Old Spice (Procter & Gamble) is continuing to reposition their brand, aiming straight at the Axe (Unilever) target market. What’s clever is that it uses the ‘Old’ from its previous image to inspire its new image by implying that it is ‘more real’.

Unlike Axe commercials, which target men with fantasies of sexual conquest, this Old Spice commercial targets women… with fantasies of the man they wish they had.

The commercial was created by the Portland Office of Wieden & Kennedy. I say they hit a home run with this one!

[Spotted at ViralBlog.com]

The two videos below will illustrate what I mean. Same company, two different brands, two fundamentally opposite marketing campaigns.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I9tWZB7OUSU

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IHqzlxGGJFo

Personally speaking, I believe that products like Axe are a cheap substitute to real cologne. Unfortunately, many North American men are helpless when it comes to choosing and wearing cologne, preferring to instead go the day/date on after-shave, or the lingering scent of their shower’s body wash.

Enter the mighty Axe, offering a convenient and easy alternative to cologne that falls between body-wash and aftershave, without all the fuss of ‘sophistimacation’ needed to select and wear colognes.

Almost all of my female friends indicated that they don’t like the smell of Axe on a man. On the other hand, seldom do I hear a woman criticize a man with a well worn cologne. The difference between real cologne and products like Axe may not be too clear to the unwary man, but women will notice the difference. It’s the difference between picking up your date in a Mercedes, and driving up to her house in a Pinto with the word “Benz” spray painted across the trunk.

And so I come to your rescue, dear male readers and female seekers of hope. While I am not a Perfumista (that is what a fragrance expert is called), I will attempt to impart some of the limited knowledge I accrued from years of purchasing cologne. I will also be recommending a number of options that are guaranteed to make her ‘sniff twice’ and smile.

Check the blog for Part 2 of this post to learn how to select the right cologne.