her social channels on the eve of International Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Serena’s post drove women to a website that showed them how to self-examine. The music video quickly created waves – touching over 1 billion people.

List the results

With an influence score of 98%, it meant that when Serena Williams sang, women listened, touching over I.12 billion people across 95 countries and increasing the conversation about self-detection by 252% (compared to BCAM October 2017). By lending her voice to the Project, Serena has helped put the importance of early detection on the global stage. • Global content reached over 1.12 billion people across 95 countries • 252% uplift in conversations about self-checking compared to Breast Cancer Awareness Month 2017. • The music video was the most retweeted post on twitter and was the most watched video on Instagram during Breast Cancer Awareness Month. • 96% positive sentiment for Berlei • Serena was one of the most prominent influencers in relation to Breast Cancer Awareness Month. The campaign was used as a segue to providing direct advice to women on self-detection of breast cancer.

Links

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