워크

The Brief

In 2020 Vero developed and executed DORCO’s ‘All the Firsts Make the Man’ campaign. Using inclusive messaging and user-generated content the Korean razor brand invited young people to share experiences of their “first time” doing something, encouraging young men to identify the brand with their own formative experiences.

2021’s campaign aimed to widen the reach of the first, supporting and combining to form an inclusive message about men’s experiences, once again countering stereotypical images of men in mainstream brands and challenging traditional representations of masculinity. The campaign evolved from ‘All the Firsts Make the Man” to ‘All Experiences Make A Man.’  

Execution

Running from January 2021 to 15 December 2021 Vero developed an experiential and immersive campaign that positioned DORCO as the right razor for Gen Z, engaging audiences in an authentic and meaningful way.

To build anticipation and momentum, Vero launched the campaign by collaborating with influencers to create a music video, which introduced the key message that any experience, big or small, can contribute to ‘making a man.’  To accompany this activity, Vero released monthly challenges on Facebook and Instagram which asked consumers to share pictures whilst using the DORCO AR filter, helping to create more user-generated content.

This activity supported the heart of the campaign: an immersive and interactive exhibition, which included 50 real stories from 50 different people, each celebrating the overcoming of a challenge that contributed to their idea of a formative experience.

As the campaign was in development, Vietnam was hit by a returning wave of COVID-19, scuppering initial plans. Vero took this as an opportunity to take the immersive experience online using XR (extended reality) technology.

Each story centers around an unlikely milestone. To the unknowing ear, these experiences may not seem like big achievements, but for the storyteller they are impressionable moments, determining the evolution of their identity.  

For each story, an interactive object was created to mark the experience and direct the user. For example, our teller was often scolded for missing school, to pursue his skateboarding passion.   Despite his parents’ disapproval, he continued, becoming a successful professional skateboarder in later life.  To mark this story a skateboard hovered in the DORCO exhibition leading users to find out more.

Another object used in the exhibition was a camera, which tells the story of an individual who is deaf in one ear. Despite this, he was a happy person who chose hospitality as his major in college. After some time, he came to regret his decision, realizing that it was not the right path for him.  Taking responsibility for his mistake, he took on a secret part-time job to pay for film classes, eventually becoming a successful filmmaker. For our storyteller, the camera is a significant symbol, a sign of his maturity and responsibility for his own future.

In this engaging online experience, users were able to create a customized character, who could walk into the exhibition as in real life. Using XR technology allowed Vero to create a space where users could engage with the DORCO brand as well as each other.

The exhibition allowed users to take part in a variety of activities. Besides interacting with individual stories, users could have their photo taken at a check-in booth and share this online, take part in a coloring activity, win prizes, at the lucky wheel and play games, together or solo. In total 4,174 participants attended, and 1,100 winners received a prize from the Lucky Wheel competition.

The exhibition was supported by an extensive digital communications campaign before, during, and after the exhibition launch. Working with influencers and employing retargeting, Vero developed a social media strategy which led to a reach of 6.7m.  

Vero employed a macro to micro-influencer marketing strategy throughout all stages of experience in the exhibition. Three macro-influencers, Win D, Dich Lep, and Lan Jee, acted as guides, greeting users via recorded voiceovers at the entrance. Users could choose who would accompany them on their tour. Three more macro-influencers (Kemjumboy, Fanny Tran, and BlvckVines) live-streamed their participation in the exhibition, engaging with their audience of over 3million fans. 13 micro-influencers further accelerated communications through community engagement via story posts, live streams, videos, and photos all with direct links to the exhibition site. KOL/influencer activity accounted for 13.8 million impressions, with video content being viewed 1.2 million times.

Piloting the DORCO social media platforms, Vero established firm foundations for this campaign, leading to just under 13 million impressions across Instagram and Facebook.

Vero also collaborated with local artist Chu Moi to develop specialized artworks to display in the exhibition, for social content, and on t-shirts as competition prizes. This collaboration also gave space for Vero to pitch editorial with prominent publications in Vietnam. This was in addition to announced coverage in over 24 publications in Vietnam.

In 2020 virtual events accounted for 35% of the total market and according to the financial post XR tech will be worth $463.7 billion in 2022. Vero’s “All Experiences Make a Man,” is a strong example of how brands can leverage events online in our new hybrid world. In this campaign, Vero developed an inclusive, immersive space for individuals to share their stories of ‘man-hood’ and identity. It positioned DORCO as the progressive razor brand, on the side of forward-thinking Gen Z’ers – authentic and relevant.