Whoopi Goldberg Pitches Poise, And Open Dialogue

It’s easy for sports cars and financial firms to secure celebrity sponsorship for their brands. It’s a different story, however, if you’re in the light bladder leakage business.

Enter Whoopi Goldberg, the woman behind Poise – a product created to alleviate the symptoms of light bladder leakage.

Whoopi, a popular comedian also known for her role on “The View,” stars in a new series of webisodes for the Kimberly-Clark Corp. (K-C), the makers of Poise. The spots humorously portray notable women from history – including Eve, Cleopatra, the Mona Lisa, and Joan of Arc – facing bouts of light incontinence. In the webisodes, Whoopi portrays Eve suffering "spritzes" when she laughs, and suggests the Mona Lisa’s infamous smile is really modest embarrassment over her condition.

The webisodes, unscripted and created spontaneously by Whoopi, were largely improvised, said Andrew Meurer, VP-feminine, adult, and senior products at K-C.

The campaign is the largest marketing outlay in Poise's 14-year history. Using a celebrity like Whoopi, who identifies herself with the problem, can dramatically change the conversation about condition – and give a face to the product.

Many young women fear light bladder leakage is the first step towards incontinence. “’Holy cow, I'm going to be in Depends tomorrow.’ And that's like one foot in the grave to them," says Meurer.

Mindshare Entertainment suggested using Whoopi, and created the conceit of famous, historical women concept. And it seems to be working. Webisodes are an increasingly effective way to ignite a dialogue online – even when it’s an awkward one.

The website www.1in3likeme.com, explains that one in three women over 18 experiences light bladder leakage. Yet nobody wants to talk about it – except Whoopi.

Women's hesitance about discussing leakage often leads to bad product choices – which is bad for both consumers and K-C. Poise has more than 60 percent share of the market, but only about 30 percent of women with the condition are aware of the brand.

Perhaps that will change on Thursday, as Whoopi is slated to discuss the campaign on "The View."