Essie — The Naming Department Series

Turn over a bottle of nail polish in the salon. The names are always funny. Jamaica Me Crazy. Sand Tropez. Butler Please. As a copywriter, I've always been one to ask: Who names these things anyway? (And how can I get that job?) Turns out, this question isn't so uncommon.

Through social listening, our team at Code & Theory found out that Essie loyalists were wondering who was behind the crazy shade names. So why weren't we telling this story? Our opportunity came in the form of a Google x Youtube Lab. There, Essie was challenged to create engaging and creative hub content (agnostic to promotions or product launches). The budget was tight and the timeline even tighter. $25k in two months. Two youtube episodes. 1 big idea.

Immediately, our teams rallied around the simple strategy: "Who Names These Things Anyway?" and thus, the fictional Essie Naming Department was born.

The comedy series is currently up for a few awards. We've been written up in Ad Age. And the series won 1st place in the Youtube Lab challenge at L'Oreal.