Omo stiffens competition, craves child development with campaign

Princewill Ekwujuru
The introduction of the ad  tagline ‘Dirt is good’, a marketing communication concept developed by Omo to drive the detergent market share, may have stiffened competition as it’s action in the market has elicited  reaction in far away  Markudi, Benue State capital, where the brand stagged an activation to further play itself into the heart of consumers in relation to child development toga.

The concept, Dirt is Good’ with a stringline; Omo Door-to-door challenge anchored by Segun Arinze, a popular Nollywood actor, touched down in Ankpa ward, which later shifted base to Court 5, North Bank as a result of demand by consumers to participant in the challenge, where the brand was put to test to determine it’s activeness on tough stains like; charcoal, grass and mud.

However, in 2008, when Unilever Nigeria Plc, brand owners of Omo introduced the concept some brand watchers had thumped down the ad copy on the premise that dirt can never be good, others concluded that the message of the ad is leaned on the basis that it is only Omo that can wash off dirt sustained in the course of work.

A brand consultant, Maxwell More had once argued on the line of the  ad copy, while agreeing that indeed dirt is good. His view is that most things people do for living, they sustain dirt in the process.
For instance, he said that children go through dirty practices before they could learn certain behaviours. ‘All these are part of cultivation, culturalisation and learning processes in life, he stated, “I agree that dirt is good.”
The current Omo TV campaign, where a school boy is determined to catch a hen for the grand mother, without minding the dirt sustained, lends credence to the ad copy. In knowledge build up, especially for children, Unilever in the ad was underscoring determination. For the  set goal to be realised, there must be dirt in the process, the TVC had emphasised. The TVC, perhaps, is a strategic campaign to instil in parents the essence of allowing their children to develop through exploration. And that informed the reason parents especially women were enthroned into the challenge, where gifts were awarded the first to third winners in the washing challenge.

Consequently, this also gives credence to the explanation of Dominic Kimani, Marketing Director, Unilever Nigeria, when he said that Omo as a brand for some years has been urging parents to allow children explore, learn and experience even if it means getting dirty in the process as this only helps in their development.

‘This is driven by scientific evidence that has shown that children who do not get involved in outdoor play eventually lead sedentary lifestyles that does not assist in the development of their creativity’. Kimani hinted that over 10 million Nigerians will be touched within five regions.

His words, “Our relationship with our consumers goes beyond just selling a detergent, but it is based on a simple belief that for a child to develop her full potential as human beings, they need to be free to experience their world, thus to promote this understanding among Nigerian, Omo is committing over four million Naira to the bursaries of children, added Kimani.

On his part, Mr. Thabo Mabe, Managing Director, Unilever Nigeria observed that children’s exploration and play promotes their flexible adaptation to the world, that they will meet their ability realistically to appraise risks and to balance proper independence with social understanding.

‘When children explore the outdoor, they may get dirty in the process, however, Omo has promised to help remove these dirt especially difficult dried_in stains.

Our formulation is designed to help you get brilliant results on these stains, leaving the fabric thoroughly clean’.
On his assignment of promoting the brand, as brand ambassador, Arinze said he sees his responsibility anchoring the show as privilege.

According to him, his dealing with Omo is a bond created from childhood. ‘Omo is a generic name and it is a previleged to associate with such great brands.