Take Care of Your Cough

“Take Care of Your Cough” is a 360 campaign spanning national TV/streaming, OLV, paid and organic social, and influencer, with a retail/e-commerce extension planned to follow.

The character: Robby Tussin
Robby Tussin is introduced as a man who’s spent years perfecting a very specific line of work: he handles coughs. He’s quick, clean, and doesn’t make a scene - he gets in, ends the cough, and gets out. When a cough becomes “unacceptable,” you call a pro. The work leans into deadpan, hitman-movie tropes (trench coat, hidden interior jacket pocket, a knowing look in the mirror) to dramatize just how fast and decisive Robitussin’s relief is.

Film (TV/OLV) - Kitchen/Core, Restroom/Honey, Bedtime, Nightsoothe, all built around Robby showing up on a coughing character, reaching into his jacket for a beat of tension, and pulling out a bottle of Robitussin: “I’m here to take care of your cough.”

Social - “Robby Tussin GRWM” - a get-ready-with-me spoof in which Robby suits up for “a night of handling business,” showing off where he stashes his bottle of Robitussin (jacket pocket, ankle strap, sock).
“Robby Reviews Reviews” - Robby reads real Robitussin reviews from Robitussin.com as if they were reviews of him, in character.

The strategy behind it - The platform is grounded in a simple, relatable truth: in a world built for instant resolution, a lingering cough is one of the last things we still just tolerate. Robitussin’s promise is to end “the unacceptable cough” fast, so nothing is left unresolved - a positioning built to carry the full product range and grow with the brand for years to come.
It also reflects a shift in how the brand shows up. Rather than leading with a single TV spot, the work is built to travel across social, creators, and culture, with content designed to earn attention alongside paid media.

Karen Bouhadana, Senior Director, Respiratory at Haleon: “We’re moving Robitussin beyond the familiar tropes of the cough-and-cold category with a creative idea built to thrive wherever people encounter it. Robby Tussin can command attention in a TV spot, come to life through social-native storytelling, and take on fresh dimensions through the distinct voices of creators. That cross-channel flexibility allows us to show up in ways that feel natural to each platform while reinforcing one clear and consistent promise: Robitussin takes care of your cough, fast.”

Karen Bouhadana, Senior Director, Respiratory at Haleon: “We’re evolving how Robitussin shows up by moving into more modern, culturally relevant creative territories designed to earn attention—not just buy it. Robby Tussin brings humor and a distinctive point of view to the familiar frustration of a lingering cough, while keeping our product superiority at the center: fast, powerful relief people can count on.”

Publicis LeONE quote - Pete Johnson, Executive Creative Director part of Publicis LeONE, a bespoke Publicis Groupe team dedicated to Haleon: "A lingering cough is annoying. Advertising about a lingering cough shouldn't be. So we created Robby Tussin, a wildly overqualified man with a pretty simple job: get rid of the cough so you can get on with your life. He's ridiculous, Robitussin is ridiculously effective, and somewhere in between, we found a character we think people will actually want to see again.