Why Unilever chose Indonesia for its mega corporate brand campaign

“We included Indonesia in our global campaign pilot as it is a country with a very strong heritage for Unilever and also one where we have built a track record of contributing to the community over many years,” said Paul Nevett, global brand vice president, Unilever Brand.

The 30- and 60-second spots by Ogilvy & Mather feature speeches from Martin Luther King, Gandhi and young activists supporting hunger relief.

The Project Sunlight initiative first launched in 2013 with short videos and a social-media campaign aimed to encourage people to live more sustainably and create a better future for children. According to Nevett, it is about creating a community of people who believe it is possible to live well and to live sustainably.

Each market zeroes in on a sustainability issue present in its market. The FMCG giant has already begun implementing local activities in Indonesia. In Indonesia, the priority is to raise awareness on sanitation issues in the country through health and behaviour programmes that stress the importance of handwashing, brushing teeth and maintaining clean toilets.

Unilever has also launched a local campaign site where users can view speeches and videos and contribute ideas for the project. For each view, registration, and idea posted, the firm will allocate funds for sanitation education and invest in improving facilities in Sumba, an island in Eastern Indonesia. Contributions from every purchase of Pepsodent, Lifebuoy and Domestos in LotteMart stores will also go toward the programme. Unilever has partnered with Save the Children to implement the project.  

Unilever plans to roll out the campaign to other markets “at an appropriate time”, Nevett said.