The encyclopedia · Marketing & Brand · Marketing decision · 2011–2012
Durex sold virtual sex in the Middle East and lifted sales 17%
In a region where sex is taboo, Durex built 'Digital Love' — an interactive virtual-sex experience — and turned curiosity into 17% sales growth.
Durex (Reckitt Benckiser)
The solution
Durex Arabia's challenge was to become a 'sex megabrand' in the Middle East and promote safe sex among 18-25 year olds — in a region where local traditions make sex a taboo subject. The target audience had a 'schizophrenic' relationship with sex: strong cultural norms, but an internet that opened a window to the world.
Agency Buzzman built Digital Love, an interactive web experience for making 'love' through your computer. A Facebook page about love and romance gradually heated up before revealing it was all about Durex, then drove fans into the experience, where a face-mapping feature let users prank friends.
The campaign let curiosity do the marketing: each participant had to experience the site to understand it, and the joke of tricking friends spread it further. It won a Silver at the Dubai Lynx 2012 in digital media.
Why it worked
- Digital channels bypassed the media restrictions that made direct sex messaging impossible.
- The gradual reveal — romance first, brand second — built engagement before the sell.
- Face-mapping and pranking turned each user into a distributor.
- The experience itself dramatized Durex's positioning: safe, fun, modern sex.
What can be applied
When a category message is culturally blocked, shift the medium: find the channel where the audience already behaves differently and smuggle the brand message through it.
Aftermath
Digital Love drew 4.4 million views worldwide (1.8 million in the Middle East alone), 100 online articles reaching 9.3 million people, and sales grew 17%. The work took a Silver at Dubai Lynx 2012.
Sources
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