Old Spice guy may not have helped Old Spice after all

The Old Spice commercials were a viral sensation, and the Old Spice guy is a celebrity. So why did sales of Old Spice body wash actually drop?

TheGrio Staff

Jul 20, 2010

From Jezebel.com:

The Old Spice commercials were a viral sensation, and the Old Spice guy is a celebrity. So why did sales of Old Spice body wash actually drop? Maybe because women are letting men buy their own damn body wash?

According to industry-watching site WARC, the ubiquitous campaign for Old Spice body wash, “The Man Your Man Could Smell Like” actually corresponded with below-average sales:

“While there is little doubt about the viral hit’s popularity – the official version has racked up 12.2 million impressions on YouTube – sales of Red Zone After Hours Body Wash have fallen by 7%.”

The campaign appeared to be aimed at both women and men (the Old Spice Guy addresses “Ladies,” but the tagline at the end is, “Smell like a man, man.”) The ads were funny, and transcended the viral marketing stigma to become a legitimate hit on blogs and social networks. Surely, an entire new generation was introduced to the brand.

Click here to see some theories on why the drop in sales.