P&G Grapples With How to Stop a Tide Pods Meme
January 20 2018 - 7:29AM
Dow Jones News
By Imani Moise and Sharon Terlep
Procter & Gamble Co. initially stayed on the sidelines after
learning about an online challenge a few years ago where teens ate
Tide laundry pods for sport.
But recent videos of the behavior that have gone viral prompted
the consumer giant to act.
The company, which also makes Pampers diapers, Dawn dish soap
and Charmin tissue, launched a safety campaign on social media last
week to counter the meme.
P&G found the challenge concerning from the start but
worried that speaking out would make matters worse by drawing
attention to it, adding to the allure for teens drawn to a
potentially risky dare, a company spokesman said.
Concerns over Tide Pods, small packs of concentrated liquid
detergent, have pestered the company since U.S. poison-control
centers recorded thousands of incidents of small children coming
into contact with that type of product.
Since the launch of Tide Pods in 2012, P&G has changed the
appearance of packaging to make them look less like candy, added a
bitter taste to the product and produced commercials warning
parents to keep the pods out of reach of young children.
Now, teens have made a game out of biting into and even vaping
the liquid in the capsules. Some are challenging their friends to
do the same in social- media call-outs, sounding fresh alarm bells
for P&G.
"No. No. No. What the heck is going on people. Use Tide Pods for
washing, not eating," says football star Rob Gronkowski, in a video
P&G posted to Twitter, Facebook and YouTube.
P&G also asked YouTube and Facebook to remove clips of teens
eating the product and responded directly to users. Tide, through
its Twitter account, has advised users who have mentioned
participating in the challenge to call a doctor or the national
poison help hotline.
Tyler Perry, a partner at public-relations firm Bateman Group,
said it is important for companies to measure the reach of an
internet trend before weighing in. But since consumer brands touch
so many people "they could spend all day every day responding to
people on social and not even come close to addressing them all,"
said Ms. Perry.
The proliferation of social media and user-generated content has
made it harder for brands to control their images online. A Wall
Street Journal study found in March that ads from companies
including P&G were appearing next to objectionable content.
Other companies have had their products misused in viral videos
on the internet. In 2014 Clorox Co. had a similar issue when teens
were putting Burt's Bees lip balm on their eyelids to feel a
sensation akin to a high. It isn't clear whether Clorox issued a
public response to the so-called "beezin" videos. The company
didn't respond to a request for comment.
Since the start of the year, poison-control centers across the
country have reported 40 cases of people aged 13 to 19 years old
intentionally ingesting laundry pods, according to the American
Association of Poison Control Centers. The group reported 53 such
cases last year and 39 cases in 2016. (In case of exposure call the
national poison help hotline at 1-800-222-1222 or text POISON to
79797.)
"This is not about a 2-year-old grabbing something or a senior
citizen with Alzheimer's, this is people intent on doing this
challenge," said Bruce Ruck, a pharmacist and managing director of
the New Jersey Poison Education and Information System at Rutgers
University.
Mr. Ruck said the Tide Pods challenge is concerning because of
its social nature and the tendency of teens to move on from one
risky trend to something more dangerous. Social-media challenges
involving cinnamon and bath salts have also been deemed dangerous
by experts. "I'm scared of what comes next," he said.
Social-media companies largely put the onus on their users to
flag problematic content, but a P&G spokesman said the
companies have been cooperative.
A Facebook Inc. spokesperson said the company removes content
that encourages physical harm once it becomes aware of it. YouTube
said it also has a policy against material that encourages
dangerous behavior and works to quickly remove flagged videos.
For now, the Tide Pods maker may have to wait for teens'
attention to turn to the next meme.
Write to Imani Moise at imani.moise@wsj.com and Sharon Terlep at
sharon.terlep@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
January 20, 2018 07:14 ET (12:14 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2018 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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