Agent of change

Dettol's new TV commercial hopes to appropriate a category benefit by trying to change our attitude to cleanliness

Two years ago, British multinational RB (formerly Reckitt Benckiser) appointed McCann Worldgroup India as the creative agency for Dettol in the country. Soon after, when Prasoon Joshi, chairman of McCann Worldgroup Asia Pacific, met with RB officials at a hotel to discuss the Dettol project, he simply scribbled on a napkin the phrase "Dettol ka dhula" (literally, cleaned by Dettol), a play on doodh ka dhula which implies purity of being. The idea was to use a brand to appropriate a product category, just as Joshi attempted to do the same with carbonated soft drinks by coining the unforgettable "Thanda matlab Coca-Cola".

The Dettol Ka Dhula campaign, begun last year, has added another television commercial (TVC) recently. The one and a half minute-long ad carries forward the theme of personal hygiene with children in the centre, as they convince adults at home, in school and on-board a train to use Dettol's liquid hand wash and sanitiser.

Arjun Purkayastha, marketing director, Dettol, developing markets at RB, says, "The Dettol Ka Dhula campaign, which was launched last year, helped us create a movement towards personal hygiene. This year we are trying to recreate the same phenomenon by bringing in real-life situations, places and people whom we see on a daily basis grappling with the issue of hand wash and cleanliness.

"The campaign will educate, create awareness and reinforce them to maintain hygiene by bringing in the behavioural change of washing their hands before and after every meal through an impactful TVC, backed by the extremely popular 'Dettol Dettol Ho' jingle."

Asked about the YouTube launch of the campaign, he says, "As a medium now, digital is not just about engagement - it adds incremental reach and helps us in building brand penetration among consumers who are key influencers. Also, YouTube is a great medium to tell an entertaining longer length 'story' with music - which in turn drives high engagement while driving the key messages from the brand."

The advertisement has been running across mass television, digital and mobile platforms.

Joshi says his aim is to make people use the phrase, Dettol ka dhula, in the everyday parlance. He argues that Dettol has the stature as a brand to make such a claim. "We live in symbolic cleaning, but not real. We sprinkle water to make things clean. Then I used another tool to have an edge over others, which is music and the logic being similar to rote learning."

With this TVC, Joshi adds, the McCann-RB team has tried to delve deeper into understanding the barriers to changing habits around hygiene. Citing one of the examples in the film, he says how claims like "sheron ke haath kisne dhoye?" (Who washes a tiger's paws?) to suggest it's all in our minds. Also, he feels children are both hit harder due to lack of hygiene and at the same time more effective in persuading adults to change for the better.

"Dettol is not only about selling, but also changing your entire habit. Once there is a hygiene-conscious atmosphere it will be good for the (Dettol) business and for society," he adds.

In 2014, RB launched "Dettol - Banega Swachh India", a five-year programme to address hygiene and sanitation in India, making a commitment to invest Rs 100 crore. In India, the market size of the liquid hand wash and hand sanitiser category is reported to be worth about Rs 500 crore.

RB and Hindustan Unilever are the leading companies in the segment and both companies are attempting to leverage the government's Swachh Bharat Abhiyan to push sales.