Brawny Man
The Brawny Man has appeared on Brawny packaging ever since the paper towels first hit store shelves in 1974. As star of Brawny's recently completed BrawnyAcademy.com, he serves as a great example of how powerful a strong brand icon can be, occasionally overriding the very product it promotes.
The Brawny Man's defining characteristic is his constant eagerness to help clean up a mess. Based on that fact alone, he easily qualifies for perfect-guy status. Rugged good looks are just an added bonus. A handsome and helpful mascot is perfect for a product marketed toward female consumers. It isn't surprising that Brawny wouldn't just make the Brawny Man an important part of the Brawny website, it would also shift the entire focus to the character and ideals he represents.
Brawny could easily market its product with paper towel minutiae and specifications. Instead, visitors to BrawnyMan.com are given a choice between reading paper towel facts and visiting BrawnyAcademy, a series of online videos in which a real life Brawny Man attempts to whip men into Brawny-style shape. If site visitors are struck by a bout of indecision, the site automatically directs visitors to the webisodes featuring the Brawny Man and his aspirants.
Even a paper towel company seems to know that paper towels are boring. Finding the perfect man is a much more compelling pursuit than shopping for cleaning supplies. Fortunately for Brawny, they found their perfect guy more than 30 years ago.
