P&G & Wieden+Kennedy

P&G and Wieden+Kenney’s relationship began with some initial hesitation. Each party had to open up to new ways of working, and because they were both dedicated to the long-term success of the relationship, they have learned a lot from each other, and P&G has turned into one of W+K’s most treasured accounts. Since P&G is such a large company, the agency wanted to start small and work with brand teams that were most open to experimentation. Pending the success of those relationships, they carefully grew the P&G relationship to cover two brand teams and the corporate brand.

On all three brands covered by W+K, the client is critically important to the success of the work. They are open to outside thinking and want to produce work that the consumer has never seen before. W+K’s role is to bring fresh thinking to their brand or consumer, and they are at their best when adding value to the brand team. Where there was once skepticism, both parties now have confidence.  P&G is one of the accounts that W+K creative talent most want to work on, which says a lot about the success of the P&G/W+K relationship.

One of P&G and Wieden+Kennedy’s most recognizable campaigns launched at the 2012 London Olympics – the “Thank you, Mom” campaign. The campaign included TV, print, and social media and focused on thanking moms for the role they play in the development of the Olympic athletes. The spots were directed by Oscar-winning director, Alejandro González Iñárritu, and were shot in London, Rio, Los Angeles and Beijing, featuring a mother from each location bringing up a young athlete.

The 2012 London Olympics P&G “Thank You, Mom” campaign ran in 49 countries and was supported by 34 brands in four million stores around the world. It was the biggest and most successful global campaign in P&G’s 175-year history, with $500 million in global incremental sales and over 74 million global views. The partnership has resulted in countless global awards, including Cannes Grand Prix, an Emmy, and awards from the Cannes Lions, One Show, D&AD, ANDYs and several others.