Washing hands is a big interest for all moms globally, and one of the most simple and effective health rituals to protect children from germs and diseases. In Japan, 98% of moms with small children wish to make hand washing habits stick to their children. However, the good things that parents want to teach are not always fun for children. In fact, we found out that 93% of moms with small children feels stress for scolding their children to wash their hands everyday.

Our idea was to leverage Kao’s technology of 3D foamed soap, and create an iconic medium that can trigger children to enjoy washing their hands proactively - at Tokyo Disneyland and Tokyo Disneysea, the most exciting contact point for all children. We developed soap dispensers that bubbles out 3D Mickey Mouse shaped soap, and announced this as a flagship of Kao’s sponsorship to Tokyo Disney Resort.

On July 1st 2015, Kao became an official sponsor of Tokyo Disneyland and Tokyo Disneysea, and launched the “Magical Soap Dispenser”. We installed 73 Mickey Mouse 3D soap dispensers across the park.

The Mickey Mouse shaped soap was designed to be a medium to deliver a special hand washing experience, and suitable to be shared via social media.

We announced “The Magical Soap Dispenser” in the press event, TV commercials, out-of-home media, and websites. In the press event, Kao’s CEO showed up with Mickey to demonstrate the Mickey Mouse shaped 3D soap. This was covered as the “new amusement of Tokyo Disney Resort”in various media, including TV programmes, Newspapers, and websites. Selfies of Mickey Mouse shaped soap were also posted in official websites and social media accounts of both Kao and Tokyo Disney Resort, which fueled the excitement of the launch.

The news of the new park amusement immediately spread all across Japan. Everyday, a long queue was developed in front of the dispenser for weeks after the launch. “The Magical Soap Dispenser” was picked up in more than 20 TV shows, 13 Newspapers, 148 websites, and fired social conversation in social media. Within half a month, 1/3 of the entire Japanese population (20s-60s) knew about “The Magical Soap Dispenser”. Moms and kids reacted the most. Kao’s corporate likeability raised by 74%, and purchase intention of Kao products raised by 224%. Moreover, 46% of moms felt that there was a change in hand washing attitudes of their children after experiencing the soap dispenser. In fact, 1 out of 7 kids keeps the new habit and enjoys washing their hands even at home, and 72% of mothers replied that it will reduce the stress of scolding their kids about washing hands.