When Rust-Oleum decided to develop an ad campaign for its Tremclad Turbo spray paint product, it knew it needed a message as big as the product itself.

Alongside creative partner AndSo and production partner The Deli, the brand devised that strategy with a campaign “that is all dialogue, but no words,” says AndSo partner and creative director Jake Bogoch. Unless, of course, you include an onomatopoeic “pssshhht.”

The project, which is the first work by AndSo for RustOleum, is anchored by a spot rolling out on national TV (including TSN, Sportsnet and HGTV) and YouTube in 30-, 15- and 6-second cuts.

The spot highlights the big difference between Tremclad Turbo – a larger can with a bigger blast area – and its smaller competitors through an interaction between neighbours who are spray painting their garage doors.

Using the “pssshhht” (or much louder, all caps version) audio cue and few other sounds, the spot comedically showcases the comparative power of Turbo over its market rivals. “If every other spray paint goes ‘pssshhht,’ Turbo goes ‘PSSSHHHT,'” Bogoch puts it.

“We needed an idea as one-of-a-kind as Turbo,” adds Frank Kocis, brand director at Rust-Oleum. “This is an ultra innovative new product, and people who use it can’t believe its power.”

Active International handled the buy for the campaign.