Secret Deodorant's "Secret" Diamond PR Campaign (Pierce Mattie Public Relations New York)

Since last August, in an effort to boost sales, Procter & Gamble have come up with a giveaway that has been so secret that no one has really known about it. On every deodorant stick lies the chance of winning a $15,000 diamond. By entering the product SKU from a Secret Flawless deodorant at www.secretdiamondgiveaway.com, a person can find out if they have won one of the ten $15K diamonds that have been hidden (fake ones to be traded for the real thing) or another prize such as a $500 Visa shopping spree or dinner at a 5-Star restaurant. However, it appears that the campaign hasn't really gotten much buzz until recently which leads me to ponder about this unique promotion--has it really been a viable PR campaign?

With a June 30 deadline for this promotion, and after eight months, only one person has won a flawless diamond. To gain more awareness, Secret posted the video above to remind consumers that this contest is indeed not a secret. So far, the video has failed to attract the desired attention with only under 100 views as of the date of this post.

So what went wrong? While Secret Flawless may be a fantastic product, the consumption rate is low because when you think about it, how often are you buying deodorant? And while no purchase is necessary, you do have to hand over your name, address and email address in order to "play the game" and see if you've won. For the most part in this day and age, people are very wary about handing over their personal information. The blogger buzz page only has a collection of posts from 2008, nothing on a more consistent basis to keep generating buzz not only about the contest but about the product as well.

What do you think about the Secret Flawless Diamond Giveaway? Did it generate the publicity it deserved or simply fell flat?