Since we started working with AXE in 2015, the Find Your Magic brand platform has been inspiring guys to explore their masculinity and be the most attractive men they can be - themselves. But to do that, we first have to reach them, a task which is increasingly more difficult. Young guys don’t really watch TV. They are blocking, skipping and scrolling past ads. The average organic reach has sunk to 2%. We not only have to keep evolving what the brand says and does, but also how it’s saying and doing it. That’s why in 2018 we made three major moves:

-From focusing on traditional advertising to creating content through partners.

-From connecting with the masses to connecting with communities.

-From one message for everyone to precision messaging at scale.

When our clients briefed us for another product ad, we came back with a different way in. What started with a brief for a new ad became AXE’s first major entertainment project. We partnered with a guy that our guys love: #1 DJ in the world Martin Garrix. We launched a limited edition AXE X Martin Garrix body spray for which we sure made 15” and 06” product ads. But the big story was authentically integrating that product in a music video we made for Martin’s track “Burn Out”. In the music video we follow a modern story of attraction where the girl is as much of a hero as the guy.

How could we launch AXE’s most innovative body spray in years, in such a way that young men would care? By making it more of a new track release than a product launch. Two principles guided our way there: build anticipation and drive conversation within Martin Garrix’s community, as a way to spread the news; and make it true to AXE by fully rooting it in the brand territory of attraction. Music moves you, AXE Music moves you closer.

• Implementation

The film was shot on set in Hungary. Two identical laundromats were built. While we shoot in one, the other was dressed and prepared for the next set up.

• Timeline

Coordination, planning and creation of the track took nearly 6 months. The shoot itself was done over two very long and efficient days.

• Placement

Our biggest media partner was Martin Garrix himself, by using his social and YouTube channels we were able to reach an incredible number of people.

• Scale

Despite being shot in a studio the scale was fairly large from a set/art direction point of view. Every world had to be built, designed and lit for that one moment.

The video was an instant hit both within Youtube and beyond. With the momentum of the music video, we had built an emotional connection with millions of our guys. Then we made this audience addressable using precision marketing.

Yes, emotion and precision. That’s not just cool, it’s pretty effective commercially too. Personalised product ads converted the hype to drive sales of the can and offered exclusive giveaways to generate first-party data. Daily web traffic rose by 636% with a 30% click to buy rate. The campaign created 12 million new contacts that we will retarget with future AXE comms. And Martin Garrix, who was initially precious about the partnership, ended up doing more than what was expected. ‘Burn out’ received 50M+ views on Youtube to date. The special edition of the product sold out in stores on day one.