Ariel India’s brilliant new #SharetheLoad campaign has gone viral. Via the Inspiration Room:
Procter & Gamble laundry brand Ariel is running #ShareTheLoad, a campaign encouraging men to take their share of the household chores in India. Launched in 2015, the campaign began with the question, “Is laundry only a woman’s job?”. Ariel laundry packaging was released in the “His and Her” pack. Working with clothing brands, Ariel took the message to wash care labels. A commercial featuring two women reflected on the halting progress being made in household equality. And now, in 2016, Ariel has gone viral across the world with a commercial in which a man writes an apology to his daughter for his failure to challenge patriarchal attitudes to housework. The commercial ends with his own personal action in sharing the laundry load with his wife.
Facebook’s Sheryl Sandberg called the video one of the most powerful that she’d ever seen. Created by BBDO India, it is the second in the series, with the previous ad airing last year. Since airing, the video has been trending on social media platforms, and has attracted a total of over 3 million views. Josy Paul, the Chief Creative Officer of BBDO mentioned:
“Share the Load is not just a campaign, it’s a movement for change. By raising a mirror to society, the brand is seeking a better world where there’s equality in household chores, specially laundry. We were looking for a deeper message. We felt there’s a need for a bigger story of self-examination, realization and reconciliation. We were looking for something with greater empathy and authenticity… something that more people could relate to. That was our big thing… to create greater understanding and genuine change. The movement going forward will have more elements to help drive behavioural change in the area of laundry. It’s all very exciting.”