Bonobos makes clothes that fit every man with an unprecedented number of size, style, and fit combinations. But it struggles with brand awareness in the U.S. and its competitors like J.Crew and UNTUCKit had started encroaching on Bonobos’ “fit” territory.

But Bonobos is the only brand that can authentically challenge the world to create a society where every man fits. Bonobos is a brand that stands for an evolved definition.

The assignment was to generate a step-change in our brand awareness, engagement, customer acquisition, and loyalty and give Bonobos a legitimate and ongoing presence in the cultural conversation, making Bonobos the unquestioned brand for all men.

Our paid media objectives included:

– Driving increased awareness of Bonobos as a purpose-driven brand that stands for social change

– Generating massive conversation around Bonobos unique perspective on modern men/masculinity

Google “masculine.” The definition you’ll see is antiquated, limiting, and dangerous. It is also antithetical to the Bonobos belief that every person deserves to fit. #EvolveTheDefinition is a short documentary that uses the voices of real people to examine that outdated definition of “masculine.” We started by asking 172 individuals (representing the 172 Bonobos size and fit combinations) to read the current definition and synonyms. Their authentic reactions were captured on camera, ranging from shock to anger. We then asked the individuals to discuss what masculine means to them, resulting in a commentary that questions the limitations and dangers of the rigid definition. The film ends on a positive note where we invite people to collectively use the hashtag, #EvolveTheDefinition, to help create a more inclusive future that isn’t limited by gender stereotypes. A world where every person fits.

Fit means so much more than the clothes you wear. Looking around it is clear that one of the greatest enemies of finding your fit in the world is toxic masculinity. Experts point out that only celebrating one kind of masculinity (big, strong, aggressive and powerful) puts men in a box, leading to self-destructive and sometimes violent results. The fact that boys are growing up with the uncompromising advice, to “man up” or “be a man,” causes them to bottle up feelings, not show vulnerability, and feel like they don’t fit. To truly be a company that champions fit, we had to take on this challenge head first. That’s why we cast people that reflected diversity in terms of body shape, age, race, belief, sexual orientation, and gender identity - showing that the definition of masculine can be so much broader than what you see today.

– #EvolveTheDefinition launched on ESPN.com with teaser ads leading up to Bonobos’ brand sponsorship of the ESPY Awards Show. On the day of the ESPY Awards (7/18/18), the campaign took-over YouTube's homepage (409MM Impressions) while #EvolvetheDefinition was the Promoted Trend featured on Twitter’s Homepage (56MM Impressions).

– The 90-second documentary premiered during the ESPY Awards at 8:17 pm EST, taking over half of the first commercial break, followed by subsequent airings throughout the show.

– We worked with two NBA Athlete-Influencers (Chris Bosh and DeAndre Jordan) to post their personalized viewpoints on #EvolveTheDefinition via social videos.

– To add reach and frequency of our message, we extended the campaign with YouTube TrueView ads (11.7MM Impressions), plus posts on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter through the rest of the month and on ESPN through August for a total of 391 on-air showings.

Overall the campaign surpassed KPIs and drove an incredible response. From an awareness perspective, the campaign drove 31% relative lift in Bonobos brand awareness, according to a Google Brand Study.

Additionally, the Bonobos brand tracking firm found that of those who saw the #EvolveTheDefinition campaign, 83% feel more favorable of Bonobos. (Source: Morning Consult).

More results and metrics:

– 3.61% lift in purchase consideration (Source: C8 Influencers Brand Study).

– Over 400,000 site visits to Bonobos as results of the campaign.

– Winner of the #TheYouTubeAd That Rewrites the Rules! (Source: YouTube, The Webbys).

– Bonobos public relations secured 20+ positive press hits (and counting) and continues to land stories on #ETD and building purpose-driven brand.

– Google searches for “Bonobos” reached its highest peak during the ESPY Awards vs. the previous 12 months.

– Total sessions on the website beat the daily average by more than 50%.