Procter & Gamble – Sit or Squat

Procter & Gamble Co.’s Charmin, the nation’s No. 1 toilet paper brand, has debuted its first mobile advertising sponsorship, working with global bathroom directory SitOrSquat Inc. on its Web site and mobile applications.

The consumer packaged goods giant is sponsoring SitOrSquat’s site and iPhone application to help consumers on the go find the cleanest public toilets worldwide. The site and application offer user-generated listings of bathroom locations and ratings, as well as details on hours of operation, handicap accessibility, showers and availability of changing tables.

“SitOrSquat is the perfect partner for us,” said Dewayne Guy, external relations manager at P&G, Cincinnati, OH. “We’re not going to reinvent the wheel by creating this application. We found somebody out there whose mission matches ours. It creates the perfect partnership.”

SitOrSquat is a New York-based user-generated service that lets consumers find bathrooms with myriad facilities including changing tables and handicap access across 55,000 bathrooms in 32 countries. It styles itself as “a place to find and record bathrooms anywhere in the world.”

Users who download the SitOrSquat application from the Apple iTunes Store to their iPhone can add their review when they have used one of the featured toilets. A “Sit” rating implies that the bathroom is clean and “Squat” means that it is not.

Got your back
The Charmin sponsorship is currently live on the Web site and iPhone application. A presence on the BlackBerry application may follow, along with a presence on future Windows Mobile and Android applications.

In addition to images of its two bear-cub mascots, Charmin also gets a banner ad on the SitOrSquat iPhone application that says, “Gotta go? Relax … we got your back.” The banner features the red bear and the Charmin logo.

Clicking on that banner ad currently takes consumers to a mobile landing page with a big bear on it. Soon, SitOrSquat will introduce a more comprehensive brand image including the possibility of point of purchase and enriched content for Charmin once the ad is clicked on.

Another banner shows the blue bear with a thumbs-up sign. Copy reads, “Just like home.” The Charmin logo is adjacent. A click-through on that unit again takes users to a mobile landing page with a bear on it.

The banners occupy the bottom strip of every page in the iPhone application.

“What we get out of it is the impressions from that activity,” Mr. Guy said. “We’re really trying to support the effort that SitOrSquat is putting out there.”

P&G has typically promoted its Charmin tissue across television, print and in-store media. Online sponsorships, outdoor events and now mobile advertising are designed to keep the brand front and center of its target audience of moms and families wherever they are, at home or travelling. Read more

Procter & Gamble’s Charmin brand runs first mobile sponsorship – Mobile Marketer – Advertising.