Because observations can be anything and
everything under the sun, it’s important
that we get the right observation. A tip
is that it has to lead to an AHA moment;
“I never thought of it like this!” This is
the ‘Understanding’; it connects to the
context of the brand. And there is a sense
of an insight in it.
The ‘Understanding’ then leads us to the
next stage, ‘Articulation’, which allows
us to articulate a new perspective about
the brand. This is the idea that the brand
can stand for or play in relation to the
consumer.
Let’s look at some examples.
The Equity bank campaign ‘ Mimi Ni
Member’ was very successful because it
was based on a very inspiring insight. The
brief was to launch a banking product that
targeted a previously unbanked audience.
Let’s reverse engineer. The ‘Observation’
was that ‘People in the lower end of
the spectrum (the unbanked TA) were
intimidated by banks because they
felt alienated from them’. This is an
observation of their current mind state
and perception towards main-stream
banks. This is a truth that no one can
refute. The understanding/new meaning/
revelation was, could Equity bank take the
position of creating a sense of belonging
within this TA? Is this inspiring? Does
it give a new sense of discovery for the
brand?
Every human being has an inherent
desire to belong. From young teens who
want to belong to a peer group, to a young
man who wants to be part of the ‘boys’, a
woman who desires to belong to a click of
friends, the lady in the village who wants
to belong to a community group and older
man who wants to belong to the ‘group
of elders’. We all desire to belong. So yes,
this was indeed valid and inspiring.
The articulation then becomes, ‘In a
world where the TA has been alienated
by other banks, Equity bank is the bank
that creates a sense of belonging’. This is
then put into the creative brief. Out of
this the ‘Mimi Ni Member’ campaign was
created. This campaign was a huge success
and resulted in exponential growth for
the brand. Proven success.
The second example I would like to share
is the Dove Campaign. Dove believes
that beauty is for everyone and therefore
features real women of different ages,
According to Mindscapes Tools, Insights
is a chain of revelations. It’s a series of
revelations that are made from one rev-
elation to the next. Mindscapes have
developed a simple approach that helps
one reveal an insight. This is ‘OUA’,
meaning Observation, Understanding
and Articulation.
sizes, ethnicities, hair color, type or style.
Dove never presents the unachievable,
manipulated, flawless images of 'perfect'
beauty. The campaign that came out of
this brand proposition was, ‘You are more
beautiful than you think’. Let’s work this
backwards.
The ‘Observation’ was, only 4% of women
around the word consider themselves
beautiful. Women are their own worst
critics. This was an ‘Observation’ verified
by research.
Because Dove was about making
women realize their personal beauty
potential, this observation revealed a new
understanding/meaning. That Dove could
take their positioning a level further and
convince the 96% that they are indeed
beautiful in their own unique way.
The articulation could have been that in
a world where most women criticize the
way they look, Dove will make them feel
confident about themselves by proving
that they are beautiful.
It was decided that an unscripted
experiment would be the best way to reach
women. In a video, which was produced
by the ad agency, Ogilvy and Mather,
several women describe themselves to
a forensic sketch artist who cannot see
his subjects. The same women are then
described by strangers whom they met the
previous day. The sketches are compared,
with the stranger's image invariably being
both more flattering and more accurate.
The differences create strong emotional
reactions when shown to the women.
The film created a sensation upon its
online release quickly going viral. More
than 15 million people downloaded the
video within a week of its release. It
also caught media reaction. The Daily
Telegraph called it “the most thought
provoking film yet", while Forbes said it
was "powerful".
These two examples are found under the
Mindscapes Insights tool called ‘Search
for Conflict’. This tool guides one to look
for internal or external conflicts that affect
people, cause discomfort and tension,
hence causing them to seek for a solution.
The discovery of a conflict can give the
brand a new perspective that is more
meaningful and relevant to the consumer.
This is because it touches the core of the
consumer, it represents what they truly
feel and experience. By virtue of this, they
will connect with the brand as it will have
provided a solution to their tension.
Great insights play a huge role in creating
great creative and impactful campaigns.
Insights can be the basis of a new
communication strategy, new proposition
and new big idea. On the other hand,
it can be the basis of strengthening and
re-enforcing an existing communication
strategy/proposition/big idea by making
it richer, giving it a new and fresh
perspective.
Looking at it from the audience, it
makes the creative campaign more
relevant, trusted and believable. Great
insights inspire Creatives to develop
more surprising and interesting solutions.
Everyone will be proud of the work. Next,
more insights tools to be unpacked.
Susan Makau is the Chief
Executive Officer, International
School of Advertising (ISA).
You can commune with her on this
or related matters vide email at:
Susan.M@isaafrica.education.