MEC & Red Fuse's 'Two Minute Tales' for Colgate Make Brushing Teeth Fun

Getting young children to brush their teeth can be challenging for parents. With the launch of Colgate Smiles, toothpastes specifically designed for children, MEC and Red Fuse saw an opportunity for Colgate to make brushing time a fun and enjoyable bonding experience for parents and kids.

The 'Two Minute Tales' campaign is centred on a series of short stories that parents are encouraged to read or play to their children while they brush their teeth, thereby turning a chore – or a parental battle – into a moment of parent-child bonding. To that end, MEC Wavemaker helped Colgate-Palmolive team up with Claire Freedman, author of the best-selling series “Aliens Love Underpants,” to create wonderfully charming stories that support an initiative which encourages kids to brush their teeth.

To make it easy for parents and kids to use the content, Colgate and Yahoo have created a custom hub on Tumblr. It is easily accessed across devices and allows families to read or listen to the stories.

The hub, www.ColgateTwoMinuteTales.co.uk, is being promoted through media activity specifically intended to reach parents of young children. This includes traffic driving activity on Yahoo, targeted Facebook posts, Netmums toddler and pre-school homepage takeovers and mobile activity alongside media buys with Inskin, Ogury and Outbrain and paid search investment. As there will be five new stories launched every two to three weeks for the rest of the year, paid support will run through the first week of January. 

The campaign was developed by an integrated team led by Red Fuse. MEC developed and executed the media strategy and MEC Wavemaker, the partnership strategy.

Dana Medema, Marketing Director, Colgate Palmolive, said: “At Colgate we come to work every day looking for ways to improve the oral health of our consumers, giving everyone a future they can smile about. This program is a simple yet powerful way to relieve stress at brushing time for both parents and children alike.”

Chris Worrell, Strategy Partner, MEC Global Solutions, commented: “We’re really excited about the launch of Two Minute Tales which brings together the wonderful world of storytelling with that two minute moment every parent dreads – brushing time! We’re sure that kids and their parents will love the stories and most importantly, this is Colgate doing what they do best – putting a smile on people’s faces.”