New Study Confirms, Nobody Wants Your Dick Pic
The unsolicited dick pic has long been a topic of dismay amongst unwitting recipients. The suspected universal experience has been investigated in a study commissioned by men’s grooming company MANSCAPED to unravel the gendered flirting preference dichotomy.
Kwantlen Polytechnic University’s O.R.G.A.S.M Research Lab (yes, really) discovered that men are nine times more likely to get a response when they send a picture of the face versus any other body part. Of the 51% of men who have sent unsolicited photos, only 4% of women responded positively, underlining a deep misalignment of desires.
While hardly shocking for some, the prevalence of unwanted dick pics – evinced most publicly of late by none other than Azealia Banks’ outing of the disgraced sexual predator and UFC fighter Conor McGregor – is undeniable.
MANSCAPED, in collaboration with creative agency Special Group USA, knew they wanted to handle the results of the study carefully. “We wanted to surface a cultural issue that almost everyone’s aware of but nobody talks about in polite society,” says SPECIAL’s creative director, Chris Juhas.
It’s a relief of an approach; little feels as uncomfortable as a brand trying to do ‘too much’ on an issue they have little societal permission to hold space in.
The brand known for its personal grooming products is branching out with a new face shaver, so the ad encourages, ‘Send Face Pics Instead’ – presumably faces freshly groomed by their latest tool.
Chris says the observational tone and tone of the script came from a desire to cue observation without judgement, “simply witnessing a strange animal behaviour and reporting on it.”
Marcelo Kertész, chief marketing officer at MANSCAPED says, “We knew we were walking a tightrope, but with good posture and a smirk. This campaign was never about encouraging bad behaviour. Quite the opposite: it’s about holding up a mirror (ideally with good lighting) and saying, ‘Hey, there’s a better way to put yourself out there’.”
He explains that humour has been a superpower for the brand since its beginnings when it needed to talk about people’s private parts. “Humour disarms and invites people into a good conversation. But we were careful to never punch down or gloss over the pics, or any other important issue.
“We worked closely with the team at O-Lab to make sure we weren’t just being funny; we were being thoughtful. The jokes land because they’re grounded in insight, empathy, and the basic truth that good behaviour is, frankly, hot.”
The campaign will roll out over OOH, and the brand will be engaging in app takeovers and influencer activations. When asked how he’d measure its success, Marcelo said, “If more men are putting their best face forward – and doing it with our products – we’re doing our job. And if we sparked a few smarter conversations (and even smarter selfies) along the way, that’s a win we can all feel good about.”
More of the study’s key findings are available on the MANSCAPED blogwhile the full work has been submitted to The Journal of Sex Research, with the researchers appearing on podcasts discussing the broader issue.
Hopefully the insights will be a springboard for more serious action and fewer wince-worthy pics accosting our screens.
