Manscape x DUDE Wipes April Fools Collab- A "Hole" New Way To Groom

 Manscape x DUDE Wipes April Fools Collab

A Backside Grooming Tool For Men, WHAT?


Introducing the Dudeman 2.0. What am I even looking at? How is this not demonized on Instagram? These were my first thoughts when I scrolled past this monstrosity of an Ad. I have always found Manscapes products with humorous names, like the lawn mower or weed wacker. From a marketing standpoint, they have nailed their target audience of guys in the niche and find this humor to promote the products more.
On the other hand, DUDE Wipes is a newer men's care brand that has been killing it over the last year with brand deals in the Super Bowl, UFC, and, for this month's importance, the Masters. These two companies have very similar niches. They both use humor to promote what most people would consider an uncomfortable topic of men's self-care. This April Fool's ad, of course, is not real, but was great for both companies to get attention for making something no one has seen before, and to me, it didn't seem culturally acceptable.


Video Ad








Campaign Analysis and Description

The ad uses the soft and relatable format you would find in a medicine or supplement commercial. Along with storytelling using a stereotypical relationship in which the girl believes her partner smells bad, this product is here to save the day. Using a serious doctor talking about such a humorous thing makes the whole commercial that much better. I don't recognize any of the actors in the video, but if they were able to feature famous actors, I believe this would have gone viral. Mentioned previously, it was released on April Fool's, which came across my Instagram feed the very same day. I would say it definitely worked at getting my attention because there was no way I was gonna skip after a couple of seconds of watching! An article on Design Rush describes the campaign perfectly: "The campaign demonstrates how humor and creativity can engage consumers and reinforce a brand's Identity." The lack of reality of the product proves even more how creative marketing like this ad can have the same effect for a company as marketing real products can. 

Design Rush Article: https://www.designrush.com/news/dude-wipes-manscaped-grooming-hilarious-new-level


What Is The Actual Meaning of The Message?

To state the obvious, this ad is very unique because of the product it conveys to the audience, but as far as the effectiveness of this marketing strategy, well, sadly, this is nothing new. A recent April Fools marketing campaign I saw on my social media featured prebiotic soda brand Olipop and Hidden Valley Ranch releasing their limited edition ranch-flavored soda. Many brands have found ways to leverage days like April Fool's to bring awareness to their companies with creativity. This Ad is just one example that caught my eye, similar to the one I am talking about, because who would drink this stuff?

Manscape and DUDE Wipes have a very niche audience. Imagine a 20-35 year old man who works a well paying corporate job, golfs every day after work if he has the chance, is active on social media with not much of a young family environment at home, which allows him to have an interest in products and entertainment that are less kid friendly. These products have stereotyped their product to what I like to call "Dude bro" mentality, meaning, marketing efforts are focused on a very manly concept, which I believe is because people view men's care like something that is not very manly but in fact is very essential to a man's everyday life. No part of their message is offensive in my eyes. Marketing the product to be manly is smart because it makes their target audience feel more comfortable and less awkward when purchasing.


Olipop x Hidden Valley Collab: https://www.fooddive.com/news/april-fools-pranks-food-beverage-crunch-olipop-ranch-body-armor/744054/


Evaluation

Strength

  • Humor- The Way Manscaped and Dude wipes can leverage Humor to make an uncomfortable topic seem normal and okay, giving the viewer trust in the product to look into and trust that it will get the Job done
  • Conversation- This kind of Ad is so far out there that it gets people talking about it, sharing it on social media, and reacting to it on social media platforms. Whether this be good or bad, all media is good media for both companies
  • Strong Brand Identity: The use of the word "Dude" and the masculine, irreverent tone of their marketing creates a fun, nonsense image that appeals to their core audience. This tone makes it easy for viewers to recognize the brand, even with minimal effort.

Weakness
  • Niche Appeal: The humor and brand identity may appeal more to a specific segment of the male demographic, limiting the reach beyond younger or more traditionally "bro" audiences.
  • Too One-Dimensional: Relying heavily on humor and absurdity might reduce the opportunity to convey deeper messages about the product’s quality or benefits, which could make it less informative for those unfamiliar with the brand.



What Are People Saying About The Ad?


All the comments I have seen so far give a great description of how Manscape and Dude Wipes have marketed to their exact target audience. Every comment is backed with humor or gets at an alternative underlying message. This shows how they have nailed who their target audience is and know how to grab their attention. In the image on the right are just some of the comments from the Instagram post, and as you can see, everyone is playing along with it.



Instagram Comments
Other Comments

Conclusion/ My Opinion 

To Start, I believe they reached the audience they wanted to. Being a part of this target audience, I can say that it definitely worked on me, and even tho this isn't a real product (Not like I would buy it), it makes me feel like I can trust both these companies to provide me with what I am looking for. 
I took away the impressive leverage of humor that both companies were able to use as effectively as they did. Creativity sometimes takes the spotlight in ads, and what I mean by that is making them fancy and flashy, but ads that have a funny, good laugh meaning behind them seem to have more of an impact on most target audiences, but not all. I was actually surprised that this was fake and not real. I have followed both companies for a while and totally seemed like something they would come out with, and maybe now, after this Ad did so good, they will think about releasing a real version to the public. 


































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