A study of 6,000 ad campaigns shows: bravery in advertising pays off.
A recent study evaluated the last 50 years of award-winning ad campaigns and found that the safest campaigns did pretty well, the slightly-brave campaigns did the worst, and the bravest campaigns were off the charts in terms of effectiveness.
Other insights: a campaign is most effective if it has two objectives and combines both mass- and targeted messaging; the longer a campaign runs, the more effective it is; and the more channels a campaign runs on, the more effective it is.
Most companies freak out when a customer is injured. Burger King's decision to put the x-rays in new ads proves that almost *anything* can be used as a brand differentiator and even the cheekiest, boldest advertising can work. The takeaway? Don't be afraid to show some personality.