I see Procter & Gamble (P&G) are up to their usual tricks. In recent times they’ve moved away from purely functional branding (and problem-solution advertising) towards more image based marketing.

Left: the sinister one. Right: P&G.

So their big toilet paper brand in Germany, Charmin, used fluffy bears to talk about a personal issue in the bathroom.

Until recently. Their latest ad is slap-bang straight back in the 60s and 70s with the classic SPLIT-SCREEN hard sell.

Rather than nip to the loo or zap to a different channel to wait for the painfully long break to finish, watch out for the ad on TV. Line down the middle. Left toilet paper that splits under pressure. Right, top performing Charmin, that holds the weight.

But just in case you miss the TV ads (screenshots from here) they have good old product endorsement on the packaging, with (who better for Germany), Stiftung Warentest (a consumers association like “Which?” that tests products):