Chat don’t fcuk.
3/10 2010
As we all know, the freedom of the Internet has the uncanny ability to reflect the full spectrum of the human psyche. This has resulted in the net having many shady back alleys; we are all just few stray clicks away from a world of illegal activities and questionable behavior.
Add to this a site that allows anyone with a webcam to randomly connect and ‘chat’ with other webcam users from across the world, all of which is done totally anonymously. If you have not already realized it, what I am describing is the latest phenomena to hit the net, Chatroulette. The idea is painfully simple and very scary, go to the chatroulette.com, activate your webcam and microphone, and click ‘Play’ and you are randomly connected to another webcam user, whom you can both see and hear on screen. For those of you who maybe a little hesitant to dive in Chatroullette yourself, then you can check out a great short film made by Casey Neistat. It is an amusing summary of Chatroulette’s audience and not surprisingly Neistat finds that the site is populated by 71% Male, 15% Female and 14% Pervert.
Based on that you would be right to assume that Chatroulette would stay hidden in the back alleys of the net, but its so how gaining mainstream popularity, and attracting the attention of major brands. Enter French Connection.
Way back in 1997, French Connection began branding their clothes “fcuk” the obviously play on the word fuck cause get controversy at the time and took French Connection from a relatively small British fashion retailer, to an international brand phenomenon. Over time the FCUK acronym has lost its punch and ability to shock and due to over commercialization has become mainstream. This resulted in the downsizing the acronym’s role in French Connection’s brand identity in 2009. After which the brand seemed to be moving towards a more over all classical style. This however together with heavy losses in start of 2009, has left the once-edgy brand looking a bit past its best.
As part of their latest campaign ‘The man, The Woman’, French Connection has associated itself with Chatroulette, launching a competition challenging men to get a date with a member of the opposite sex on Chatroulette and if successful win a French Connection voucher for £250. This latest campaign, based partly around a their blog fantastically entitled Manifesto, is a move to reposition their menswear range towards the famed edgy/bloke-ish attitude they once held and in exploiting Chatroulette they have refreshed French Connection’s desire to shock.
The timing of this looks like a marriage made in heaven, not only is this a very cost effective manner in which to capitalize on the buzz sounding Chatroulette, it is also a great way in which to launch the French Connection brand into the social media channels. In short it has all the markings of a successful case for the next chapter of French Connection. Associating the brand with the shady parts of the net is not just a bold thing to do, in this case it also supports the foundation of French Connection’s Man campaign. I my view it is an inspired move that as gives the brand a believable connection with their target audience, if French Connection is asking their audience to “go boldly where no manly man has gone before”, then we can rest assured that the brand is prepared to follow them.
Steinar Danelsen
Steinar Danielsen is the co-founder and Creative Director of Supernative, a digital communication agency based in Stockholm. He works with providing analysis, online strategies, creative concepts and digital identities, for a range of international brands.
It seems so controversial that french connection are defining their clothes this way. The clothes are not edgy in any way and have a very mainstream look. This just feels like the communication is fantastic but the product is communicating something very different and just doesn’t seem to match. The targeted group that wear the close, definitely don’t seem to be the same that would wear the clothes.
Chatroulette is crazy!