In the UK, minor pain affects 80% of people daily. And British people’s first response is to take a paracetamol pill, rather than things like aspirin or ibuprofen. That’s because, historically, paracetamol was viewed as having fewer side effects by the British health system. But our client Nurofen makes ibuprofen. So how could the brand target and help those with minor pain?

Nurofen didn’t create another pill. They created entirely new kind of response to minor pain.

‘Tune Out Pain’ is the first piece of music composed pharmacologically, to target the brain and activate the endogenous opioids, forcing it to focus on pleasure instead. It’s free on Spotify, safe for all, and can be used anywhere.

Going a step beyond pre-existing research, the innovation was clinically proven in a study by University College Dublin to increase pain tolerance, tested on 286 patients suffering different types of acute pain. Pain intensity and pain unpleasantness dropped significantly in 77% of participants.

Tune Out Pain has been recommended by NHS doctors, pharmacists and dentists, positioning an ibuprofen brand as the new entry point to the whole category.

How could an ibuprofen brand target those in pain, in a country where even the health system has historically suggested paracetamol as the first drug to try?

The strategic approach was to leapfrog the competition by creating a new kind of helpful Nurofen innovation for first-line pain treatment, rather than release yet another pill. That way, the Nurofen brand could enter the consideration set and be top-of-mind within a space in the category that they were normally excluded from in the UK. The call-to-action was simple and transformative for the category: Don’t swallow a pill. Listen to this.

‘Tune Out Pain’ is a new way to respond to minor pains. It’s music composed to pharmacological principles, engineered to trigger the pleasure centres in the brain, just as many pharmaceuticals do. Except it’s free, safe, and usable anywhere.

Co-created by University College Dublin and the multi-instrumentalist music producer Anatole, it contains instruments of different textures in syncopated tempo to induce active listening as well as sounds that connect with the listener by inducing wonder and nostalgia. It’s been clinically proven to relieve pain in 77% of patients.

Launched during Pain Awareness Month, it’s free on Spotify, is recommended by doctors, dentists and pharmacists as first-line treatment for minor pains, been used in their waiting rooms, surgeries, as Spotify QR codes on prescription pads, as hold music on doctors’ phone lines, as ambient music at pharmacies and been adopted by healthcare provider Simplyhealth for its 3 million patients nationwide.

- 5.5 million weekly listeners on Spotify now feeling less pain.

- More than 94 million impressions.

- More than 30 million reach.

- Recommended by Pharmacists, Dentists and NHS Doctors

- Partnership with medical provider Simplyhealth giving pain relief to 3+ million more patients nationwide