When thinking about rappers, Jay Z and Lil Wayne come to mind, not two guys from Bounty paper towels rapping about an experiment to see if 11 billiard balls can hang on a wet paper towel before the towel goes the way of the corner pocket.

But there they are in a YouTube video, looking a bit like they’re headed to perform surgery on Bart Simpson. But they’ve got the moves, the car, the rap, the chains and … the girls.



Have the marketers over at Bounty been listening to a few too many Kanye West ringtones?

Maybe, but what Bounty has done is rolled up its standard TV spots showing product demos like moms wiping up countertop spills or cleaning up other kid’s messes and repackaged this clean theme in “Bring it” its first YouTube music video [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9sk2zBEjfX8]. The video debuted March 12 and stars the “Paper Towel Gang” —those two guys in lab coats, dubbed scientists.

The two-minute video shows what parent Procter & Gamble’s internal research and development team had already been experimenting with behind closed doors: That you really could balance 11 billiard balls on one (very taut) sheet of Bounty stretched over a 10-inch bowl when water is poured over it. But the test ramps up to an even higher level when the rappers dump five more gallons of water over the billiard balls and they stay afloat. Viewers get the same message the TV spots portray: Bounty paper towels are strong absorbent and durable. But who is Bounty trying to reach?

Bounty Brand Manager Dave Lee told me that the target is moms.

Like the billiard ball test, it’s an interesting experiment. To get moms to the video, Bounty is doing what more and more marketers are increasingly doing: partnering (and frequently paying or providing free product) with popular mommy bloggers who endorse the products and with Web sites dedicated to moms who promote them. It’s well known that moms spend a lot more time online connecting with each other in community forums and on Web sites dedicated to their needs. And they do take advice from credible mommy bloggers (which Bounty declined to identify).

“I look at this music video as a natural evolution of how Bounty can better connect with moms in ways that are relevant to her today,” Lee said.

The fact that the video had more than 350,000 views in the first three days of release combined with more than 1,000 comments and reviews proved to Lee that the “experiment’ was working and that the return on investment had already been accomplished, he said. Today there were close to 370,000 views.

“If people are able to enjoy and learn more about Bounty with their families, then mission accomplished,” he said.

As for who’s on YouTube, in January, 12.6 billion videos were viewed by 134.4 million unique viewers. Of those unique viewers, 25.4 million were between the ages of 25-34 and 37 million were ages 35 to 49 and 64.3 million were females, according to comScore.

People can also follow Bounty and video online at a new Facebook page http://www.facebook.com/bounty.

The “Bring It” campaign launched in February 2009 with an integrated execution, including TV, in-store, public relations, and experiential marketing. All Bounty products (including Bounty, Bounty Extra Soft, Bounty Quilted Napkins, Bounty Huge Roll, Bounty Basic) are part of the campaign.

When thinking about rappers, Jay Z and Lil Wayne come to mind, not two guys from Bounty paper towels rapping about an experiment to see if 11 billiard balls can hang on a wet paper towel before the towel goes the way of the corner pocket.

But there they are in a YouTube video, looking a bit like they’re headed to perform surgery on Bart Simpson. But they’ve got the moves, the car, the rap, the chains and … the girls.



Have the marketers over at Bounty been listening to a few too many Kanye West ringtones?

Maybe, but what Bounty has done is rolled up its standard TV spots showing product demos like moms wiping up countertop spills or cleaning up other kid’s messes and repackaged this clean theme in “Bring it” its first YouTube music video [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9sk2zBEjfX8]. The video debuted March 12 and stars the “Paper Towel Gang” —those two guys in lab coats, dubbed scientists.

The two-minute video shows what parent Procter & Gamble’s internal research and development team had already been experimenting with behind closed doors: That you really could balance 11 billiard balls on one (very taut) sheet of Bounty stretched over a 10-inch bowl when water is poured over it. But the test ramps up to an even higher level when the rappers dump five more gallons of water over the billiard balls and they stay afloat. Viewers get the same message the TV spots portray: Bounty paper towels are strong absorbent and durable. But who is Bounty trying to reach?

Bounty Brand Manager Dave Lee told me that the target is moms.

Like the billiard ball test, it’s an interesting experiment. To get moms to the video, Bounty is doing what more and more marketers are increasingly doing: partnering (and frequently paying or providing free product) with popular mommy bloggers who endorse the products and with Web sites dedicated to moms who promote them. It’s well known that moms spend a lot more time online connecting with each other in community forums and on Web sites dedicated to their needs. And they do take advice from credible mommy bloggers (which Bounty declined to identify).

“I look at this music video as a natural evolution of how Bounty can better connect with moms in ways that are relevant to her today,” Lee said.

The fact that the video had more than 350,000 views in the first three days of release combined with more than 1,000 comments and reviews proved to Lee that the “experiment’ was working and that the return on investment had already been accomplished, he said. Today there were close to 370,000 views.

“If people are able to enjoy and learn more about Bounty with their families, then mission accomplished,” he said.

As for who’s on YouTube, in January, 12.6 billion videos were viewed by 134.4 million unique viewers. Of those unique viewers, 25.4 million were between the ages of 25-34 and 37 million were ages 35 to 49 and 64.3 million were females, according to comScore.

People can also follow Bounty and video online at a new Facebook page http://www.facebook.com/bounty.

The “Bring It” campaign launched in February 2009 with an integrated execution, including TV, in-store, public relations, and experiential marketing. All Bounty products (including Bounty, Bounty Extra Soft, Bounty Quilted Napkins, Bounty Huge Roll, Bounty Basic) are part of the campaign.