Interdental brushes might be small, but the challenge to get consumers to use them is anything but. Despite being recommended by 94% of dental hygienists, interdental cleaning remains one of the most misunderstood and under-adopted parts of an oral care routine.

TePe wanted to change that.

To make oral cleaning impossible to ignore, we reframed interdental cleaning as the essential habit that completes the clean through a strategic, integrated brand platform that moved the conversation beyond brushing alone.

We translated the ATL platform – Big on Oral Health – to a clear message that would resonate for earned media and designed a platform that would support TePe’s first ever TV advert. From this, the three-minute rule was created to address a simple but stubborn misconception: that two minutes of brushing equals a complete clean.

Speed brought the rule into the mainstream, working closely with TePe’s in-house dental therapist to deliver a bank of credible, media-ready insights – combining thought leadership, reactive commentary and consumer education.

We delve deeper into the formation of routines, working with a psychologist to integrate oral care habit formation into a broader behaviour-change story that unlocked national, regional and broadcast coverage.

Influencer partnerships with lifestyle creators showed how interdental cleaning fits into real life, helping to normalise the three-minute rule and extend reach to new audiences.

Alongside campaign moments, our press office delivered year-round visibility through product placement, trade relations, awards amplification and media training – keeping TePe’s three-minute rule consistently present in conversations around oral health and self-care.

The integrated approach delivered results that went beyond awareness, driving meaningful shifts in how people think about oral cleaning and TePe’s role within it.

THE RESULTS

Independent YouGov tracking recorded a 9 percentage-point uplift in total brand awareness, rising from 31% to 40%. The integrated activity also delivered a 62% rise in the belief that interdental brushes get teeth 100% clean, directly addressing a key consumer barrier. This was underpinned by a robust earned media performance, delivering 140 pieces of coverage, 288 million reach, an average Domain Authority of 63.6, over 80% backlink inclusion and 100% spokesperson inclusion across campaign coverage, as well as being shortlisted for two integrated awards: cementing TePe’s authority while driving long-term brand value.