Nobody trusts or pays attention to advertising 100%. But emotional advertising still works because it bypasses those barriers. At the same time, it's not easy creating effective emotional advertising. Perhaps reframing it would help.

1. THE
NOT-SO-INVISIBLE
GORILLA:
Rethinking emotional advertising
PART 2

2. O2,amobile
serviceoperatorin
theUK,launched
thisadcampaignin
2001.

3. ThiscamerightafterO2’srebrandandrelaunch
becauseitwasn’tdoingtoowellpreviously.

4. Ifyoucan’ttellwhat’sgoingon,don’tworry.
Theviewersoftheadcouldn’teither.

5. Ridingonthebackofadslikethis,O2overtookits
formidablecompetitors
andbecamethemarketleaderin2005.

6. O2didn’tprovidebettervaluethanits
competitors,neitherdiditengagethepublicwith
anykindofexceptionalpromotion.

7. TheonlydifferencebetweenO2andits
competitorsseemedtobethestyleof
advertising.

8. Howthehelldiditworksowell?

9. Partoneofthispresentationexploredhowcertain
typesofadvertisingcaninfluenceusevenwhenwe
don’tpayalotofattention.

10. ThisunremarkableO2adisoneexampleofsuch
advertising.

11. RobertHeathisthemarketing
scholarwhowrotetheO2case
study.

12. Hearguedthattheseadsworkedbecauseviewers
offeredsolittleattentiontothem.

13. ThisallowedO2toimplantandrefreshthebrand
anditsassociationsintheviewers’mindswithout
invitinganycriticalthinkingfromtheaudience.

14. Inkeepingwith
thegorillatheme,
let’slookata
morefamous
example.

15. Stillimagesdon’trepresentthisadfairly.Youhave
towatchitifyouhaven’talready.

16. Althoughnotaslow-attentionastheO2ad,thisad
certainlytickstheboxfor“Notarationalappeal”.

17. CadburySchweppesreportedthatthisad
contributedtoa6%revenuegrowththatyear.
Moreimportantlyforthebrand’slong-termhealth,
76%ofasurvey’srespondentsremembereditasan
adforCadbury.

18. Missionaccomplishedforthispieceof
long-termadvertising.

19. Thepowerofsuchadvertisingisnotnewsworthyto
mostadvertisingfolks,butitcanbeatoughsellto
others.

20. Fromalong-termstudyof
996adcampaigns
frommorethan
700brandsin
80categories...

21. ...moreemotionaladcampaignswerecorrelated
withprofitgrowththanrationalcampaigns.
% ofcampaigns reportingverylarge profit growth
Emotional
Rational 16%
29%

22. Thelongerthemeasurementtimeframe,themore
likelytheprofitabilityeffect.
13%
10%
1 year 2 years
Campaign duration
% reporting very
large profit growth
3 years
20%
30%
43%
Emotional
Rational
23%

23. Moreemotionalcampaignsalsoreportedthe
followingeffects:
Fame
Image
Brand differentiation
Trust in brand
Reduction in price sensitivity
34%
12%
28%
13%
28%
15%
9%
5%
5%
2%

24. Youmaythink,andrightlyso,“Butnobodytrusts
advertising!”

25. Only12%of11-year-oldsbelievedthattelevision
commercialstoldthetruth.
Among15-year-olds,only4%do.

26. Ameta-analysisof30studiesfoundthat
advertisingisperceivedasonly1/3ascredibleas
publicity.

27. AndthiswasoneofthemainargumentsinAland
LauraRies’bookTheFallofAdvertisingandthe
RiseofPR.
*Yes,the sameAl Rieswho co-wrote Positioning:The Battle foryourMind.

28. They’renotwrong,butit’sexactlybecause
nobodytrustsadvertisingthatmakes
emotionaladvertisingsuchanattractive
optionformarketers.

29. Asmentionedearlier,emotionaladsworkbecause
theyslippastourdeliberativeandskeptical
System2bynotengagingit.
Consumersdon’tneedtotrustemotional
advertisingtobeinfluencedbyit.

