Signal appreciated at the Effies for driving oral care in Sri Lanka

Unilever’s trusted oral care expert, Signal was presented with a Silver Award for its ‘21 day challenge’ campaign at the recently held Effie Awards, for its objective of inculcating and strengthening the habit of night time brushing.

The Signal ‘21 day challenge’ was planned and implemented with the goal of promoting children to brush their teeth at night using fluoridated toothpaste for 21 days consecutively. The campaign launched by Signal stemmed from the belief that it takes around 21 days of repeated action for a child to adopt a new behaviour. Signal believes that if families can successfully engage in this effort for at least 21 days, that at the end of that period it will no longer feel like a chore but rather a part of the child’s daily routine.

This initiative has managed to change the oral care habits of Sri Lankans considerably by increasing the night time brushing practice from 30% of the population in 2009 to 40% by 2011. The Signal team kicked off the campaign by distributing a 21-day calendar on which parents can mark down each day their kids successfully brush their teeth at night. This calendar was distributed digitally through facebook and with Signal packs. At the end of the 21 days the parents were given the chance to send in their child’s calendar along with a Signal carton to a PO Box number mentioned on the calendar which was entered into a draw. The prizes comprised of financial investments for each child in order to encourage them to have a brighter future.

Commenting on the win, Oral Care at Unilever Sri Lanka (USL) Category Head Manojee Dabare said, “In a category that has fierce competition, it is important to not only focus on the bottom line but also to promote good habits among children as brands should drive long term consumer value than short term profits. This was the thinking behind when Signal introduced night time brushing. Research has indicated that brushing day and night with fluoride toothpaste can cut tooth decay up to 50% for children. Seeing the importance of night time brushing, we as a team are proud to take a stand and lead our future generation towards a healthier and hygienic lifestyle. This win has motivated us to work further towards promoting good oral hygiene practices among the Sri Lankan society.”

For the past five decades Signal has gone beyond its commercial aspect and helped promote sustainable oral hygiene through many CSR activities, such as the ‘Sina Bo Wewa’ campaign, ‘Live Learn Laugh project’ in Wayamba and other educational programs island wide.