New branding work for Preparation H resists “cold” medical terminology and leans into the humoros side of treatment.
This article originally appeared on Design Week.
Preparation H, a leading hemorrhoids treatment brand that has been around since the 1920s, has revealed an updated brand expression that aims to tackle the stigma around “butt health”.
Working with global design consultancy Elmwood, they developed new visuals for their product that will help to future-proof its strong position within the market.
To do so, Elmwood tapped into the “shame” surrounding the medical condition, playing on the fact that, even though many people will experience hemorrhoids at some point in their life, few are willing to talk about it.
In response, they created a series of light-hearted and shareable illustrations, animations, and images that attempt to normalize the conversation and make it an accessible topic.
These can be found on Preparation H’s social media channels and on a microsite built by ad agency Grey Group, which allows customers to create personalized Valentine’s Day cards featuring images and messaging from the project.
The latter comes in addition to the new brand visuals and seeks to tackle the subject through tongue-in-cheek uses of language, explains the Elmwood design team.
Pushing back against “cold” medical terminology, this messaging instead uses words such as “keister”, “rump” and “derriere”, and captions like “Your butt is behind you no matter what” in an attempt to create a lighthearted tone. This has been developed further through Elmwood’s typographic choices, which the studio calls “quirky and retro”.
Speaking about the project, Elmwood Creative Director Krista Oraa says: “Preparation H has a unique place in the market. We knew there was an opportunity to enhance this by creating a brand expression that is built on humor to challenge the stigma associated with this area of health.”
“With the new assets we created, Preparation H now has a reinvigorated brand that builds awareness across a broader demographic and signals change to the consumer.”
Discover our work for Preparation H: https://www.elmwood.com/work/preparation-h/