‘Wear it With Confidence’ sheds light upon the amount of men who suffer from incontinence and provides them with a platform to speak openly while offering a comfortable and stress free solution in the form of underwear.
In September this year, TENA for men, retailers in male incontinence products, released an integrated campaign via creative agency Dig that encourages men who have suffered prostate cancer and endure bladder leakage to try their new washable, leak-absorbing underwear range.
In partnership with the Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia (PCFA), the campaign features Ian, Ross and Steve, survivors of prostate cancer wearing the new underwear, photographed and filmed by Simon Harsent.
The men share their stories of dealing with prostate cancer, their experience when facing incontinence, and the relief of having discreet, leak-absorbing underwear they can wear with no fuss.
The integrated campaign is live via PR, digital, social and in-store
Anne Savage, CEO of Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia, says that this campaign highlights a product that safeguards self-esteem and social strength.
Savage: “Continence concerns are common among Australian men, and especially among men who have been treated for prostate cancer. With more than 240,000 Australian men alive today after a diagnosis of prostate cancer, we know many Australian men will welcome the arrival of a product that safeguards their self-esteem and their social strength.”
Peter Cerny, chief creative officer at creative agency Dig says that the motive behind the work was to bring forth an open conversation about an issue that is rarely discussed.
He said: “An estimated 1 in 4 Australian men have visited the doctor about incontinence, but the issue is rarely openly discussed. It is a condition that can impact confidence and self esteem, often preventing men from doing the things they love. Tena, a leader in male incontinence products launched their new washable, leak absorbing underwear range empowering men to live a more regular life.
“Incontinence is particularly common amongst men who have experienced prostate cancer and there are more than 240,000 Australian men living after a prostate cancer diagnosis.
“Tena worked closely with the Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia and Dig creative to launch the campaign coinciding with Prostate cancer awareness month. ‘Wear it with Confidence’ will help reduce the stigma associated with incontinence and build confidence to help men get back to doing the things they love.”
Cerny says that the creative goal was to bring to life the confidence men feel when wearing Tena products without resorting to images of men playing golf or going for bike rides, as is the common trope in this type of campaign.
Cerny: “The goal creatively was to bring to life the confidence (through wearing the new TENA MEN underwear) in a way that would cut-through the stereotypical advertising in the category – pictures of older men laughing while playing golf or riding their bikes with cheesy smiles.
“Those expressions do not accurately reflect the experience men go through with incontinence, particularly those recovering from Prostate Cancer. So the creative approach needed to be respectful and sensitive to our talent and their lived experience.
“We leaned into cues from the fashion world to bring a level of aspiration to the campaign. Capturing our talent of Ian, Ross and Steve in beautiful black and white photography brings a credibility and storytelling aspect to the advertising.
“In this light, the product becomes more than just a product that fixes a health condition. It becomes something more aspirational. Helping gives men experiencing incontinence the confidence to get back out there.”
Cerny credits the genuine authenticity and sincerity of the work to commercial photographer, Simon Harsent.
He said: “We were very deliberate in our choice of Simon Harsent for filming and photography, knowing he would capture the sincerity of the message and pay homage to the identity of our talent after surviving prostate cancer.
“Our angles and paired back approach made our talent the story, and ensured the authenticity of their experience was untainted by advertising accessories.”