Mr. Clean has been around in Canada since 1959, and Procter & Gamble is celebrating the anniversary with a new campaign. Using the slogan ‘The other man since 1959,’ the tongue-in-cheek effort targets the 25-to-54 female demo. Extreme Group handled the creative, while SMG was responsible for media planning and purchasing.
Extreme Group discovered through research that women talk about Mr. Clean in a somewhat cheeky way, which led to the ‘other man’ concept. The idea was to remind women of how long Mr. Clean has been in their lives, but to do it in a fun way. ‘There’s a line we didn’t want to cross in terms of the connotation,’ explains Extreme CEO Paul Leblanc. ‘At the same time we wanted to be playful with it, and recognize for the first time in fifty years that women have this kind of relationship with him.’
The campaign will feature print ads in a variety of Canadian publications, such as Canadian Home and Country, Canadian Family, Reader’s Digest and Hello!, running from March to May. In-store and web advertising will be used as well. According to Victoria Maybee of Procter & Gamble, the media used in the campaign were chosen because they were the best creative platform, and due to their efficient reach.
The print ads will also direct users to the Mr. Clean website. The website allows users to place virtual kisses on the face of Mr. Clean and there is also a link to the ‘Extra Clean Extra Cash’ contest, with the grand prize being $3,000.
