Back to brave - Libra marketers on pushing boundaries

Rachael Micallef
By Rachael Micallef | 19 August 2015
 

When Jenny Nolch stepped into her current role 14 months ago, she had a clear image in mind. It was from the “Sharon” campaign by Libra in the 90s – named after Sharon Stone who starred in Basic Instinct – and took the form of a film noir murder mystery. The campaign also broke the biggest taboo in the fem-pro category: showing blood instead of mysterious blue liquid being soaked up by a sanitary pad.

“I came in and said that’s what I think Libra’s about,” Nolch told AdNews. “It felt like Libra was doing lots of really good work but it could actually push the boundaries a bit further and become part of what it means to be female today.

“It felt like we were at the end of one story and looking at how we could start to tell another.”

That story wasn’t the same one from the 90s – Nolch said the Sharon Stone character is frightening to female
audiences nowadays – but says the brand was after a modern interpretation of what it means to be a strong, independent woman.

The result? A big, bold rebrand that the marketing team at Asaleo Care, parent company of Libra, in-house called “back to brave.”

Stepping back from the big TV ads that mark out the category, the first campaign for the new-look Libra “I Am Fearless” takes form as a dedicated platform housing content from three ambassadors who have overcome challenges. It features singer Megan Washington who has a debilitating stutter, Indigenous actor Miranda Tapsell who talks about the impact of bullying and racism and hip hop yoga entrepreneur Sammy Veall, who was burnt in
an accident.

The aim is that the hub will not only reveal their stories, but will also act as a place where young women can visit,
and contribute and feel that they’re not alone as they face their fears.

Nolch says the entire process was a long one – 12 months from words on a page to a brand campaign – but it started
by looking at where the brand sat in the past in comparison to its more recent history.

Senior brand manager Carla Gilbert says that key to addressing this was to figure out what it was that Libra stood for. To do so, its creative agency Clemenger BBDO Melbourne monitored social trends to uncover which issues young women were facing, with fear and vulnerability emerging at the top.

“Libra used to be a challenger brand. We looked back at our history, particularly in the 90s, and we basically
empowered women back then not to be afraid about talking about period products and menstruation, to break the
category norms,” Gilbert says.

“Over the years when you become a leading brand, I think you start to focus more on product innovation but we
thought we needed to stand for something more – something higher that was important in today’s culture and society.”

While Nolch admits it’s a tough sell for a brand to try to own a cultural issue, she says early tests showed that Libra
had “permission” to play in that space.

“I think the reason is that we’ve worked in that area in the past so there was an expectation from Libra, but the other thing we needed to buy into as a business was strategic sacrifice,” Nolch explains.

“To play in this space there are actually enormous responsibilities so we needed to be sure that we would
commit long term.

“If you are inauthentic you would be found out in no time – audiences can spot a phony right off.” 

The campaign also extends to its packaging design. Nolch says a challenge the brand was facing was that supermarket eyes for feminine hygiene products are a wash of pink and baby blue, making it hard to stand out on the shelf.

To bring Libra into focus, the packs are now covered in a visual representation of what it means to be fearless - bold,
artistic and covered in a big white cross.

The other big change that Libra made was to its marketing mix. Traditionally fem-pro products tended to be led by TV. Gilbert says the campaign marks the first time a significant portion of its advertising budget was moved into digital, with TV used like a movie trailer, to drive to the online hub.

While it’s a big departure for the brand, Nolch is adamant the future of Libra is more digital heavy, even extending
the remit of Clemenger BBDO from creative duties to include digital. But in terms of what the future holds for
Libra, Nolch is tight-lipped. She says there are many more executions planned for the campaign but all of them are
flexible, depending on how Libra consumers use the hub and where they engage.

Nolch says Libra is starting to think of itself as a publisher rather than an advertiser, with user-generated content starting to become a larger part of its strategy.

Gilbert does however think the “I Am Fearless” positioning gives the brand a lot of room to move with
marketing and product innovation.

“We’re hoping this positioning will be around for the next two to three years. That’s what we’re committing to,” she reveals.

“We’re trying to work as fluidly as possible, but that being said, a lot of work has gone into it and it’s such a beautiful story that you can watch it again and again – it won’t wear out very quickly.”

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