Febreze Targets Football Fans (Psst! They're Women)

If brand marketers have learned anything in the last decade, it's to not make assumptions about where to reach a target audience. Too many times, those assumptions prove to be misguided — and that means a brand may be missing out on media strategy that could grow market share.

Proctor & Gamble learned that lesson with the NFL. It's logical to assume professional football is watched by men, and therefore it makes little sense to advertise a brand targeted to women during televised games, right?

Wrong. Turns out that, for the 2009 season, one-third of the viewing audience for a typical NFL game were women, according to Nielsen. About 42 million women watched Super Bowl XLIV last February. Those are significant numbers by any measure, reason enough why Procter & Gamble has managed to get its Febreze air freshener brand selected as "Official Air Freshener of the NFL," and why the company is advertising the product during NFL games this year.

Scott Beal, brand manager for Febreze, tells the New York Times, "Our female target audience is watching the NFL and gathering her family and friends for that football-watching experience. Often when that happens, there's food and there's a crowded room and odors can be there, and that's not the experience you want to have."

A new Febreze television ad focuses on that very scenario, showing a woman sporting a football jersey and spraying the product around her living room. "Febreze Air Effect cleans away tough game-day odors in the air—sweat socks, chicken wings, garlic dip—and leaves a light, fresh scent," says the ad's voiceover.

Febreze isn't about to overlook the men who watch football games, though. Febreze Sport, a product for controlling odors in shoes and sports gear, is being advertised in Men's Health magazine. During ESPN's locker room interviews with NFL players, the product can be seen on the players' locker shelves — a subtle yet effective product placement.

But women seem to be getting most of the promotional attention. In addition to ads, there's the requisite website and Facebook page — plus a "Febreze Game Day Freshness Tour."

A special tour bus will travel around to various football stadiums during the regular season. On the bus will be Olivia Manning, mother of Peyton (Indianapolis Colts' quarterback) and Eli (New York Giants' quarterback). Ms. Manning will not just be pitching Febreze — she'll also tells fans how to host game days and offer game-day recipes, too.