From a TV broadcast perspective, full frontal nudity is against the code of ethics and generally would not get TV airplay. Our sensitive and relevant treatment of our topless breast cancer survivor gave us an approval with an M rating (Recommended for viewing only by persons 15 and over).

Media coverage flowed in a story arc as designed, peaking on launch day (April 14th) continuing throughout the launch week and peaking again on the inaugural I Touch Myself Day (April 21st – the first anniversary of Chrissy Amphlett’s passing) continuing with social media activations and fresh content released weekly.

Teasers were seeded to the public via national TV and print media exclusives published the day before launch to build hype. The campaign maintained momentum in the following week as media were fed new assets and news. Media spiked again on the inaugural I Touch Myself Day, with further national news radio, and breakfast TV interviews by Chrissy’s husband Charley Drayton.

We kept the story fresh with a national photographic exhibition (which was extended by a week due to popular demand).

Media updated their initial stories as the different phases of the campaign came to life, including the #itouchmyselfie photo drive.

International media picked up the campaign within hours of the launch, reaching audiences of 400 million plus.

Over 250,000 Australian women visited the site in the first two weeks of launch with an average unique session time of almost 7 minutes. Critically, over 80% of these visitors got in touch with their breast health through the self examination information and facts section of the website. The greater campaign, including the social media and PR aspects, helped the project reach 47% of Australian women. #itouchmyselfproject became a trending topic on Facebook for 2 days. There were over 3,000 iTunes downloads of the song in 17 countries in the first week with proceeds going to Cancer Council NSW.

In two weeks, the project achieved over $AUD7 million in free PR, without a dollar spent on media. The story was covered across all media demographics: from Gen X and Gen Y’s online pop culture sites Buzzfeed, to localised stories in regional Australian papers with local breast cancer survivors, and discussion on Australian national talkback radio as part of a women’s health panel of doctors who praised the positive messaging of the campaign.