P&G Wins Promoting Moms, Brands at Summer Olympics

My first job out of college was in marketing in California for Procter & Gamble.

Though I've lived in Ohio for most of the past 15 years, I haven't attended a P&G alumni event in Cincinnati, until last week.

I was glad I did. My return to P&G was a moving experience.

Kirk Perry, the company president of Global Family Care, gave us a behind-the-scenes look at P&G's London Summer Olympics and corporate advertising.

Perry described how the company had jumped into a last-minute sponsorship at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Vancouver.

With an extremely tight window, the company’s ad agency suggested a focus on the U.S. athletes’ moms.  P&G promoted a couple of brands and for one of the first times began to promote the company itself.

I won’t detail the numbers, but let’s say it was very good for business. This is how you build a successful reputation and grow your business.

That success got the company to sponsor the upcoming games, with four years of lead time.  We previewed a variety of ads for various brands that were excellent.

P&G will promote the company and most of its brands this time, with more promotion than has ever been done by one company for the Olympics.

Titled “Thank You, Mom - P&G the Proud Sponsor of Moms” the campaign will be segmented to support athletes and brands in each country, an amazing effort. It's heavy on social media, online ads and local, in-store promotions throughout the world.

Watch the two-minute ad above that premiered before Mother’s Day.  Don’t give up before the emotional payoff beginning at 1:30.

If you don’t feel the emotion, it’s not the ad, it's you. Enjoy.