When Your Audience Doesn't Care, Become Interesting. Here's How.
Let’s face it: most people don’t care about advertising. As Dave Trott, one of advertising’s Hall of Famers, reminds us, advertising ranks somewhere between washing the dishes and taking out the trash in terms of importance in people’s lives. It's not because people dislike ads; it’s because, for them, advertising is just background noise. In Trott’s view, we’ve forgotten that advertising should be about fun and entertainment — it should be something people enjoy, not endure.
When brands embrace this mindset, they can turn indifference into engagement. Here’s how some of the most compelling campaigns have done just that.
1. Don’t Just Disrupt – Delight
Millennials love music, but they hate ads. So, what did Febreze do? They disguised their commercials as songs, creating tracks in 12 genres seamlessly blending into radio content. This approach wasn’t about bombarding the audience with louder ads; it was about turning an ad into something enjoyable and worth listening to. Instead of interrupting the listening experience, they became a part of it. This approach wasn’t about bombarding the audience with louder ads; it was about turning an ad into something enjoyable and worth listening to.
Similarly, IKEA took a notoriously dull piece of marketing — their catalogue — and turned it into an ASMR video experience. By tapping into the niche yet wildly popular ASMR trend, they created content that the young students they were targeting engaged with and mesmerised them with the mundane.
2. Make the Serious Fun
Transforming a serious message into something fun is another way to engage an otherwise indifferent audience. The New Zealand Government's “Public Service Banger” is a perfect example. They took a dry COVID-19 safety message and turned it into a dubstep festival anthem. This unexpected twist made the message memorable and entertaining, proving that even the most serious topics can benefit from a lighter, more creative approach.
3. Leverage Existing Behaviors – Make It Easy to Engage
To cut through the noise, it’s essential to understand where your audience already is and what they’re already doing. iFood’s “Audience Delivery” campaign tapped into the existing behaviour of their app users by streaming Women’s World Cup matches directly within the app. This approach didn’t require the audience to change their habits; it simply offered something new and exciting in a place where they were already spending their time.
4. Create Unexpected Cultural Crossovers
Sometimes, the best way to engage an audience is to connect two seemingly unrelated worlds. Durex’s “Foreplay” campaign did precisely that by linking gaming and intimacy. Durex cleverly tied an unrelated skill to the importance of intimacy in relationships by using gaming tutorials to teach finger dexterity. This approach captured attention and sparked conversations, resulting in a 126% increase in Durex mentions on social media. The success of this campaign illustrates the power of surprising your audience with something they didn't see coming.
5. Make the Mundane Fascinating
Sometimes, the most interesting stories come from the least expected places. Campbell’s “BrothTails” campaign took something as mundane as leftover broth and transformed it into an intriguing narrative by turning it into a cocktail ingredient. The quirky idea grabbed attention and took off on social while also aligning with the brand’s commitment to creativity in cooking. Similarly, Menulog’s “Delivery Bag in Disguise” elevated a standard delivery bag into a designer accessory carried by their brand ambassador, Christina Aguilera. This clever play generated significant media buzz and positioned Menulog as a brand that understands the power of pop culture and fashion.
6. Fram Big Issues in Relatable Terms
Big, complex problems often feel overwhelming, and people tend to ignore them. But when these issues are made personal and relatable, they grab attention. WWF’s “Your Plastic Diet” campaign made the global plastic pollution crisis personal by highlighting that the average person consumes a credit card's worth of plastic each week. WWF made the campaign relatable and memorable by breaking down a massive issue into a simple, understandable concept.
7. Simplicity is the Ultimate Sophistication
Xbox’s “Birth of Gaming Tourism” shows the power of simplicity in an otherwise complex space. By reimagining virtual gaming worlds as travel destinations, they created a campaign that was easy to understand and highly engaging. It wasn’t about the tech or the graphics but the simple human desire to explore and experience new things.
Summary: Keep It Fun, Keep It Simple
Dave Trott’s wisdom reminds us that advertising isn’t about making grand statements or crafting complex messages. It’s about connecting with ordinary people, making them care, and—most importantly—making it fun. When brands stop taking themselves too seriously and start thinking about how to entertain, surprise, and delight their audience, they become genuinely interesting. Amen to that.
