'Fresh Start,' a widget
for setting goals

Today St. Ives debuted its first digital marketing initiative.

With pastel colors, soothing music and a focus on the elements, "Get a Happy Face" aspires to encourage women to explore the St. Ives Elements product line while plucking up branded widgets that help organize their lives.

Widgets are available on individual product pages. They include:

• A weather widget, which advises women on an outfit for the day and appropriate sunblock
• A widget for setting and tracking personal goals
• A text message program to build confidence and provide skincare tips
• A workout guide
• "Olive You e-Cards," to express gratitude while promoting the St. Ives product line and campaign site
• A laughing baby video

"Get a Happy Face" is one among similar moves by product brands to target women online with lifestyle initiatives. For its no-calorie Tava beverage, Pepsi launched a well-promoted website where women can download music and find local cultural events.

But product-oriented women's lifestyle sites face an uphill battle against existing femme-focused lifestyle Goliaths online. Glam Media and iVillage come to mind, not to mention the plethora of CondéNet properties — like Vogue, CosmoGirl.com and Epicurious — many of which sprung from print-based origins. Yahoo just launched its own female lifestyle site, Shine.

EVB San Francisco is managing digital content marketing for the St. Ives initiative. Online banner ads will appear on Yahoo, InStyle and iVillage, as well as in print pubs like People, Style and Us magazine. The St. Ives brand is owned by Alberto Culver, which presides over brands like Tresemmé, Nexxus and VO5.