Super Bowl 2018: It's A Tide Ad (Blog)

Isaiah Mustafa, perched atop a horse, is the ‘man your man could smell like.’ But this is not an advertisement for Old Spice, it’s, in fact, a Tide advertisement. Don’t believe me? Check out Mustafa’s spotless white pants. ‘If it’s clean, it’s got to be Tide.’

In 2018, Procter & Gamble’s Tide debuted a clever set of spots at the Super Bowl, with each spot making the argument that every advertisement you see is really a Tide advertisement. Created by Saatchi & Saatchi New York and featuring David Harbour of Stranger Things fame, the spots mimicked the standard elements of typical big brand advertisements for products like cars, beer and shaving cream, among others. The spots trick the audience into believing that they know what they’re in for before the big reveal - Everything is a Tide advertisement.    

The company set the stage with a 45-second spot during the first quarter of the Super Bowl and followed it up with a 15-second spot in each of the three subsequent quarters. In an interview with ADWEEK, Saatchi New York chief creative officer Javier Campopiano said that the concept of the advertisements came from one of the creatives named Jacopo Biorcio, a low-key man from Italy, who was initially reluctant to share the idea with the team.  

The advertisements take advantage of the ubiquitous nature of the brand. Another ADWEEK article quoted Paul Bichler, Saatchi & Saatchi’s executive creative director as saying, “The idea itself was really informed by the brand Tide being such an icon, that so many people use it. So, it lends itself to this idea—of the people you surround yourself with, half of them are essentially Tide ads.”  The article mentioned that the spots were released to draw attention to Tide’s new ‘Fresh Coral Blast’ scent and a new stain-focused cleaning line called ‘Tide With Ultra Oxy.’ Additionally, according to the article, the spots could have been an attempt by the company to mitigate the negative publicity that stemmed from the Tide Pod challenge, which involved consumption of these pods by young people.   

It is important to note why Procter & Gamble chose to release the spots at the Super Bowl. The event is a big draw for companies because, as Tim Calkins, a marketing professor at Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management, tells CNN Business, “the game bucks advertising trends in an important way. While network TV ratings are struggling, the NFL championship remains the best way to reach as many people as possible at once.”

In my opinion, the advertisements are creative because they emphasize the brand’s strong market presence in a humorous manner. Even if audience members miss the 45-second spot, which introduces the concept of the advertisements, each subsequent spot is strong enough to create an impact and convey the message. This can be attributed to the strongly familiar set-up of each 15-second spot. For example, one spot begins with Isaiah Mustafa seated on a horse, a reference to the well-known Old Spice advertisement. This technique is effective because it allows the audience to instantly connect with the advertisement and keeps them engaged. The spots also feature Procter & Gamble’s very own Mr. Clean, and a hilarious ‘Tide’ version of a pharmaceutical advertisement. 

The advertisements worked for the brand. A month after the advertisements were released, the Tide Ultra Oxy witnessed a double-digit growth, according to a Procter & Gamble brand representative. The advertisements also garnered significant attention on social media and became the second most trending topic on Twitter after the Super Bowl itself.