AJAX ULTRA

Problem

AJAX ULTRA dish soap is an excellent product at a bargain price, but it trails behind others when it comes to brand awareness and market share.

Insight

These days, Americans are hyperfocused on their grocery receipts and the climbing cost of everything. They are comparison shopping and exploring discount stores in search of savings. Conditions are ripe for disrupting brand loyalties, even those with emotional foundations. A memorable campaign could make AJAX ULTRA a winner for Colgate-Palmolive.

Solution

The following campaign uses edgy humor to make consumers more aware of their emotionally based brand loyalty to the category leader (blue Dawn), while offering AJAX ULTRA as a money-smart alternative.

Client: Colgate-Palmolive / AJAX ULTRA dish soap

Title: Washes Dishes Not Ducks - 1 of 2

Length: 15 seconds

A man and woman (30s, business attire) exit a boardroom carrying briefcases. They look disappointed as they walk past a reception desk with three baby ducks waddling after them. A large sign behind the desk reads, “AJAX ULTRA.” The receptionist (uncomfortable) waves goodbye to the strange procession.

NARRATOR: Unfortunately, we don’t have room in our budget for cute baby ducks or their greedy agents.

Next, we see a mother duck hurry past the reception desk and fall in line behind her ducklings. Her waddle is exaggerated with frustration. When a janitor begins mopping up behind them, she spins, quacks angrily, and leaves something special for him to clean up before marching off camera with her babies. A digital pattern blurs what she left behind. We zoom in on the Janitor as he raises a walkie-talkie.

JANITOR: (deadpan) We’re gonna need a dustpan.

Fade to orange. Display an AJAX ULTRA 28 oz bottle.

NARRATOR: (bold, round voice) AJAX ULTRA SUPER DEGREASER—Great dish soap for less.

COMEDIC VOICE: Washes dishes, not ducks!

Client: Colgate-Palmolive / AJAX ULTRA dish soap

Title: Washes Dishes Not Ducks – 2 of 2

Length: 15 seconds

We open on a sunny, modest kitchen with a stack of dirty dishes waiting to be washed. Two ducklings are waddling on the countertops, while another pair is enjoying the sink—one swimming, the other sliding from the sink’s edge into the soapy dishwater.

NARRATOR: Do you really want baby ducks waddling across your countertops and piddling in your sinks?

A middle-aged woman appears and her hands spring up with dismay when she discovers these wild creatures in her home. She turns and flees.

We cut to outside, where a vehicle labelled "Wildlife Control. Catch and Release" speeds down the driveway, away from the house. An instant later, an industrial truck with a huge water tank on the back races up the drive toward the house. This truck is clearly labelled "Steam Cleaners. No job is too tough!"

Cut to the kitchen, where two men wearing full-body HAZMAT protection are excessively steaming the countertops, sinks, and floors, filling the scene with fog.

NARRATOR: Wouldn't you prefer a great dish soap that costs less?

One of the men approaches the camera and blasts the protective glass with spray, completely obscuring the view with steam and water droplets. Fade to orange and display an AJAX ULTRA 28 oz bottle.

NARRATOR: (bold, round voice) AJAX ULTRA SUPER DEGREASER.

COMEDIC VOICE: Washes dishes, not ducks!