30. Thisunderstandingiskeyinhelpingustobetter
judgeandcreateeffectiveemotionaladvertising.

31. It’scertainlymorereliableandactionablethan
“DoIlikeit?”

32. Thisalsoexpandsourunderstandingofwhat
emotionaladvertisingmeans.

33. Whenwetalkaboutemotionaladvertising,it’s
tooeasytothinkofadsthatgoforemotional
extremes.

34. Ifyoucancreatesomethinghighlyemotionaland
relevant,goahead.Butit’snottheonlyway.

35. Amorerobustwaytothinkaboutemotional
advertisingistoreframeitasSystem1
advertising.(We’llcomebacktothislater.)

36. GoingbacktotheO2casestudy,I’msurethere
werehigh-involvementconsumersofmobile
servicesintheUKbackthen.

37. Thesewerethepeoplewho’ddotheirresearch,
comparetheprosandconsofeachprovider,etc.

38. Theyweremotivatedand/orknowledgeable
enoughtospendalotoftimeandattentiononthe
topic,i.e.lessinfluencedbyabunchofbubbles.

39. Withregardstoanyproduct,service,orevenbig
issuessuchasabortion,there’salwaysa
high-involvementminority.
a.k.a. innovators/enthusiasts

40. However,mainstreamconsumersmakeupthe
bulkofanymarket.

41. They’renotirrational,butthey’relimitedbytheir
lowerlevelsofenthusiasmand/orknowledge.

42. Hence,theytendtogiveyoulessattentionthan
thehighly-involvedsegments.

43. TheyrelymoreheavilyontheirSystem1,e.g.social
proof,feelings,andotherheuristics.

44. Here’satinysampleofexamplesofhowlowlevels
ofinvolvementaffectbehavioursandattitudes
towardscertainproductsortopics:

45. Feelings
One ofthe most important factorsthat determines
low-involvementwine drinkers’ brand choice is...the
bottle design.

46. Groupbelonging
You can get peopleto accept policiestheynormally
wouldn’t agreewith.Just claimthatthose policies
came fromthe political partytheysupport.

47. Groupbelonging
The onlycollege studentswho don’t experience a
shifttowards liberal political attitudestendto be
the oneswho maintained close contactwiththeir
more conservative families.

48. Popularity
This is a famous example ofhowpeople flock
towardsthingsthat are alreadypopular.

49. Popularity
Interviewers goto big music festivals and ask
festival-goers ifthey’ve heard offake bands. Most
respondents sayyes.

50. Popularity
Most people simplyaren’t high-involvement music
geeks. On a similarnote,the bestwayto increase
the popularityofyourmusic?Advertisethe fact
thatthey’re alreadypopular.

51. ThesearejustsomedemonstrationsofhowSystem
1thinkinginfluencesthemainstreammarket,and
whyyoushouldbeincorporatingsuchinsightsinto
youradvertising.

52. Maybealittleold-school,butitworks.Youjust
needtofindarelevantandcreativewaytosayit.

53. AppealingtoSystem1alsohappenstobehow
long-termadvertisingworks.

54. Asthesayinggoes,“Theymayforgetwhatyousaid,
buttheywillneverforgethowyoumadethemfeel.”

55. Generallyspeaking,System2appeals(rational
messages)aremoreeffectiveindrivingshort-term
effects.
% ofcampaigns reportingverylarge direct effects
Rational
Emotional
38%
26%

56. Thisiswhymessagesnearertothepointsof
purchasetendtobemoreSystem2(e.g.price,
comparisons).

57. AppealingtoSystem2makessensewhen
consumersareactivelythinkingaboutthe
purchase.

58. Butaspresentedinmyotherdeckabout
balancingshortandlong-termmarketing,youneed
long-termSystem1advertisingtoprime
consumerstowardschoosingyourproduct.

59. Ofcourse,it’sstillnotthateasycreatingeffective
System1advertising.

60. Butgenerallyspeaking,herearesomebasicsyou
shouldlookoutfor:

61. “Whatfirestogether,wirestogether”isarelevant
axiomfromneuroscience.

62. Themoreconsumersassociateyourproductwith
certainmentalstates,sensoryassets(colours,
logo,etc.),orusagesituations,theeasieritisfor
consumerstorelyonthemduringpurchase
decisions.

