Unilever revealed a new haircare brand Evaus, recruiting a number of popular beauty and fashion bloggers as part of its launch campaign. But there was a twist- Evaus was simply a repackaged version of one its its existing brands.
Evaus is simply ‘Suave’ spelled backwards- one of Unilever’s exiting haircare brands and one of its more lower priced products.
For the video ad, Unilever hired a group of influencers in a campaign from Vice’s digital agency Carrot.
Carrot let these influencers try Evaus products for about two weeks, then invited them to a studio to reveal the truth.
The reaction video showed the bloggers shocked that they had been using a mass-market brand.
“I used it for 10 days,” said Kathleen Harper (@katsfashionfix) in the video, before the reveal. “I would say it was a game changer.” She adds that her stylist never recommends anything sold in a drug store.
“It’s edgy. It’s modern. It’s sleek,” noted Viannie Bell (@sogrittyprestige), another fashion blogger.
“We found seven of 10 women think higher-priced brands are more trustworthy,” said Jen Bremner, Unilever marketing director on 80-year-old Suave. “That really was the inspiration. We wanted to peel back the labels and convert the skeptics.”
Unilever’s survey research also found 90% of millennial women would buy lower-priced haircare products if they didn’t have to sacrifice quality.
Suave is now linking the video to a PR campaign from Edelman offering financial advice to millennials on saving money, including, of course, buying cheaper yet effective shampoo.