Waterwipes' #ThisIsParenthood Campaign Documents the Realities of Parenting

Today, WaterWipes has launched #ThisIsParenthood in over eight countries. The project is in direct response to research that shows the ‘picture perfect’ portrayal of parenting in culture is disempowering parents, with over half of parents feeling like they are failing in their first year. With the majority of the category adding to this perfect image of parenting, the need for greater honesty in culture around parenthood inspired the work by IPG’s The Brooklyn Brothers as creative agency lead who worked in partnership with sister agency Golin on PR as part of IPG’s Open Architecture. Together they launched #ThisIsParenthood to disrupt this unrealistic image of parenting by documenting the realities of parenting across the world. 

The project consists of a collection of intimate narratives across 86 parents and follows the first year of parenthood, talking openly about the highs and lows. These stories are captured in a 16-minute documentary, 13 short films, 36 Instagram story films and a suite of photography that aims to portray real parenting like never before. 

The fully integrated platform was created in collaboration with BAFTA nominated director Lucy Cohen and shot over two months across three continents. 

Lucy Cohen, BAFTA nominated director and new mother, comments: “As a new parent, this project really resonated with me. It can feel as though there are a whole host of expectations from the outside world as well as the pressure a new parent inevitably puts on themselves to get it right first time. It was a privilege to work with such inspiring parents across the world and I am grateful to all of those who willingly shared their reality. I hope the conversation extends far beyond the films themselves.” 

Using the documented footage, WaterWipes developed an ecosystem of content specifically designed around their audience and the unique consumption habits of parents. The agency identified specific tensions and social taboos to create short films around themes such as bonding, identity, and good old-fashioned mess. The content was designed to live, breathe and grow on social channels, where it can inspire and empower parents to share and discuss their #ThisIsParenthood moments - fuelling a global shift towards a more honest and open conversation around the highs and lows of parenting. 

The project also features hero OOH placements across stations in the UK and a feature piece in Times Square that looks to disrupt traditional glossy broadcast formats with honest parenting. WaterWipes will aggregate the user- generated content around the project on their channels and set out the bigger ambition of ‘#ThisIsParenthood’ on a website hub.

Cathy Kidd, VP marketing at WaterWipes comments: “As a brand competing in a category dominated by big players, we were looking for a disruptive approach that would deliver commercial success. The Brooklyn Brothers identified a way for us to earn distribution by putting social sharing at the heart of the project, moving away from a traditional broadcast approach towards a more targeted strategy. By identifying specific tensions and taboos and distributing them into the places that parents are already talking, we hope to spark conversation around parenthood in a way that is authentic to our brand – one built on honesty, whether it’s in our products, our advertising or everything we do.” 

George Bryant, founding partner said: “We are so excited to launch our first global work with WaterWipes, from the start the team shared our ambition to rise above the noise of the baby care category and create a powerful and honest project that would be meaningful in culture. By looking at the research we were able to create a brand platform and earned first global project that we believe will ultimately build self-belief in parents across the world, by starting a more open and honest conversation around parenthood, whilst driving results for their business.” 

To get involved in #ThisIsParenthood, join the conversation on Facebook and Instagram or check out the whole range of videos on Youtube.