On July 1, Dollar Shave Club launched its “250 Years. No BS. Still Free” campaign, created by its in-house team utilizing generative AI.The series of digital ad spots features America’s forefathers in hyper-stylized images fighting back against big razor monopolies.
The campaign is also promoting Dollar Shave Club’s ongoing promotion of $2.50 starter kits, one of the largest discounts it has offered since launching in 2012. According to Dollar Shave Club’s chief brand and innovation officer, Laura Higgins, the use of generative AI is quickly becoming an effective solution “to bypass legacy agency models” and allow the in-house creative team to execute campaigns at a faster rate. Despite increasing backlash toward AI-generated social media content by brands, Higgins says AI is a tool and not a full-on strategy in Dollar Shave Club’s marketing playbook.
Higgins has only been with Dollar Shave Club for a couple of months, but the July 4th holiday presented a unique opportunity for her team to quickly test generative AI creatives.
“When I got here, we didn’t have anything planned for the 4th of July, and that surprised me,” Higgins said, especially given that it coincided with America’s 250th anniversary this year. “So I wanted to use AI to bring that ‘revolution’ theme into a campaign quickly,” she explained. In the case of Dollar Shave Club, Higgins said its “enough is enough” stance against expensive razors is a nod to America’s founding fathers’ rebellion against the pricing structures imposed by monopolies on consumer goods like tea and sugar.
