The conference and the Elevator Pitch have helped P&G “develop a deeper understanding of the agency landscape, including agencies of all sizes," it says. And so, even though the elevator will be running only virtually this year as it did last, it will still be going during the upcoming Aug. 2-4 Ad Age Small Agency Conference.
Pandemic adaptation has become a hallmark of recent assignments, too. The original national 15-second TV spot for Stressballs was turned upside down in early 2020 by a production shutdown wrought by COVID-19. “We had to figure out plan B pretty damn quick,” says Jason Majewski, Cornett’s creative director on the project.
So the agency developed a new additional video concept based on stop-motion animation. Even with a modest budget, the shop directed the shoot in Vancouver via Zoom and still delivered in time to support the summer product launch.
Buy your ticket for the Aug. 2-4 virtual conference at AdAge.com/saca2021.
The Variable—a Winston-Salem, North Carolina, shop—got to try its elevator pitch more informally when agency people unknowingly found themselves sitting next to Carter at the Small Agency Awards in 2019 and then a week later walked him through their capabilities. A few months later, he called back with an assignment.
P&G had long struggled against Kimberly-Clark Corp.’s Pull-Ups and Goodnites in nighttime bedwetting products. So rather than go after the 3- to 5-year-old market, P&G tried going after products for kids ages 6-12, where one out of six still has problems. The Variable helped P&G craft a new brand from the ground up—Ninjamas. They’re significantly slimmer than Pull-Ups or Goodnites, so they aren’t seen under pajamas and don’t make an embarrassing swishing sound when kids walk.
The agency developed an integrated campaign created and shot entirely remotely after COVID-19 lockdown restrictions lifted around the idea of “the best protection you’ve (n)ever seen” that leaves kids feeling “Ninjawesome.” It included comic books featuring the brand’s “ninja squad” and a social strategy and creative featuring real talk for frustrated parents. The Variable got a green light from P&G to lead an influencer campaign.