Maybelline New York: Through Their Eyes
Maybelline New York wanted to strengthen its Brave Together mental health initiative in Australia. HERO McCann was tasked with addressing the toxic harassment that 83% of female - identifying gamers face online. The goal was to raise awareness of this abuse among male gamers, foster a more inclusive gaming culture, and drive brand affinity by providing mental health resources to those affected by digital bullying.
Creative Idea
Disguised male gamers with female voices to let them experience online harassment firsthand.
To expose the rampant toxicity female gamers face, Maybelline disguised male streamers with voice - changing tech to experience harassment firsthand, turning their shock into a powerful call for allyship and a safe, all - female tournament.
Five Seconds to Break the Illusion
The Five Second Reality Check
The production team utilized live voice - changing technology to disguise high - profile male streamers Joel “JoelBergs” Bergs and Drew “DrewD0g” Warne as female players in a first - person shooter environment. The experiment yielded immediate, harrowing results: the male gamers faced their first instance of verbal abuse within just five seconds of speaking. Director Jessica Barclay Lawton captured their visible shock as they were subjected to explicit objectification and told to "go back to the kitchen," providing a raw look at the human cost behind the avatar.
Shifting the Male Perspective
While the campaign targeted the gaming community, its impact on Maybelline’s commercial performance was unprecedented. The brand achieved its highest - ever mascara market share at 51.93%, outperforming the market by five times in unit sales. Most notably, the campaign successfully broke the "female - only" brand bubble. Engagement shifted from 72% female at launch to a 53% male majority by the fourth week, proving that the message of allyship resonated with the very demographic capable of changing gaming culture.
Safe Havens and Mental Health
Beyond the film, the initiative created physical and digital safe spaces. The team designed a custom Maybelline New York Fortnite map and hosted the Eyes Up Cup at Fortress Melbourne, the largest esports stadium in the Southern Hemisphere. This was not a standalone marketing stunt but a core pillar of the Brave Together program, which integrated direct mental health support through partnerships with ReachOut (AU) and Youthline (NZ). The cultural resonance was so significant that United Nations Women publicly highlighted the film as a benchmark for addressing digital harassment.
Creative Strategy Deconstructed
Company
Maybelline's Brave Together mental health platform and its commitment to supporting women's confidence and well - being.
Category
Beauty brands often focus on traditional glamour while ignoring the digital spaces where their audience is bullied.
Customer
Female gamers who feel forced to play in silence, and male gamers who are oblivious to the toxicity.
Culture
The rising awareness of toxic gaming culture and the need for tangible allyship in male - dominated digital environments.
Company
Maybelline's Brave Together mental health platform and its commitment to supporting women's confidence and well - being.
Category
Beauty brands often focus on traditional glamour while ignoring the digital spaces where their audience is bullied.
Strategy:
Expose systemic harassment through forced perspective - shifting to transform passive observers into active community allies.
Customer
Female gamers who feel forced to play in silence, and male gamers who are oblivious to the toxicity.
Culture
The rising awareness of toxic gaming culture and the need for tangible allyship in male - dominated digital environments.
Strategy:
Expose systemic harassment through forced perspective - shifting to transform passive observers into active community allies.
Results
The campaign achieved significant global impact with 449.9 million global impressions. It generated $276.5 million in earned media value. The initiative successfully reached 65.2 million gamers. It received widespread press coverage from outlets like ABC, 7News, Daily Mail, and Gamespot, being described as a 'striking experiment.' Social media engagement was high, with numerous creators sharing their own experiences and calling for a more inclusive gaming world. The campaign also partnered with ReachOut to provide support for those facing online abuse.
449.9M
global impressions
$276.5M
earned media
65.2M
gamers reached
Strategy Technique
Make the Invisible Visible
The campaign exposed the hidden, silent abuse that 83% of women experience in gaming, making the psychological toll tangible for a male audience through direct, lived experience.
Explore Technique
Creative Technique
Conduct an Experiment
By using voice - modulation technology as a controlled variable, the campaign provided empirical proof of gender - based harassment, forcing male gamers to confront a reality they usually ignore.
Explore Technique
Craft Breakdown
The campaign's impact is driven by a powerful social experiment that uses technology to expose a harsh reality, followed by a large-scale experiential activation.
The creation of a custom Fortnite map and a live tournament successfully reclaimed a toxic space for the community.
The use of voice-modulation software as a narrative tool effectively bridged the empathy gap between male and female gamers.
