Michael CeraVe

About the Work CeraVe was headed to its first Super Bowl. The goal: make sure everyone knows that the skincare brand is developed with dermatologists. The problem: no one wants to talk about dermatologists. (No offense, Dr. Schachner). Also, a dermatologist brand can't compete with celebrities. So we needed something people couldn't ignore– not a traditional campaign. People have joked for years that Michael Cera is the founder of CeraVe. We decided to turn those jokes into a full on conspiracy theory. It was a month of orchestrated chaos that lit the internet on fire. FIRST, we spread fake news. The best way to plant a seed is to make people think they've discovered something. So we worked with the biggest influencers to catch Michael signing bottles of CeraVe, walking around with bags of the moisturizer, and sending out bootlegged PR kits, making his own website. Then, the internet did its thing and spread that Michael was a secret skin mogul. SECOND thing we did, was rather than CeraVe admitting to the joke, we doubled down and had CeraVe publicly fight with Michael. This included a public statement, a message from the actual founder, a NYTimes article, emails to loyal customers and releasing an army of dermatologists on Michael. By picking a fight with ourselves, CeraVe threw people off our scent. FINALLY, it was time to set the record straight. During the most watched Super Bowl in history (thanks, Taylor), CeraVe ran an ad that made it clear Michael had gone rogue and CeraVe is developed with dermatologists. But honestly, by the time the game started, many had already declared that CeraVe had won the Super Bowl with a fully immersive, first of it's kind campaign that didn't just have people watch– but be a crucial part of.