CREATIVE SHOWCASE

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Client: Oxy

OxyNation, the newest minisite for Oxy skincare, does a perfect job of appealing to its target demographic  -- young men -- as well as addressing the party that holds the power of the purse: mothers.

Once on the site you're asked to enter either the moms' side of the screen or the Guys' side of the screen. The moms' section gives mothers the tools to research products for their sons. A model mom pops up to tell you about Oxy products and why they are good for your son. The different sections include Acne Advice, where you can get tips on talking to your son about acne, and there's even a link to the Oxy mom site, where you can sign up for newsletters and alerts to become an "Oxy mom."

There are several other interactive components littered throughout the site. A sleek iPod sits at the corner of the site that you can flip through and listen to music of your choice. On the right corner is a house you can navigate on your own to take you to different sections of the site. If you visit the pool you are met by a cute girl wearing a bikini. You can apply Oxy sunblock to her back in special designs and send them to your friends via email. If you visit the garage, you'll meet X-Games star Dave Mirra chilling with his BMX bikes. You could peruse the house map for days and find new clips and toys to play with, but the site, overall, gets the point across right away.

From the BMX star, fun music and hipster host you can tell Oxy knows how to keep its audience engaged and informed about its products.
-- Krisserin Canary, associate editor, iMedia Communications

Creative Showcase is meant to be a teaching tool and an inspiration for our readers. We comment only on creative that we really love. Our panelists discuss what makes it great, but if they feel there were missed opportunities that would have made it better, we invite them to mention those. And finally, we seek out a wide range of opinions that reflect the marketplace for the panel, in order to provide constructive, useable feedback for agencies, clients and others involved in these creative pieces.

Entering the online Oxy Nation campaign pulls you into a heavenly scene where you are greeted by a creepy man that looks like the child of Liberace and a dwarf-sized evangelist. You are then dropped into a more earthly, "American Pie" film-like home where the "young guy" protagonist resides with his mom and sister and is visited by a young male friend.
 
In Oxy Nation, guys get one experience and moms another. Both are engaging and on target. Guys are simply informed that if "you like girls, girls don't like acne and OXY gets rid of acne." What better reason to buy, or better yet, put it on mom's shopping list? OXY gets girls! Mom is the buyer. So, she gets information rather than humor, including links to advice, products, where to locate OXY and a way to become a super "OXY mom." She gets the more immersive brand experience. The campaign is not rocket science, but that is its beauty.
 
Concerns? I only have one. The map of the house, which provides an opportunity to interact with the brands and campaign characters, takes a while to get around. I'd reduce the room visit options. Overall, I think this campaign deserves an 'A' for not trying to be everything to everyone.
-- Lana McGilvray, VP of marketing, Datran Media

Looking at a site targeted to teenage boys, I had to get into my high school mindset of trying to be cool while talking about or dealing with an ill-timed pimple (aka "zit"). As I enter the site, I must pick between guys and moms. As a guy, I choose the guy path. The intro video between two teen guy friends ends with the one friend looking at his "badger," which is apparently new slang for that special body part on a guy. I'm not completely connecting to the teen boys because I think they are trying way too hard to be cool, and it's suggestive of boys' interest in the opposite sex but it's not as extreme as Axe Body Spray (which is a bit more entertaining). However, I like the use of the Oxy product in transitions between scenes as well as its placement within the site's navigation.

At this point, I am led into a living room setting where there is a little man who is intentionally annoying, I guess to grab my attention and make me take action by clicking on stuff in the room. As I'm writing this review, the little man popping up into my screen screams "Guess Who" a dozen times, so I must move on and choose the "House Map." Okay, I'm connecting more now. I go into the kitchen and a hot mom (similar to the one in the movie "American Pie") speaks conversationally and lures moms (or dads, in my case) to learn more about the myths and facts surrounding acne, pimples, zits, "backne," et cetera.

Then, jackpot -- I'm at the pool in the backyard -- I finally get the site. It has a lot of content, and it's a bit too direct in selling Oxy products to be truly viral in nature, but there is something for everyone here. Personally, I recommend checking out the phat tricks of the X-Games athlete in the garage and the girl at the pool.
-- Ryan Buchanan, CEO, eROI