ITC's Engage perfume TV commercial: A whiff of chemistry

Promises to heighten intimacy of lovers with its product designed for both sexes

A majority of advertisements on perfumes and deodorants tends to appeal to either a male or female audience to suggest how the product can help them attract the opposite sex. However, Engage, a fragrance brand from ITC, has positioned itself as a unique proposition that presents paired products designed for both men and women. Not surprisingly, its new campaign titled “Where do you want to be kissed?” — the brand’s first for perfume — focuses on the anticipation and intimacy of a pair of lovers.

The television commercial (TVC) shows a woman in front of a mirror. She sprays a whiff of the perfume on the nape of her neck and a man’s reflection appears in the mirror. He kisses her on the nape, and she realises she is fantasising. As similar scenes of playful intimacy follow, the ad tries to convey how the product can help create the right chemistry between lovers.

The campaign was conceptualised by J Walter Thompson. Tista Sen, senior vice-president and national creative director, J Walter Thompson, says “a beautiful chemistry” is at the heart of the Engage brand, arguing it is the only one that addresses both the man and the woman in a relationship. The creative challenge was to heighten the intimacy between young lovers without compromising on the “playful and fun” core of the brand.

“When we looked at the brief we hit upon this lovely insight of pulse points. One usually applies perfume on the waist, behind the ears etc. The creative leap from there was to turn it into a fantasy, where a young woman in anticipation of her lover begins to apply the perfume and fantasises her lover kissing her at the pulse points. That works nicely because it also highlights proximity and intimacy which are part of the brand’s DNA,” she adds.

While advertisements in this product category show a couple together, in this film they are united only at the end to create a sense of anticipation.

Sen points out that today the young population in India is increasingly open when it comes to relationships. So, if an advertiser addresses the segment with the right tonality, without being too overt and yet retaining a fun element, the communication is appealing, she adds. “I think what the brand and the agency have managed to do is occupy a space which is romantic, and if I look at what deodorants do it’s all very one-dimensional and about attraction. Ours is about chemistry.”

Interestingly, the two actors in the TVC aren’t Indian, which only emphasises the universality of the narrative.

According to Sameer Satpathy, chief executive, personal care products business at ITC, “Engage is synonymous with the proposition of ‘playful chemistry’, and the new thematic campaign further reinforces its strong credentials as a perfume of choice for couples in love. With the evolving attitude and lifestyle of consumers, the segment offers an enormous opportunity to educate and drive category growth. Spritzing on pulse points is an important aspect rooted in the core of desirability and a perfume spray’s functionality.”

Engage perfume products are priced at Rs 220 at 120 ml each, and the portfolio comprises eight variants, four each for women and men. According to Euromonitor International, India’s fragrance market, where deodorants have been the main driver, recorded annual sales of US $298 million (Rs 19,07,647 lakh) in 2016, up 16 per cent from 2015.