Kate Smither: Never let complexity get in the way of a good story

There are several good reasons why agencies tend to put forward their ideas through the lens of TV says The Tall Planner’s Kate Smither.

As human beings, we’re wired to respond to stories. To remember them, to share them, to talk about them. As an industry, advertising is in the business of creating stories, of adding to the cultural narratives that surround brands and the world they live in.

No matter how fragmented the media landscape becomes, there’s a reason why a storytelling media like TV is still the most desirable way to grab attention. Rather than splitting an idea across too many channels or too many screens in the hope that someone connects the dots and puts the story together, TV has the ability to combine the elements in a compelling and distinctive way.

For brands and advertisers, this is crucial. Behaviourally, cross-screen and multi-screen content consumption is now the norm rather than the exception. Instead of trying to make content fit across screens and moments in a day, an idea is better when put forward in an emotional way.

TV is a master of this and that’s why it is the starting point for many presentations of a brand story. It remains the most powerful way to launch a new positioning, new products or to bring in a new audience.

The advertising industry has grown around TV since its arrival. Iconic advertising has long told stories that use the powerful combination of audio and video. With the explosion of digital, social, subscription services and mobile, TV is no longer the only medium to offer this. Yet, it is still one of the most effective. That’s why 90% of Effie winning campaigns contain TV as a component of the creative output. It’s why agencies continue to present ideas through the lens of TV. They know it is a shortcut to engaging audiences and connecting with them.

TV often acts as a bridge between creativity and marketing, a bridge between big ideas and sales. That’s because stories on TV are accountable and measurable.

Despite the proliferation of screens and increasing content consumption, TV engages more and embeds itself into our memory.

People remember TV ads, they recall what they’ve seen because TV content lasts longer in hearts and minds making it more efficient. In fact, ads that make people feel grab 16% more attention than ads that don’t. And ads with high emotional responses lead to 2.4 times the sales impact than ads that don’t.

But not all ads need to be emotional. Sometimes they must be functional first and foremost and research tells us that’s okay so long as people actually see the campaign which is why TV is home to plenty of highly effective low-emotion ads.

As a planner, you spend your time searching for insights that connect a brand to both culture and consumer, insights that are distinctive and can motivate commercial results. Strategy powers creatives to flex their brilliance and develop big ideas. In today’s chaotic media landscape, big ideas have never been more important and big ideas deserve to be seen and heard. The brilliant thing for the creative industry is that TV does not limit creative expression, it can amplify it.