The Lakeview Blog

The top 3 things to consider before you start advertising from Colleen Gareau

Some years ago I read Made to Stick: Why Some Ideas Survive and Others Die by Chip and Dan Heath. Given today's prevalence of "alternative facts" and fake news, I thought it was worth revisiting some of their ideas to see if they could provide some rationale for the state of the current news cycle. As the book title suggests, the brothers explain why some ideas live and others flounder and how we can improve our chances of creating and communicating an idea that “sticks.” They use plenty of great examples. Some of my favourites are the completely untrue urban myths that circulate and are believed widely. Did you know that there is no evidence of anyone ever sticking razorblades in Halloween candy? That there is no kidney-theft ring? That the Great Wall of China is not visible from space? Yet many of us believe these stories. Why? The Brothers Heath identify six principals that contribute to our belief. These are: Simplicity: the core of an idea is ...

Humour can be an effective way to get a message across. Most of us use this technique unconsciously everyday. But sometimes humour can be inappropriate or tone deaf to the sensitivities of society. Some years ago, Motrin created the commercial above, targetting new moms and trying to blend (I assume) empathy with humour. They likely thought: "what mom can't relate to back pain?" The commercial is, on the surface, fun. It's irreverent, has good animation and a female narrator. Where it went horribly wrong was linking baby-carrying with fad and fashion. New moms were portrayed as using their babies as a fashion statement -- baby-sling fashion, if you will -- rather than as a way to bond or to help them get things done with a newborn in tow. I don't imagine they were prepared for the backlash, but it was stupendous once it came to the attention of social media users. Motrin issued a half-hearted apology, which wasn't enough and they were forced to i...