TYLENOL

Competitors reframed Tylenol’s core strength—safety—as a weakness. Bayer, Advil, and Aleve spent millions pushing efficacy as the only benefit that mattered, boasting that two of their pills equaled eight Tylenol. At the same time, private labels undercut Tylenol by nearly $9 a box with look-alike generics.

Tylenol’s response? Fragmentation. They flooded shelves with new SKUs, split marketing across 11 sub-brands, and diluted their message with generic, interchangeable ads. The result: confusion, commoditization, and loss of relevance.

Our research showed safety wasn’t the wrong message. It was just framed in the wrong context.

We didn’t fight the category’s efficacy arms race. We stepped out of it entirely.

Instead of comparing Tylenol to other drugs, we positioned it as part of a broader movement—one where people are making healthier, gentler choices: massage over muscle relaxers, aromatherapy over antihistamines, yoga over surgery. In that world, Tylenol isn’t weak. It’s wise.

Because when Whole Foods, POM, and Dr. Oz are booming, maybe people aren’t looking for the hardest-hitting pill. Maybe they just want to feel better—without going too far.

Campaign / OOH / Social / TV / Digital Video / Website

SUMMATION VIDEO

With that in mind, we doubled-down on Tylenol's safety message ... on the fact that Tylenol works "with your body in ways other pain relievers can't," that it targets pain more precisely than other pain relievers, and eliminates pain with fewer side effects and unwanted consequences.

SHOW UP OUTSIDE THE ANALGESICS AISLE.

To "walk the walk" it was essential that the brand show up in people's everyday lives ... not just in the drug store, once they already had a headache or felt sick. To accomplish this, the brand used outdoor advertising to remind and encourage people to make healthy choices that could prevent sleeplessness, or headaches, or colds. We installed heated bus shelters across the east coast during the winter. We partnered with CVS in New York City to provide free cab service to and from the drugstore for people who weren't feeling well. We handed out water on hot summer days, and umbrellas on cold, rainy days.

A FEEL BETTER ONLINE EXPERIENCE

To encourage healthier choices online, we created a new, simplified, non-headache-inducing tylenol.com. We created a co-op late night TV platform with Hulu so people could watch their favorite programs the next morning, instead of staying up late. And we created online reminders that popped up throughout the the day to help people hydrate, release stress, stretch, and exercise regularly.