Dollar Shave Club's inclusive campaign, space contest lather up results

Dive Brief:

Dollar Shave Club's latest brand campaign, "Get Ready," appears to be paying off for the direct-to-consumer (DTC) razor maker since it debuted in July, according to a YouGov Plan & Track analysis shared with Marketing Dive. The percentage of U.S. adult consumers who reported seeing a Dollar Shave Club ad increased from 19% in June to 24% in October.
Over the same time period, Dollar Shave Club's "Buzz" score, which YouGov uses to gauge whether consumers have heard something positive or negative about the brand over the past two weeks, jumped from 8 points to 14 points.
Purchase consideration for Dollar Shave Club rose from 7% to 9% following the brand's announcement of a contest that will send someone into space as part of the campaign. The effort is hosted at a "Dollar Space Club" website.

Dive Insight:

Dollar Shave Club being able to drive awareness, buzz and purchase consideration with "Get Ready" suggests the DTC marketer's messaging strategy focused on inclusivity is resonating with consumers. The creative depicts a diverse cast of actors across gender, age and body types shaving, showering and styling themselves.

The messaging strategy falls in line with initiatives led by parent company Unilever, which acquired Dollar Shave Club in 2016 as a strategic move to stay ahead of DTC trends disrupting traditional packaged goods. Unilever at Cannes Lions this summer announced it was expanding its Unstereotype program, which looks to eliminate stereotypes, across all content formats

The space sweepstakes attached to the current advertising push appeared to help bolster buzz and follows other Dollar Shave Club campaigns that have attracted online attention, including its viral "Our Blades Are F***ing Great" video from 2012, according to YouGov.

Dollar Shave Club was an early leader in disrupting traditional razor brands like Gillette through its more cheaply-priced, subscription model to buying razors. However, the company is seeing subscription growth slow and is facing stiffer competition from other DTC grooming brands, such as Harry's.

Legacy CPGs, including P&G's Gillette, now offer DTC services mirroring Dollar Shave Club's model as well, which underpins why the company will need to continue to innovate with its marketing to draw in new members. P&G, for example, recently credited its Gillette brand and online subscription service with helping to generate a 4% increase in organic sales for its grooming category, including 10% growth in the U.S. for fiscal Q1 2019.

Dollar Shave Club has 3.9 million subscribers, and is adding new subscribers at a rate of 10% per year, according to Marketing Week. With the new competition, the company shifted its data management platform and changed its business model, revamping its marketing to include a range of products extending beyond razors. Rival Harry's in August also expanded its line of grooming products, supporting the push with an inclusivity-minded campaign starring Ludacris.