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Brand feuds are always great to observe. This time it’s not a beverage or fast food fight. No, it’s the scent battle. A new AXE campaign attacks Tom Ford with a multichannel activation that includes a “blind smell test” video and a scented billboard. Let’s get all the details.
AXE vs Tom Ford thru blind smell test
AXE wants to prove the point. That of being supreme to the more expensive competitor. In order to do that the brand gathers a few influencers with only one objective. To smell and determine the winner of the fragrance competition.
What are they smelling exactly? The AXE campaign focuses on the Fine Fragrance Collection, Lynx Black Vanilla versus Tom Ford’s Tobacco Black Vanille. AXE wants everybody to know that the latter comes at a hefty price tag of $195.
The influencers and athletes invited to the test include Brandon Beloti, Shareef O’Neal, Chiney Ogwumike, Paul Fino, and Kris Jenkins.
Okay, it’s 2024, do the brand-organized comparisons really work? It’s not the 80s after all where the TV commercials dominated the airplay. Today nobody believes anything. The thing is, that’s not the point of this AXE campaign.
Plot twist: AXE fragrance won over Tom Ford. Or, as the brand put it at the end of the video “AXE: 1, haters: 0.” The campaign is primarily destined to raise brand awareness.
It’s ideally designed to spark interest in the AXE products as the luxury brand’s alternative and give the target audience a desire to learn more about their range. That’s why we absolutely loved the social media-friendly focus of this ad, its fast pace, funky editing, and employment of fun influencers.
A scented billboard
The new AXE campaign is a multichannel one so it’s not only the Tom Ford video attack. It’s also the billboard that smells like AXE.
Now this is really smart. Builds anticipation on one hand, and raises interest on the other. AXE then released the video on YouTube as well as launched an epic DOOH and OOH campaign across the world with ad placements in Sydney, Toronto, and London.
AXE 3D billboard from 2023
While we’re here let’s not forget that AXE took on Chanel in 2023 with this awesome-looking 3D billboard on Times Square:
