Mars brand Dove Chocolate is setting out to tackle stress in the workplace in its latest campaign from China, with videos specifically designed to help people relax and feel pleasure.

The brand worked with agency BBDO Shanghai to address China's growing problem of young office workers' dissatisfaction at the office and make them look to chocolate as a solution. They came up with the idea of short videos, created with the help of neuroscientist Paul Zak at Claremont Graduate University, that would help to induce pleasure. (Though the videos have elements of ASMR, the agency claims that the campaign is about more than that, as it's been tested with neurological responses to create the best final videos for inducing pleasure and relaxation.)

In two videos focusing on "stress" and "disappointment," the protagonist has a situation at work, but then turns to objects she finds in her office environment to make videos that make her feel better. She twirls the shiny ribbon on her work badge when stressed about a meeting, or turning paper into orgiami when a project doesn't work out. Plus, she also takes a nibble of Dove chocolate. The videos end with the line: "A bite of silky smoothness melts away small upsets."

The campaign, which has been running in mainland China, also includes also a behind-the-scenes documentary (see below) that explains more about the process. Meanwhile a social media element encourages consumers on platforms Weibo and Douyin (the Chinese version of TikTok) to make their own "oddly pleasurable" chocolate videos. Such strangely compelling films aren't unique to Dove, however, as they've been a phenomenon on social media for a while now. 

“While we know Chinese office workers don’t have a habit of reaching for Chocolate when they are stressed, they do turn to short video platforms for a little escape," explained Arthur Tsang, chief creative officer at BBDO Shanghai and global creative lead on Mars, in a statement. "So, we asked ourselves, can we interrupt their break sessions with videos that can make them feel the pleasure of chocolate directly?"

“Workplace low emotions are becoming such a ubiquitous phenomenon in China as the competition and pressure has intensified in recent years,” added Harry Chen, group planning director at the agency. “And the increasing uncertainty as a result of the global pandemic makes it even worse. Dove has always been a brand that stands for pleasure, so we felt we had the opportunity and responsibility to help Chinese people cope with these low emotions a little bit better and experience more pleasure.”