Endo Aesthetics gets cheeky with its first DTC campaign for cellulite treatment Qwo. The internet spot, “Butt First,” is a light and cheery celebration of all things about women’s posterior end—except for cellulite, of course.
The spot features beautiful and fit models of varied ethnicities. These are aspirational women with spectacularly firm, smooth behinds. The activities they are doing are also aspirational—shopping, practicing yoga, eating lunch and playing on the beach. Considering Qwo is an aesthetic product that is self-paid, it’s not surprising the spots feature obviously affluent women living their best lives. It’s that “you go, girl” self affirmation that Endo is aiming for.
“One of the things I love about (medical aesthetics) is the fact that the patients aren't sick. They’re looking to address conditions to make them feel more confident or look or feel their best,” Rob Catlin, senior vice president and general manager of Endo Aesthetics, said. “We are guided by the FDA, so that's really important that we follow necessary, appropriate regulations. How we try to get top of mind is really addressing these issues as consumers in a retail environment.”
Research showed that for its target market of mostly 20- to 40-year-old women, the best place is online, so the ad is running in various formations on social media and on the company’s own Instagram, Facebook and Tik Tok platforms. Endo is also working with physician influencers such as aesthetic clinicians, dermatologists, plastic surgeons and nurse injectors, many of whom are patients themselves.
There are also content partnerships on beauty and wellness websitesm and Endo is promoting local media events in major U.S. cities. Women who are interested in Qwo can go to the website for information on the product as well as to find out where they can attend one of the 500 Butt First patient events held at aesthetic practices throughout the country. The events are meant to be a fun and informative way to find out about Qwo.
Endo knows everything about Qwo needs to be sunny and fun, as the company is fully aware it is a purely aesthetic and discretionary drug.
“No one's going die of cellulite,” Catlin said. “Not all woman are bothered by it, and that's wonderful—if you're not bothered by it, rock on enjoy your day. There's nothing wrong with that, and we're not trying to shame. What we want to do as a manufacturer is say, 'here's an option for you if you're doing something about it.'”
Qwo (collagenase clostridium histolyticum-aaes) is the first and only injectable treatment for moderate to severe cellulite in the buttocks of adult women. It received FDA approval in July 2020, but, due to the pandemic, the rollout was pushed to spring of 2021. It’s estimated that 90% of women have cellulite and, yes, it’s just women due to fiber structures under the skin in the different sexes.