Healthy Skepticism Library item: 10988

Warning: This library includes all items relevant to health product marketing that we are aware of regardless of quality. Often we do not agree with all or part of the contents.

Publication type: news

Jennings A.
Contests, YouTube and Commercials Converge for Skin Product
New York Times 2007 Jul 26
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/07/26/business/media/26adco.html?ei=5090&en=06b615fdec43c715&ex=1343102400&adxnnl=1&partner=rssuserland&emc=rss&adxnnlx=1185502967-wVyG6HuIooWXT6QFB/Creg

Full text:

GOING to a dermatologist for antiwrinkle injections is not just for women on Park Avenue, according to the maker of a cosmetic wrinkle filler. Middle-income women can enjoy youthful skin, too, the company’s new advertisements suggest.

Medicis Pharmaceutical Corporation, which makes medical and aesthetic products for the skin, introduced a multimedia campaign this week to promote Restylane, a dermal injection that reduces the appearance of wrinkles. It is the first time that the company, which says that Restylane is the top-selling in its category, has marketed the product directly to consumers.

A television spot, which is being shown on cable channels like Lifetime, depicts the before-and-after results of an actual patient, and the mental musings of actresses (playing Restylane patients) who discuss the joys of looking younger (which include a good deal of male attention).

A second component of the campaign is a video skit on YouTube, capturing a woman’s 50th birthday party. While her son compiles a video birthday card, the mother is caught on a couch smooching with a younger man.

Viewers do not know that it is an ad until the last 15 seconds, when the company’s logo and disclaimer appears. So far, the clip has been viewed more than 13,000 times.

Medicis executives say they want the campaign to reach consumers in a variety of ways, not only through traditional print and television outlets but also on the Internet and through promotions, like a contest involving user-generated videos.

“We don’t believe our consumers live in a one-dimensional world,” said Jonah Shacknai, the chairman and chief executive officer of Medicis, which is based in Scottsdale, Ariz. “They are working on the Internet, watching TV, reading beauty magazines.”

The contest Medicis has created is called the “Hottest Mom in America.” The company plans to sponsor a reality television show, although it has yet to find a network to carry it. The show will seek to find “a woman who is in tune with her family, involved in her community and in touch with her femininity.”

Potential contestants, who do not need to have used Restylane, can submit videos to the contest’s Web site. The woman who is crowned “Hottest Mom in America” will receive a $25,000 college scholarship for a related child, $25,000 in cash, a year of free treatment with Restylane and an interview with a prominent modeling agency, according to the contest’s Web site.

The idea is to reach middle-income women – those earning $50,000 to $70,000 a year – who take an interest in their beauty, Medicis executives said. Mr. Shacknai estimates there are more than 25 million women who are curious about wrinkle reduction and have the means to pay $600 a syringe to fill in those lines around the mouth.

Since Restylane was introduced in 2004, it has had a near monopoly in the hyaluronic acid wrinkle filler, which is used to treat the smile lines from the nose to the corner of the mouth. In January, Allergan, the maker of Botox, introduced a rival product, Juvéderm, that acts the same way as Restylane but last twice as long. The “Keep the Wisdom, Lose the Lines” campaign from Allergan features the actress Virginia Madsen. Mr. Shacknai said that his company’s latest marketing effort has nothing to do with the arrival of Juvéderm and that his company deliberately chose not to hire a supermodel. That said, the winner of the “Hottest Mom” contest will be eligible to be considered as “The Face of Restylane,” the product’s next spokeswoman.

The show will not alter the appearance of contestants or require them get Restylane injections.

“This is a far cry from a makeover show,” Mr. Shacknai said. “ Our contestants look terrific already. It’s more about lifestyle than appearance.”

Paul Potratz, a partner at Potratz Partners Advertising, a firm that specializes in interactive media, said that Restylane was smart to market to the masses and use new media.

“Regardless of income, women just want to feel special,” he said. “Most women don’t relate to the Victoria’s Secret supermodel, but if they see a soccer mom using this product they might be more inclined to try it.”

In direct-to-consumer marketing, pharmaceutical companies bypass doctors, with the hope that patients will suggest a product to their doctor instead of the other way around. But Dr. Heidi A. Waldorf, a dermatologist and director of laser and cosmetic dermatology at Mount Sinai School of Medicine, said that only about 25 percent of her patients actually request products that they see in ads or read about in magazines.

“Most people say they need something to rejuvenate their skin,” Dr. Waldorf said. “They don’t know if laser, injection or chemical treatment is the best option for them.”

Advertising does help increase the demand for wrinkle fillers, she said, but not for a particular brand. And ads that appeal to the masses make consumers feel more comfortable paying up to $3,000 a year for face rejuvenation, she said.

“It’s not just for the rich and the famous,” Dr. Waldorf said. “It is more accessible and acceptable for middle-income level people.”