Avlimil – Gilt by Association
Viagra's successful sexual conquest of the male organ has spawned a flood
of products designed to spread the joy in the opposite direction. The
best-named Female Sexual Dysfunction remedy by far is Niagara
– it's powerful, wet, and funny, just like good sex. And it obviously
parries well the thrust of the name "Viagra."
But now there's a new girl in town, and she is taking a far more clinical approach to seduction. Her come-hither moniker? Avlimil. Sure it's cold, inhuman and unmemorable, but then we've all "dated" someone like that.
Actually it's part of a unique strategy erected to whet your appetite for Avlimil and elevate it above the others vying for your attention.
You see, Niagara and Avlimil are both herbal remedies. But while Niagara is proud and confident of who it is, Avlimil is trying to sound like "serious" prescription medicine. And it's not just the name. In the TV commercial the fidgety female spokesperson – in a clear reference to the drug Viagra – says, "Men have their little blue pill, and now we have ours." The illusion is furthered in the packaging:
And what does the mysterious descriptor "(salvia rubus) tablets" mean? Salvia comes from the Latin salveo, meaning "I am well," and an herb, Salvia, used for healing, while rubus is Latin for bramble or berry. It's apothecary-speak for sage and raspberry leaf, Avlimil's main ingredients. The whole campaign is well thought out and deftly executed to fully leverage the success and mind-share of Viagra.
Further reading:
- Better Naming Through Chemistry
- Biotech / pharmaceutical name taxonomy
- The Science of Naming Drugs
- What's in a name?
| Better Naming Through Chemistry |