Growth Through Emotional Advertising: Insights from Orlando Wood

As marketers, we’re facing a creativity crisis. Consumers are tuning out of ads, even though brands are spending more than ever. So, what’s going wrong? And how can emotional advertising drive growth? I just attended a marketing roundtable hosted by AllBright where Orlando Wood (the author of Lemon, Chief Innovation Officer at System1 ) shared his thoughts on this issue.

Advertising's Effectiveness Problem

Orlando kicked things off with some tough stats. Of the 106,000 ads his team at System 1 analysed, only 6% actually transform a brand's fortunes. "We’re in a bad place" he said. "Creativity’s under threat, and effectiveness is dropping".

Why Trust and Emotion Matter

So why is emotionally-driven advertising so vital? Orlando talked about trust, or the lack of it. Ads now rank even lower than politicians and media on the trust scale. "Trust is in short supply" he said, "and we need to think about a different style of advertising to build it". Campaigns that create trust can lead to big profit growth. But building that trust means moving away from the short-term, rational tactics that dominate today’s ads.

As the legendary adman Sir John Hegarty says, "You don’t buy things from people you don’t like". Ads need to charm and connect emotionally to be effective.?

Showmanship Advertising

This is where "showmanship" advertising comes in. Orlando drew parallels to the 1950s, when advertising faced a similar crisis. The focus back then was on rational, scientific ads, leading to a creativity slump. Then Bill Bernbach came along and flipped the script with a more emotional, creative approach: showmanship.

?Orlando highlighted three key principles of showmanship advertising:

1. Artistry: As Bernbach said, "Only art makes you feel, and only feeling makes you act". Showmanship ads use techniques like movement and action to grab attention and convey emotion.
2. Fluid Devices: Brands should use characters, scenarios, or narratives repeatedly to create mental familiarity.
3. Humour: Humour engages people and leaves them with a positive impression of the brand.

Haribo: A Case Study in Showmanship

Orlando shared a great example: Haribo’s long-running campaign by Quiet Storm. The campaign taps into the universal experience of choosing your favourite Haribo sweet, featuring unscripted interactions between kids. Each market uses local children to create an ad that feels authentic and relatable. This campaign, running for over a decade in 25+ markets, shows the power of showmanship.

As Quiet Storm’s CEO Rania Robinson explained, "It’s about how kids feel about the product. We localise the ads to each market, so they feel genuine to that audience."

Challenges in Developing Emotional Advertising

Developing this kind of advertising isn’t easy. The panellists discussed how hard it can be to convince senior leadership to invest in long-term, emotional campaigns rather than short-term, sales-focused ones. A member of Amazon’s Insights team noted, "There’s a huge push for short-termism in the industry, but finding universal human truths takes time and money".

Rania offered a solution: if you have a clear brand role based on solid consumer insight, it can act as a "guiding light" for all your marketing. Mondelez’s Cadbury campaign is a great example of this. They went back to their roots as a philanthropic company and created ads reflecting their brand truth of generosity. "It’s a guiding light for them" Orlando added, noting that this kind of work takes time but pays off in the long run.

Humour’s Role in Emotional Advertising

One of the most powerful tools in showmanship advertising is humour. Orlando explained that humour helps dramatise a product’s magic, leaving audiences with a positive feeling. "Humour isn’t just about getting attention," he said. "It’s about engaging people and making them like your brand".

I also had a chance to ask Orlando about the role of different emotions in advertising. He mentioned the "heuristic effect": people make decisions based on which option they feel more positively about. "Leaving people feeling good about your brand makes it more likely they’ll choose it" he said.

Consistency vs. Change

The discussion also covered the balance between consistency and change in brand messaging. Orlando pointed out that while people appreciate consistency, digital ads can sometimes become too static. This is where "fluid devices" come in: they allow for movement and evolution while keeping a brand familiar. "People like permanence" he said. "Consistency is important, but it shouldn’t stop a brand from evolving".

The Power of Emotion in Charity Ads

The role of emotion in charity ads also came up. Orlando noted that many charity campaigns rely on guilt, but positive, hopeful appeals can create stronger connections. "Charity brands need to be the first that come to mind when people want to donate" he said. "Making people feel good about the cause can help".

Unlocking Growth with Emotional Ads

By tapping into the principles of showmanship (artistry, fluid devices, and humour) brands can unlock growth and build deeper connections with their audiences. As Orlando and Rania highlighted, doing the upfront work to find those universal human truths, and then bringing them to life in bold, creative ways, can make all the difference.

It’s not an easy path, but for brands willing to embrace the power of emotional advertising, the rewards can be immense.

Orlando Wood and Sir John Hegarty have just launched Advertising Principles Explained.