In these situations, people are no longer demos—they are individuals who need help getting back on their feet, one load at a time. We called on people across the country to pitch in for 10 new homes in New Orleans by buying vintage Tide T-Shirts, and brought this message to national audiences on every major daytime morning program. On New Orleans native Ellen DeGeneres’s show, we observed the anniversary of Katrina and drove awareness of Tide’s efforts in Southern California to help victims of the wildfires.

Tide did its part for the larger community, too, serving as the online and onsite JazzFest sponsor of New Orleans native John Legend, who helped wash clothes at the “Clean Start” truck location in New Orleans. Additionally, Tide celebrated the holidays on top-rated celebrity TV show, “Entertainment Tonight,” with actor Taye Diggs welcoming the 10 new homeowners to their newly constructed, Tide-supporter-funded homes.

In a program like Clean Start, we focus on involvement rather than impressions. We washed 2,500 loads of laundry in three weeks, sold a total of 30,000 shirts, and built 10 houses.

Consumers across the US responded and purchase intent rose 26%.