Advertising campaigns which break taboos can drive a jump in attention as high as 21%, according to a new report which shows that breaking with convention can help drive long-term brand growth.
The analysis, from Effie UK and Ipsos, reveals that creating emotionally-charged ads can drive more effective business outcomes for brands.
Centred around the emotional response of pushing boundaries, data from Ipsos’ creative testing database was used in ‘Breaking Taboos: How breaking convention pays out’ to show how defying category conventions can give advertisers a 21% boost in ad attention.
The research also showed that empathy and surprise have the strongest correlation with long-term brand growth, with these positive ads around 40% more likely to build long-term brand growth and reduce brand price sensitivity.
Despite these clear benefits, some brands remain concerned about stepping outside of their comfort zone. In particular, the Ipsos data showed a 107% rise in fear of backlash over speaking up for women’s rights.
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“It is understandable if brands are concerned about backlash in a time when they risk being tone deaf or cancelled,” said Ipsos senior director of creative excellence, Samira Brophy.
“This report proves that breaking taboos, when done with craft, confidence and creativity can both spark attention and drive effective results.”
Effie-winning campaigns from The Gate Worldwide, adam&eveDDB, Havas Lynx Group, and Ogilvy UK were used as examples of effective ads in the report.
CALM’s ‘The Last Photo’ campaign from by adam&eveDDB challenged preconceptions about suicide and increased demand for the mental health charity’s helpline by 16.56%, which helped prevent 161 suicides.
Similarly, Anusol’s ‘The Cheeky Diagnosis’, created by The Gate Worldwide, tackled the topic of piles head on, growing category sales by 64%.
Effie UK managing director Rachel Emms said: “We hope that this report will serve as a reminder to brands and creatives out there that there is headroom to tell richer, more diverse stories that defy convention.
“Breaking taboos may be risky, but subverting social conventions can drive effectiveness, with the commercial upside of making your media money go a great deal further.”
