Stayfree:A date with Ryan from Faruk Erman on Vimeo.
Stayfree:A date with Brad from Faruk Erman on Vimeo.
Stayfree:A date with Trevor from Faruk Erman on Vimeo.
I was shown these commercials a few months ago by my boyfriend who was also taking a class on advertising at Wilfrid Laurier University. "You gotta see these," he explained. Without giving any details, he just played "A Date with Brad," and I watched patiently ... not sure what to expect. What happened at the end of these commercials, I was far from expecting. I kept looking in the commercials for some slight cues as to what they were selling. I was shocked. I laughed because even I couldn't have guessed that they were selling Stayfree pads! Breaking the fourth wall and having the men interact with the audience, playing off of the stereotypical "dream" guy ... but the "dream" guy that talks to you about your feminine hygiene. From what I've been reading, the commercials were produced by BBDO Toronto and did not last very long on air. Harsh criticism was met with the commercials and saw the ads pulled, even off of YouTube. Although the popularity of the Old Spice commercials had produced much success for the company, Stayfree's attempt at tongue-and-cheek did not. The commercials fail to understand that women do *not* want to have their menstrual cycle discussed with them with what would appear to be as the "perfect" bachelor.
To be honest, I'm still on the fence about these commercials. In some ways ... it reminds me way too much of Christopher Walken's skits on SNL ...
Too good for words haha
Back to the men of Stayfree ... Although I find the commercial witty and creative, I still can see why it failed to do well with its targeted market. Just seem a little too .... overdone?
