Nivea Men campaign by Digitas UK helps men start talking about their mental health

The campaign, the first from Digitas UK since it won the business in September, launches online with a 60” film featuring Liverpool FC U8 academy boys and boys from local primary schools.

The spot shows the youngsters alone in different urban locations speaking lines from the LFC anthem You’ll Never Walk Alone to the camera. Towards the end of the film we see the boys come together at the Liverpool training academy, and a sobering statistic, that 50 per cent of mental health problems begin before the age of 14, appears on screen.

Ultimately the film delivers the message that men don’t have to face their feelings alone. Viewers are directed to Nivea Men Strength In Numbers website, where they can find out how the simple question ‘How are you? Out of 10?’ helps men of all ages open up and start a conversation that can improve their mental health.

The film was shot by Karen Cunningham, the acclaimed performance director who is renowned for the extraordinary naturalistic performances she gleans from children, including in her multi-award winning film for Barbie, ‘Imagine the Possibilities’.

Nivea Men senior brand manager, Emily Marcham said: “Nivea Men believe that care goes beyond skin. That one in three men often feels lonely is a sad thought but even more depressing is that many are dealing with mental health issues alone because of the stigma they believe they’ll face talking about it. Our ambition with the ‘Strength in Numbers’ campaign is to change that narrative, by helping men to learn how to talk about their feelings and showing that there’s strength in coming together both on and off the field.”

The campaign, which will run across the UK in cinemas and online, is Digitas’ first for Nivea Men since it won the account in September 2021, with a remit encompassing digital strategy, social media content and community management, underpinned by the agency’s extensive data capabilities and customer-centric approach.

For this campaign Digitas developed the new strategic and creative platform. The agency also created the film, social campaign, the Strength in Numbers site and the mental fitness content supported by Talk Club.

Emma de la Fosse, chief creative officer, Digitas said: “We created the Strength in Numbers campaign to help Nivea Men drive real change for men’s mental health and get more men talking and checking in with each other. But we’re not only focused on today, we wanted to establish a future-ready platform that will become a key strategic pillar for the brand. We look forward to building on this platform and accelerating the engagement and relationship between Nivea Men and its audiences.”

Ben Akers, co-CEO and co-founder of Talk Club added: "We’re extremely proud to be involved in the Nivea Men Strength in Numbers campaign. At Talk Club we know that talking about our worries makes us stronger, and using the question ‘How are you? Out of 10?’ allows us to open up. For us, this is a brand doing exactly what their product describes: caring for men. And using this platform in partnership with Liverpool FC, we can truly show there is strength in numbers.”

Credits

CAMPAIGN TITLE: Strength in Numbers

CLIENT: NIVEA MEN

ADVERTISING AGENCY: Digitas UK

CCO: Emma de la Fosse

EXECUTIVE CREATIVE DIRECTOR: Tim Clegg

CREATIVE: Ben Sawyer, Robert Morris

PLANNER: Carlos Rodrigues

BUSINESS LEAD: Jared Howe

ACCOUNT DIRECTOR: Emma Lycett

PRODUCTION COMPANY: Prodigious

DIRECTOR: Karen Cunningham