Can Always, Israel’s leading feminine protection brand, which stands for feminine confidence, find a way to ease her tensions around the period of orthodox women?

20% of Israeli women are Orthodox/Religious. For them, the topic of menstruation an absolute taboo.

While for most women period lasts about 5-6 days, Orthodox women are also at a state called Niddah ("distant" in Hebrew). During this period, the Jewish woman isn't allowed to have any physical contact with her husband. In order to reunite with him, she must be 100% sure her period is over.

But in some cases, after these 5 days, she might find some undistinguished spots on her pad. Period related or not. The women who want to practice their religion, often need to approach a halachic expert.

Women dread this consultation; they wish they could practice their faith without encountering this embarrassing and time-consuming practice.

Always was underperforming in the Orthodox sector. We were unable to advertise freely due to religious restrictions on media consumption that hindered the reach of our communication.

Biblical laws concerning menstruation prohibit sexual intercourse while menstruating, imposing punishment of extinction on both husband and wife if violated. Religious couples take the marriage guide rituals very seriously.

Once menstruation ceases the woman counts 7 “clean-days” and takes a ritual bath before the couple can have sex again. Women test whether menstruation has ceased using a pad and in case there is still discharge the couple needs to consult a rabbi who carefully inspects the nature of the stains manually. This is called "ask the rabbi."

For both parties, it is pure bureaucracy…

first, she Takes the pad. Then she goes to the temple, waits for the rabbi, and Shows him the pad. He examines it according to Jewish law and tells her if the period is officially over or not.

We’ve tapped into these women's unique 5,000-year-old ritual and helped them practice their religion without compromising their trust. Our aim was to go beyond simply raising awareness of women but rather focus on “action”, taking credible steps to improve women’s confidence.

A smart A.I App that uses technology to solve the tensions of modern Orthodox Jewish woman!

Israel is known for its amazing tech entrepreneurship but for modern religious women, this could also sometimes become a source of immense tension when tradition clashes with their modern lifestyle.

We needed a strong insight and activation that will help us bridge that gap.

Always' Rabbi-Bot is a customized app using the power of Artificial Intelligence to help women determine whether they are still menstruating or not, all directly and conveniently from her smartphone with no need to discuss intimate affairs with others.

The App scans the pad, compares it to thousands of previous cases and the Jewish law, and tells the woman what the nature of the spots is, without the need to take it to a Rabbi's inspection.

20% of Israeli women are Orthodox/Religious and as such are extremely hard to reach when it comes to feminine hygiene communication. For them, the topic of menstruation an absolute taboo.

By solving a 5,000-year-old problem, with A.I Technology and Data, Always was able to connect with one of the most segregated communities in the world.

We’ve created a healthy dialogue based on trust that was born from a local insight.

We started by creating a much-needed utility, a service that eliminates the need for the unpleasant monthly consultations with the rabbi and we will do it all with the approval of the highest religious authorities by making sure it adheres to the highest religious standards.

Despite the inherent barriers we managed to break through to this important audience by launching a branded utility using unique touch-points like ritual baths and dedicated social groups.

Our AI-based app replaced the uncomfortable Rabbi consultations and empowers the women to check on their own. Just scan your pad and instantly determine whether you are still menstruating directly from your smartphone.

With the help of prominent religious marriage guides we “fed” an A.I. engine all the biblical rules concerning menstruation on multiple parameters of possible period and post-period discharge including color, size, shape, and dimension of the stain. We also uploaded scanned sample pads classified by the rabbinical authority which would serve as our initial database. Each newly scanned pad is compared to the existing database to determine which status the woman is and join the database to further improve results.

A press release drove initial buzz while ritual baths' attendants served as our direct app promoters providing additional "how-to" info. Testimonials on private Facebook groups further drove the message and generated extensive discussions.

Finally, there was a solution to a problem that bothered hundreds of thousands of women for over 5,000 years of tradition.

We ignited the discussion and elevated it to the public agenda and the conversation exploded!

https://alwaysbot.net/

Since launch, 3,000 women on average have used the app per month (about 5% of monthly Orthodox menstruating women) and the numbers are growing steadily despite Covid leading to the shut down of the public ritual baths and consequently of our related DTC program.

App users reacted by thanking Always publicly, talking about how technology enables them to both follow their religious beliefs while keeping their intimate lives private. Even the husbands joined the positive talk.

Always’ equity measurement in the sector has soared (“brand which understands me” up by 23%!) and after being flat for more than 2 years sales are now on an upward trend in the sector (index 107).