If you read my last article here on Muse, "What Advertising Can Learn From Stranger Things and Sean of the Dead" (shameless self-plug), then you know that humans are at once both extremely neophilic—curious to discover new things—and neophobic—afraid of things that are too new. I noted that the key to making a hit is to provide audiences with a balance of both, often in the form of some well-disguised familiarity. Set them up with a fleeting feeling of uncertainty before hitting them with an aha moment. What I didn't discuss is the challenge to getting there. Specifically, our industry's nature to, more often than not, rob consumers of that experience.
Here's a more straightforward way to think about it. Is your partner stupid? I hope you know the answer. I ask because they're probably part of the group you're talking to with your advertising.
Joe Ciccarelli
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