What can monsters teach girls about self-love? Lots.

Two years ago Mattel turned monsterdom on its head, creating a tween doll franchise called Monster High.

Student bodies were perfectly-imperfect, including Frankie Stein (daughter of you-know-who), whose stitches came undone at inopportune times, and Draculaura, a vegan vampiress who fainted at the sight of blood.

These students were not the ugly or damned. They were simply misunderstood. Sort of like tweens.

The franchise became a hit. But body-snatchers – competitors’ “me too” products – invaded monsterdom. So Mattel needed an idea that would distinguish the brand, drive home its underlying rationale of self-esteem, and engage girls, 80% of whom were unhappy with their own reflection.

The idea – empower girls to “take back the mirror," to see they’re not tragically flawed, but “imperfectly perfect” and can take pride in such individual traits as different hair texture – or diabetes. Surely, if Draculaura, who has no reflection, can be “freakishly fabulous,” then girls could love their “imperflections.”

Partnering with WeStopHate.org, we launched an online movement where tweens could upload “freakishly fabulous” self-portraits onto FreakyFab13.com. The content-rich website, which one user called “a pool of positivity,” became a no-flaws-barred self-empowerment zone featuring a wealth of self-endearment tools.

Almost overnight, the campaign triggered a social movement, drew raves among media and bloggers and attracted 320,000 new unique visitors, a brand record; and 160,000 girls joined in, loving their “freaky flaws.” The dolls became a bigger sensation. Wal-Mart completely sold out in stores and online by campaign’s end.

We introduced freaky fabulous content on FreakyFab13.com on the “luckiest” day of every month – the 13th. The themes were wickedly good for self-esteem.

“Love Your Clawsome Self”

In May, “ghouls” and parents could log on and meet Emily-Anne Rigal as a “monsterfied” character who roamed the Monster High halls, spreading the tween-esteem message. They could also download three fun activities – a Self-Esteem Checklist, a “Love, Yourself Letter,” and Monsterfied Mad Lib – each designed to elicit what makes them “freakishly fabulous.”

“Take Back the Mirror”

In June, we launched a special app, “Celebrate Your Imperflections,” encouraging girls to decorate their self-reflections with uplifting, monsterfied adjectives such as “scary sweet” and “clawsomely creative.” The app allowed them to upload, print and share photos.

Smooches to My Own Self

Leveraging the popularity of our webisodes, which had generated 350m views to date, unveiled a special webisode featuring Emily-Anne’s esteem-building monster and message.

A monster campaign for retailers…

Overnight, droves of girls changed their attitudes about their reflections, seeing flaws as perfectly perfect. The campaign built “pools of positivity” that put fans in touch with the brand’s promise to boost girls’ self esteem.

Some 160,000 girls “took back the mirror,” and 229,000 downloaded activities. FreakyFab13.com drew 320,000 new unique visitors, a brand record. Within two months, aggregated page views rose 182% and monthly visits soared 490%. Monster High trended at #2 in Twitterland, drawing 21.6m social media impressions. Sales ignited, prompting Wal-Mart to forge its first-ever pro-social partnership and develop end caps in 1,500 stores, achieving a 180% summertime sales increase (and almost immediate sell-out online). Moms’ comments were gratifying. One spoke of the impact: “She takes about 8-10 shots a day and says that diabetes is her freaky flaw. Thank you Monster High for making it cool to be different. You have helped my little girl more than you will ever know.”