Himalaya Drug Company comes to the rescue of men with Pimple Clear Neem Face Wash

Skin ailments, like any other disease, do not differentiate between men and women. But, it's often that women's dermatological issues are highlighted more than their counterparts. Based on this insight is the latest ad by the Himalaya Drug Company, a herbal health and personal care company. Launched as a 360-degree multi-media campaign called 'Men Hate Pimples Too', and in collaboration with Chapter Five Brand Solutions, (which is the creative agency for the campaign), the brand aims to promote its Pimple Clear Neem Face Wash in the male grooming category under the company's portfolio.

The first leg of the 360-degree multi-media campaign commenced with the launch of a 30-second digital film that was launched on YouTube on February 19; the television campaign (TVC) for the same will be aired on February 24, followed by above-the-line (ATL), and below-the-line (BTL) promotions, print ads, and radio spots. The campaign is expected to continue until June this year.

In addition to this, the company also undertook neuroscience research and communication script testing sessions by Nielsen (an American global information and measurement company), to validate the insights which laid stress on the effectiveness of the campaign vis-a-vis its communication which was found to be emotionally engaging, persuasive and memorable.

Commenting on the research, Ashwani Gandhi, category manager, consumer product division, Himalaya Drug Company says, "In India, 40 per cent men use unisex facewash, and the size of the unisex face wash category in India is pegged at Rs 1,800 crore. Moreover, from a global perspective, less than 10 per cent of men and women make up for the overall industry size in this segment. The fact is that one out of four men in India suffers from pimples and mostly resorts to homemade remedies. "

Gandhi continues further, "The qualitative findings highlighted men's attitude towards skin care problems. Men believe that getting pimples is an eventuality. It affects them as much as it does women, but their reaction isn't as extreme. They do not like to talk about pimples. They carry on with their normal lives, but they do go through personal and social discomfort."

The company had launched a facewash for oily skin two years ago and this is the third product in the company's Men's Care portfolio after Intense Oil Clear Lemon Face Wash and Power Glow Licorice Face Wash.

According to Rajesh Krishnamurthy, business head, consumer products, The Himalaya Drug Company, says, the men's grooming market is the fastest-growing segment in skin care. It is believed that it will touch Rs 5,000 crore by the end of 2016. A category that was limited to shaving and deodorant is increasingly seeing new segments like face care and hair care range for men, and the fastest-growing category within this is men's facewash. As per latest reports, it is pegged at Rs 275 crore (U+R), and growing at more than 45 per cent. "In our constant interactions with our target audience, we found that one out of every four men suffering from skin problems, suffer from pimples which we consider as a huge opportunity for us to exploit. We are already leaders in the unisex segment with our Purifying Neem Face Wash and have the expertise in solving pimples. It was only natural, to extend this expertise specific to men," he says.

"The film leverages the insight that young males do not express their discomfort when they face a pimple problem. We have tried to capture very simply the real-life behaviour of a young man who would be socially awkward to accept that he is facing personal and social discomfort due to pimples. We aimed to create a disruptive TVC with an 'ahaa' moment that catches the viewer's attention and communicate that 'men hate pimples too," states Prateek Srivastava, creative head, Chapter Five Brand Solutions.

When asked about the marketing challenges for the current campaign, Gandhi says, "Differentiation in terms of establishing the product relevance is a challenge. Moreover, the cost of running the ad on various platforms is high, given that this product is for men."

With a history spanning more than eight decades in herbal research, Himalaya has positioned itself as a brand that cares about not only enriching people's lives, but also the environment. With its 'head to heel' range of products Himalaya aims to provide a holistic solution to everyday ailments that affect our bodies.