Seventh Generation Ad Shows Kids Licking Table

A mom’s decision to skip plates, forks and napkins as she serves giant slices of cake to a houseful of kids is a messy affair – and the setup for a powerful commercial created by the natural cleaner manufacturer Seventh Generation.

CMO Joey Bergstein screened the spot during Cause Marketing Forum, saying iconic brands like Ben & Jerry’s and Chipotle earned their status because “they are out to change the world.”

“We’re moving from educating people to inspiring people,” Bergstein said, adding that commercials produced by Seventh Generation have moved from citing statistics to telling aspirational stories.

During a session with Scott Beaudoin, global practice director for Corporate & Brand Citizenship at MSLGroup, Bergstein showed a smiling mom and children cleaning a large glass-topped table with a Seventh Generation cleaner before serving a cake with no utensils or plates.

Once the cake was plopped down, the kids made fast work of devouring the treat and the table was covered with crumbs and frosting, which got licked up by party guests. 

“Eww,” is the first thought that runs through the minds of viewers, but Seventh Generation’s premise is that a toxin-free cleaning product has just been used to sanitize the table so everyone’s safe – both from bacteria and chemicals.

“Moms don’t want to let their kids lick the table but want to be confident enough that they could,” asserted Bergstein, who said the brand is experimenting with TV ad buys after being all-digital. 

New transparent packaging is also being rolled out, and prices have been slashed, so Seventh Generation products look and cost a bit more like category leaders.