In this country, there is still a significant stigma when it comes to talking about women's health. “Vagina” is considered a dirty word, despite being an anatomically correct term for a body part half the population has. At Wisp, our mission is to provide affordable, safe, and convenient sexual and reproductive healthcare services, and to work to de-stigmatize women's health issues. This starts with education, and being able to speak openly about the vagina, as well as common issues affecting the vagina, like UTIs and yeast infections.
We felt that working with a female comedian like Steph Barkley (and her partner Chase Joliet at Two Socks Creative), who could bring humor and levity to the topic, was a smart approach. We also wanted to acknowledge that speaking about these issues is often uncomfortable. Together, we decided to flip the script and showcase the last person you would want discussing your sexual health issues with you—a father figure, "Bill." Over time, we’ve built out the cast of characters around Bill to include Bill’s sex-positive sister, Linda, and extended family members.
Unlike the awkward and uncomfortable discussions many of us have had while learning about sexual health topics, Bill’s family takes an open and enthusiastic approach (mostly). Sexual explorations and healthcare needs are never the butt of the joke—Bill’s exuberance may embarrass his daughter at times, but she (and the audience) knows he always has her back. We've seen tremendous results, and believe that now more than ever, women, and people with vaginas, just want to feel seen and heard.
Wisp was tasked with distinguishing itself as a trusted, relatable brand in an intensely competitive telehealth landscape. Wisp wanted to cut through a crowded Q4 media landscape and grab viewers’ attention with a unique take on the holiday season. The script writing process was a collaborative effort between Steph Barkley and Chase Joliet—the comedic duo behind Two Socks Creative—and the Wisp in-house creative and marketing team.
“Cheers to Wisp” is the holiday special of our ongoing collaboration. Wisp and Two Socks wanted to utilize Stephanie’s comedic abilities to showcase a multigenerational family gathered around the table. Our characters’ willingness to discuss taboo topics gave us a chance to showcase Wisp's key value proposition: same-day access to sexual and reproductive care for women of all ages.
Everyone can relate to an awkward dynamic at a family gathering. Using Bill’s family to tell this story helped break down barriers and encouraged viewers to be more open. Steph Barkley, who uses she/her pronouns, gets the opportunity to play a loving, progressive father, Bill—someone we hope to see more of in this world.
We haven’t seen anything like this in the healthcare marketing space, and this approach has allowed us to push the boundaries with our content while engaging with a wide audience. We also wanted to highlight some of Wisp’s top categories of care–birth control, yeast infections, UTIs–as we know that the majority of women will have experience with these issues over the course of their lifetime. The fact that Bill’s multi-generational family could all relate to these vaginal health needs makes the viewer feel that whatever they are dealing with might not be such a big deal, and that there is an easy solution out there: Wisp.
Wisp and Stephanie united in a shared aspiration–to cultivate connections with fresh and diverse audiences, amplify Wisp’s brand visibility, and spark thought-provoking dialogues. Remarkably, 83.6% of Stephanie’s audience fell within our core age range (18-44), validating our approach.
Through a completely organic progression, our endeavors succeeded in captivating the attention of an impressive 64,060 unique Instagram accounts, with a substantial portion of 41,707 individuals who had not yet engaged with our profiles.
The ripples of our initiative spread far and wide, evident in the substantial 540 shares, each representing an extension of our content to wider networks. "Cheers to Wisp" fearlessly delved into subjects like birth control, yeast infections, UTIs, and repeated the term "vagina" with unapologetic candor! Sharing this video not only destigmatized sexual health but also dismantled barriers around taboo language. Sexual healthcare content typically receives lower engagement yet our approachable video earned 75 comments praising the humorous approach of this dinner table conversation.
Our collaborative journey expanded Wisp's brand reach, effectively realizing our goals of audience expansion, social engagement, and the nurturing of meaningful conversations.
