creative campaigns: Oral Fixation

Richards Group says Chupa Chups isn't child's play Both subtle and funny, Chupa Chups' first TV work in the U.S., by The Richards Group, is liable to cause embarrassment if you happen to be watching it with your parents. In the TV spot, "Here Kitty, Kitty," an attractive woman holding a cat enters a packed veterinary clinic filled with men and their dogs. Crossing to an empty chair, she sits and begins licking a Chupa Chups lollipop with abandon. The room's mesmerized occupants begin crossing their legs and putting their pets on their laps in an attempt to hide their responses. When the receptionist calls "Next," the men shift uncomfortably but stay seated. With a playful, Guess-it-must-be-my-turn look, the woman takes her cat to the examining room. It's a far cry from previous ads done for Barcelona, Spain-based Chupa Chups, which has targeted children when marketing its product in 164 countries. The "Oral. Pleasure" campaign will break May 15 in spot TV markets in the Southeast, airing during South Park, Friends, The X-Files, Ally McBeal and Saturday Night Live. Projected annual spend for the national campaign is $15 million. The Richards Group helped the lollipop maker redefine its target as teens and young adults when creating the U.S. campaign. "It's a target that has a large amount of disposable income," says Lynda Hodge, creative group head. "The flavors are right for them. They are smokers, they chew on straws. [This demographic] is very orally focused, and we thought that was a great way to think about this product." Adds Richards principal Rod Underhill, "This strategy was based around the idea that there is no need for [more] lollipops for kids." The shoot, filmed in London by director Gerard DeThame, was fun, says Hodge. "Although you can imagine, with eight dogs and a cat, it was a little stressful," she admits. Hodge neatly describes DeThame as a "visual storyteller," a skill which was crucial in a spot that features almost no dialogue and multiple layers of action. The result works so well that Chupa Chups has been testing the spot in Germany and Australia for possible international distribution. The playful sexual innuendo, sans lewdness, was a big hit, says Hodge. "An interest in the opposite sex is the primary thing on [this audience's] mind," says Underhill. "We had a fine line to tread. This is a product boldly targeted to [young people]; it's not for little kids or their parents. Without the boldness in the execution, there would be confusion." Radio, Internet and targeted sampling are also part of the marketing promotion, as are personal ads placed in college and alternative newspapers with messages such as "Wanted: CoEds with strong oral fixation" and "SWM in desperate need of oral pleasure." A second creative team within the agency put together a separate campaign that focused on the gourmet flavors--from cappuccino to chili pepper--Chupa Chups' trademark. But when teen focus groups responded indifferently to the flavor angle, the campaign was quickly dropped. Still, the ever-enterprising Chupa Chups may stock lollipops in vending machines and soft-drink dispensers. "You're going to see it distributed in ways you've never seen before," says Underhill. "[We're] finding new and novel ways to bring an old product to a new market." K The Richards Group Dallas Art director/CD Lynda Hodge Copywriter/CD Mike Bales Creative Director Glenn Dady Director Gerard DeThame Agency Producer Jeb Shar

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creative campaigns: Oral Fixation

J. Dee Hill

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