Three new ads by Clearasil give us chills, mainly because we think the old school brand is taking a huge positioning risk. But the effort is welcome – we were sick of all those Neutrogena-type spots where Jennifer Love Hewitt tries winning her career back in a towel. (Oh wait, she’s since moved up to underwear.)
In this spot, a pubescent boy makes a clear (and wince-worthy) pass at his friend’s mom. Here, a girl comes onto a guy while her mom shows him baby pictures. And here, a guy stands up in the middle of an auditorium and tells a speaker it’s okay to picture him naked.
The ads make masterful use of teen fantasy and angst. We felt hopelessly violated, even while watching each pubescent kid pose for the bathroom mirror – mainly because it’s all so familiar.
To top the campaign off, we’re praying Clearasil frames the quintessential caught-wanking-in-the-act-by-our-parents moment, with the same kind of shattering cavalier.
A really neat campaign site assists the needy with hot-shit training at www.maycauseconfidence.com.