63. Whenemployingsomesortofstorytelling,make
suretheplotisnottoodetachedfromyourbrand.

64. Someartdirectorswillhatemeforsayingthisbut
ideally,thereshouldbesomesortofbrand
presencerightbeforethepeaksofyourcontent.

65. Thedifficultyinmeasuringitseffectsisperhaps
oneofthestrongestdeterrentsinemploying
System1marketing.

66. It’lltakeatleastayearbeforeanykindof
meaningfulmeasurementcantakeplace.Andeven
then,onlyabouthalfofthefulleffectswillbe
apparent.
13%
10%
1 year 2 years
Campaign duration
% reporting very
large profit growth
3 years
20%
30%
43%
Emotional
Rational
23%

67. Becausesuchadvertisingworksimplicitly,you
havetousequalitativemeasurementsthatinvolve
theaccuracyand/orspeedofelaboration,
identification,andgenerationofrelevantstimuli.

68. Butjustbecauseit’shardertomeasureshouldn’t
deteranyseriousbusinesspersonormarketer.

69. Thispopular
sayingis
actuallya
severe
misquotation.
“Ifyou can’t measure it,you can’t manage it.”
-W. Edwards Deming

70. Thisis
actuallywhat
thelegendary
management
expertwrote.
“It iswrongto supposethat ifyou can’t measure it,
you can’t manage it—a costlymyth.”
-W. Edwards Deming

71. Toconclude,emotional/System1advertising
deservesseriousconsiderationifyouwant
marketingeffectivenessinanattentioneconomy.

72. Thefactthatit’salong-terminvestmentthat’s
hardertoquantifythanshort-termtacticsmay
turnsomecompaniesoff.

73. Butthat’sgoodnewsfortherestofyou.

74. ThispresentationwascreatedbyArthurKoh,amassbehaviour
consultantandfounderofPrimordial.
ThanksforyourtimeandIhopethisseriesofpresentations
havebeenuseful.

75. References
Slides 2-13:
Slides 14-18:
Slide 17:
Screenshots fromAsylumsfx. (2013,April 26). O2 - BubblesAdvert [Video
File]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MFZvCIsuMQg
Case studyfrom Heath, R. (2012). Seducingthe Subconscious:The
PsychologyofEmotional Influence inAdvertising.JohnWiley&Sons.
Screenshots from macegrove. (2007, September1). Cadbury’s Gorilla
AdvertAug 31st 2007 [Video File]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.
com/watch?v=TnzFRV1LwIo
MarketingWeek (2008, February19). Cadbury“gorilla” ad drives UKsales.
Retrieved from https://www.marketingweek.com/cadbury-gorilla-ad-
drives-uk-sales/

76. Slide 17:
Slides 20-23:
Slide 25:
Slide 26
Fleming, M. (2018,June 14). WhyCadbury’s ‘Gorilla’ ad nearlydidn’t get
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77. Slide 27:
Slide 45:
Slide 46:
Ries,A., &Ries, L. (2002). The Fall ofAdvertising andthe Rise ofPR. Harper
Collins.
Triantafyllou, G., Lymperopoulos, K., &Lagos, D. (2016,June). FactorsThat
DetermineThe PerceivedValue OfWineAndThe Consumers’ Satisfaction
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78. Slide 46:
Slide 47:
Slides 48-50:
Slide 50:
Ries,A., &Ries, L. (2002). The Fall ofAdvertising andthe Rise ofPR. Harper
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Newcomb,T. M. (1943). Personalityand social change; attitude formation
in a student community.
JimmyKimmel Live. (2013,April 23). LieWitness News - Coachella 2013
[Video File]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W_IzYU-
JANfk
Salganik, M.J., Dodds, P. S., &Watts, D.J. (2006). Experimental studyof
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79. Slide 55:
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80. Slides 69-70: Hunter,J. (2015,August 13). Myth: IfYou Can’t Measure It,You Can’t
Manage It. RetrievedAugust 17, 2019, from https://blognew.deming.
org/2015/08/myth-if-you-cant-measure-it-you-cant-manage-it/
Gorilla icon from clipartmax.com
Head icon byNaveen fromthe Noun Project
Author’s pic byAIC.