Over the past few days, I set out to answer a burning question that I've had for years:
Why are perfume ads so weird?
It's a pretty wild story 🧵
Advertisers grapple with one fundamental problem when trying to sell perfume:
You can't actually communicate the smell or the qualities of a specific perfume in a TV/print ad.
So, fragrance commercials have to rely on something completely different.
✨Vibes✨
A fragrance doesn't technically *do* anything.
So, instead of showcasing the product, advertisers create commercials to evoke specific emotions.
In fact, the parts of the brain that deal with emotion, memory, and motivation all grew out of the olfactory cortex.
That's why we develop core memories and deep emotional connections alongside specific smells.
So what do advertisers do when they want to use that brain-nose connection to sell you a new product?
They emphasize the emotional power of scent as it relates to sex.
After all, sex sells, right?
But it's a delicate balance. The commercials try to imply that the fragrance will make you more sexually attractive. That's why many of these ads show:
- Beautiful people
- Revealing clothing
- Beautiful settings
- Heavy eyelids and slow blinking
According to ad industry veteran @jweltman, there's actually a specific reason for the blinking.
In a pizza commercial, the "moneyshot" is that classic cheese pull. It serves as a visual metaphor for the taste and feel of the pizza.
Fragrance commercials have a similar moment.
In fragrance commercials, the equivalent "moneyshot" is heavy eyelids and slow blinking.
It's this industry's visual metaphor for satisfaction.
That's what helps communicate the experience of using a particular fragrance.
This is a formula that has worked consistently for years.
In fact, the strategy is so effective that several other companies have used it for other products with use cases that are hard to communicate.
5 Gum used it with their not-so-subtly-named "How it feels to chew 5 Gum".
So, if these fragrance commercials just follow the same playbook over and over again, who's breaking the mold?
One of my favorites is an ad by Prada, directed by Wes Anderson and starring Léa Seydoux.
It's a series of perfume ads that all follow a single storyline.
That's right, it tells an ACTUAL story.
In it, Candy is the beautiful protagonist who's being pursued by best friends, Gene and Julius.
Even though the two men are constantly fighting for her adoration, neither man gives up the pursuit.
The series of ads tells a story of romance, seduction, and competition.
Candy is portrayed as the perfect woman, whose charm and joie de vivre captivate the men.
But in the end, Candy is seen leaving the salon, victorious, with BOTH men on her arm.
The Prada ad reassures us of the one thing we all secretly hope to be true:
That you really can have your cake AND eat it, too.
But only with the help of a little Prada Candy perfume 😉
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Hermès was recently hit with a class action over (what else?) their iconic Birkin bag.
To really understand the lawsuit, you need to understand the bag.
It's a story of how luxury brands think about—and create—value.
Let's dig in:
Hermès is 187 years old, but they didn't create their most famous product until the 80s.
Actress, singer, & style icon Jane Birkin (known for carrying a wicker basket instead of a purse), happened to sit next to the Exec. Chairman of Hermès, Jean-Louis Dumas, on a flight.
After battling w/an overhead compartment, she mentioned being unable to find leather weekend bag she liked.
She even asked if they'd consider producing a larger version of the Kelly bag, the brand's 1938 classic (renamed Kelly for another style icon).
Once upon a time, one family created something so desirable, it bewitched a king.
They became nobility, before falling into a 100-year slumber.
But this isn't a fairy tale.
It's the story of Trudon, one of the greatest luxury brands you've never heard of.
They make...candles.
Cire Trudon is 380 years old. They became a luxury product when candles were still a basic necessity.
Their fans included Louis XIV, Marie Antoinette, & Napoleon I.
So, how does a candle become a status symbol?
It's a story with a lot of ups and downs.
I'll enlighten you:
The year is 1643.
After a "fruitful" marriage, grocer and wax merchant Claude Trudon opens a shop on rue Saint-Honoré in Paris. He supplies his special homemade candles to nearby Saint Roche Parish. Word spreads quickly.