Axe

An Iconic Men's Grooming Brand Known for Bold Marketing

1

The Background

Axe is an iconic men's grooming brand known for bold marketing. Their collaboration with Marvel to create original characters for a custom comic mini-series called The Fresh-Men was just that.

After being awarded a strategic digital partnership with the brand in 2018, Axe came to Code and Theory in 2019 to create a digital hub for the The Fresh-Men campaign's content that would serve as a holistic experience for fans that also facilitated data collection and email sign-up.

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2

The Challenge

The task was larger than a landing page. We had to support the call for a shift in brand perception (that had initiated the campaign) by creating a "fresh" format and visual treatment that could work within the Unilever constraints and the platform/AEM limitations. We had to use their components to build something immersive while connecting product awareness with engaging storytelling.

3

The Solution

We worked in close collaboration with Axe's media planning and social partners to build an ecosystem centered around our digital hub–creating micro experiences that highlighted different components of the campaign as it evolved over time.

The design was responsive and optimized for mobile users. It offered a deep dive on the character bios of the individual members of The Fresh-Men along with integrated modules for the video series, product plays, and the audio mixtape that was released for launch. Overall we created an immersive world for Axe X Marvel partnership that served to bring all of the campaign activations together holistically.

4

The Results

Shortly after launch we saw great success: 1/2 the bounce rate of the site average and 5X more time spent on site compared to other recent campaign landing pages.

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Recognition

  • YETI x Code and Theory

    Innovation by Design

    Best in Marketing
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    Innovation by Design

    Design Company of the Year
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    Ad Age

    Agency A-List
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Crafting a UI for a complex product through user input and clear data visualization.

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