So the new ads for Tampax featuring Serena taking on “Mother Nature” are out and I have to say that for the most part they are effective and funny. The press conference commercial is cute in its own way, but I doubt some of the one liners uttered by Mother Nature will make it to T.V. But why pay for T.V. spots when there’s the Internet.
The core pun at the heart of the campaign is that Mother Nature wants to deliver her “gift” to Serena at the worst possible time. The gift, presented in a red box, yes a red box, is a creative way to get the point across. Of course Tampax on its website does explain the concept for those who may need help.
But why Serena as the spokeswoman? Certainly she is one the few recognizable female athletes known to the general public, but certainly others come to mind? Did those “others” back away from what could be seen as a taboo subject? Jelena Jankovic, though probably not on the short list of candidates, would have been perfect since she complained that it was the “gift” that was one of the reasons she lost to Melanie Oudin at Wimbledon this year.
A Maria Sharapova campaign would probably have been a bit more refined, perhaps having Maria walk through a “fresh clean meadow”. You get the point.
What about Michelle Wie, the well-known and younger golf champion from Hawaii? Although she fits the target demo of teen girls and young women, again she still doesn’t have the name recognition of the top tennis players.
Serena makes sense in that she had just won the U.S. Open, Australian Open and Wimbledon and although at 28 years old, projects herself sometimes as being younger than her age, which works well with trying to target a younger demo.
Who knows if the campaign will be a success but as I said in an earlier post, I doubt the “incident” will hurt Serena’s short term endorsement deals.
Oh by the way, tomorrow is Serena’s birthday. Happy Birthday Serena!
Next time, I promise to get back to discussing actual tennis as I will preview the upcoming Asia events.
Adjusting the Net 