2022 Winners & Shortlists

Why is this work relevant for Direct?

Every touchpoint was built for women to reach other women of that age group to help change the label "Age of Despair", especially with our influencers. We launched a music video on the live-radio by Anghami that proved to be a hit with the live engagement. Finally, our latest was an on-ground open to the public event at EXPO where the UNFA and influential women discussed the topic with the public, our celebrity singer sang about the "Age of renewal" and an AR lens showed the transformation from "Age of Despair" to "Age of Renewal" with live 3D graphics.

Background

TENA’s position as the world’s leading Adult Incontinence Product brand was not translating into market penetration in the region. TENA was lagging with a market share of 18% and found itself in a solid challenger position. With this context, a re-set was needed to gain traction in key markets such as KSA. Analyzing market conditions, the challenges became clear. Incontinence is globally the most stigmatized of health conditions, but in Saudi, the stigma was elevated to a taboo. The result is that 90% of women in KSA seek don't seek medical advice for incontinence as the topic is sensitive and the result is that most women chose sanitary pads as opposed to a specialized product. Additionally, TENA suffered a perception challenge and was being viewed as a medical product for older women that didn’t resonate with a younger audience, making it difficult for the brand to gain a cultural foothold.

Describe the creative idea (30% of vote)

We started with culture: Saudi women were gaining the courage to be heard. A drive to re-invent themselves in the eyes of societal change. If our women were brave enough to challenge the status-quo, then so could we. Speaking to women in Saudi within the age of menopause, we realized their perception of it didn't match the stigma created by patriarchal society. Menopause in their eyes was a time to positively embrace maturity, calmness, and a time to become more exploratory. We had to tackle the expression head-on. The word 'menopause' doesn’t exist in Arabic language and is replaced by the derogatory term 'Age of Despair'; a term that only reflects the perceived despair in a woman losing her 'use'. If we could eradicate the term and replace it with something more positive, women could feel more empowered to embrace menopause and the products that make it a liberating experience.

Describe the strategy (20% of vote)

Menopause is a critical period in every woman’s life that comes with unpleasant symptoms that decrease her quality of life. Among those, incontinence is very common and affects more than 50% of menopausal women, yet is extremely stigmatized in the region. We, therefore, chose to primarily target women in the Middle East above the age of 45, entering menopause. Our core audience is new. They are most likely to buy regular sanitary pads as opposed to our specialized products because they feel less embarrassed to purchase the former. Additionally, we wanted to reach a younger female audience to drive awareness for a phenomenon that would unavoidably reach them around the age of 45 and build understanding among all females -- in the end, they are our future consumers. But more so, because young Arab females are bold drivers of change and have a far-reaching influence to challenge the status quo.

Describe the execution (20% of vote)

To erase “The Age of Despair” across MENA and change it forever, we called on women to submit their positive alternatives and replace ‘despair’ with words of empowerment. On international women’s day, we launched a film featuring traditional Arab music - Tarab - and gave it a modern twist. With Tarab Star Ghalia, we created a song that turned the negativity of ‘the age of despair’ into a call for positive change. We also launched the music live on Anghami. Through social & digital platforms, strategic partnerships, and activations we created a movement for women, by women. We called on women across the region to tell their stories and invited them to submit alternative words. Thousands of women joined the conversation and suggested words that could replace ‘despair’, a female panel chose the one that stood out. “Renewal.” – Labeling menopause as the beginning of a new, exciting life chapter.

List the results (30% of vote)

Our efforts were designed to make a big impact on society, and the results spoke of a movement that took hold. With 4.7 million video views and over 240K song streams, the message had cut through. But what got us excited was the high conversation, as we saw 6.9 million social engagements and for the first time in 2 years search queries about incontinence increased by 44%. From a market-share perspective, TENA became the n.2 brand in volume during the campaign period with an increase of 13.1% compared to Jan ’21 and the n.1 brand in value with an increase of 16.5% compared to Jan ’21. Most notably, the No.1 Arabic dictionary in the region adjusted the term Age of Despair to the Age of Renewal and the UN-endorsed our efforts. Main-stream media started using the new phrase. This meant we didn’t just create a successful campaign, we affected change.

Please tell us about the social behaviour and / or cultural insights that inspired your work

In Arab culture the stigma around menopause is more acute than anywhere else. In Arabic it is labelled ‘Senn el Yass’ - “The Age of Despair”. We started with culture and tried to get an understanding of the dynamics at play in our biggest market, Saudi Arabia. What we found excited us; we uncovered that Saudi women were increasingly gaining the ability and courage to be heard. A drive to re-invent themselves in the eyes of societal change was apparent, and if our women could be brave enough to challenge the status-quo, then so could we. Speaking to women in Saudi within the age range of menopause we found that their perception of menopause didn't match the stigma imparted by wider patriarchal society. Menopause in their eyes was actually a time to positively embrace, a time of maturity, calmness and a time when women can become more exploratory and creative.