Background

"Around 610,000 unexpected pregnancies per year. About 160,000 abortions per year. Over 100,000 abortions for women under 20 per year. In contrast, over 18% of married couples sought infertility exams and treatments. Overall, Japan has a mountain of worries regarding sex and reproduction. You can’t learn everything necessary just by reading a textbook in class. If you look up “sex” online, the top hits are porn sites, making it difficult to find accurate information when trying to learn more about sexuality and gender. This was the situation."

Describe the cultural / social / political climate in your region and the significance of your campaign within this context

Around 610,000 unexpected pregnancies per year. About 160,000 abortions per year. Over 100,000 abortions for women under 20 per year. In contrast, over 18% of married couples sought infertility exams and treatments. Overall, Japan has a mountain of worries regarding sex and reproduction. You can’t learn everything necessary just by reading a textbook in class. If you look up “sex” online, the top hits are porn sites, making it difficult to find accurate information when trying to learn more about sexuality and gender. This was the situation.

Describe the creative idea

When young people wanted to learn more about sexuality and gender, their options were general summary websites or porn videos consisting of fabrications. In Japan, not only was the internet flooded with incorrect information, there wasn’t any accurate information. Since young people search for information on the internet, we decided to launch a website with scientifically-based information on sex up to global standards – a veritable sex education textbook that can be read on your smartphone.

Describe the strategy

Our goal is to provide world-class knowledge about sexual issues. - There were only websites with obsolete or incorrect information on the internet until now. All of the articles on SEXOLOGY are in line with the UNESCO’s “International technical guidance on sexuality education.” We aimed for something that is trustworthy and meets global standards. - We called upon experts of various backgrounds: obstetricians and gynecologists, urologists, professors of sex education, students of sex education. These diverse experts – who were not restricted by gender, age, or nationality – supervised all of the articles, the site, and the design. - The focus of the design and copy was to create material that was relatable for the target audience. The strategy was to make something that is not difficult to understand but that people would want to casually look at, whether they have a problem or not.

Describe the execution

We created SEXOLOGY, a sexual education website that can be accessed by smartphone because when young people want to learn about sex, they search online. We selected the medium based on our target, young people, and set up a website that can be viewed from a smartphone, uploaded videos on YouTube, and so on. Naming it “SEXOLOGY,” which includes the word “sex,” succeeded in catching the attention of young people. We successfully conveyed that sex education is not a stuffy thing but an accessible thing, due to the name and site design.

Describe the results / impact

- Adopted as teaching material for multiple teaching institutions. Also included in the national PR magazine. - The "HOW TO SEX" video reached over 18,000 views even without a PR campaign. - Became a catalyst for the nation and educators to re-think sexual education in a way that was not considered before.