The campaign marks Dove?s first effort at product sampling through Twitter, where the Unilever-owned brand has more than 120,000 followers. It marks another step in the efforts among brands to leverage social media as a platform to escort customers down the path to purchase. 

?We are excited to launch our sampling program through Twitter, leveraging this contextually relevant platform to capitalize on a moment in time with such great scale,? said Jennifer Bremner, brand building director of skin cleansing at Unilever. 

In partnership with E! Entertainment, Dove is planning to debut the One Shower Challenge during the network?s ?Live From the Red Carpet? coverage of the Emmys on Aug. 25. The Unilever-owned brand will give viewers a chance to obtain a free product sample of its new Dove Body Wash by posting a message on Twitter during the telecast. 

Dove is counting on viewers tuning into the telecast on their TV and following along on Twitter using their tablets and smartphones. Viewers can either request a sample from @Dove on Twitter or visit the Web site at dove.com/OneShowerChallenge. 

?For most viewers watching award shows, and television in general, has become a multi-screen experience,? said Ms. Bremner. ?When planning for a night like the Emmys, you want to be everywhere the audience will be, which is why it is important to engage women at different touch points.? 

Dove is partnering with Jeannine Morris, founder of BeautySweetSpot.com, and Micaela Erlanger, a red carpet stylist, to discuss skin care as part of a woman?s beauty routine and tease news from Dove on E! in the weeks leading up to the campaign. Through the E! Twitter feed @eonline, in conjunction with the E! Live from the Red Carpet Livestream on eonline.com, viewers will also be able to submit red carpet beauty questions to Morris.

 

In order to obtain a free sample, viewers who Tweet to @Dove will be directed to the Dove.com registration form. The Web site has been optimized for mobile, Ms. Bremner said. 

?Mobile usage has achieved parity and for some has exceeded desktop browsing on a daily basis,? she said. ?It's important to think about the mobile experience first when developing a digital campaign, which is why our Web site features a responsive design that is device agnostic.?

Other brands have also recently taken to Twitter for giveaways, including clothing brands bebe and Lands? End. 

Bebe?s Wear Denim and Win Diamonds campaign focuses in on the fashion brand?s new, domestically produced denim and uses the hashtag #bebesweeps to promote the social campaign on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. It is giving away $20,000 in diamonds to followers who submit photos of themselves wearing the brand?s products (see story). 

Apparel and accessories retailer Lands? End, meanwhile, is giving away a free pair of jeans to its Twitter followers every day in August (see story). 

The campaigns illustrate the brands? efforts to engage with their customers in new ways, and to reward that engagement.

For Dove, the social aspect of the Emmy Awards campaign will allow the brand to connect with TV viewers at a time when they are likely to be swept up in the celebrity-fueled excitement and glitz. 

?Being on multiple platforms allows us to be part of the beauty conversation, specifically on a night like the Emmys, and allow viewers to request a sample in the moment,? Bremner said.