Why are People Peeling Off this Billboard

This week, YOU, , are joining 1000+ people who’ll get this 5th edition with a new style.

I’m trying to turn this into a newsletter that’s more example-led with insights ranging from marketing and advertising to copywriting, messaging and positioning.

The first edition has turned out to be pretty exciting.

Let’s get going!👇🏻

Okay, picture this. You're walking down the street and you see this bright yellow Guardian billboard. 

But wait, nearly 3/4th of the billboard is covered in black stickers. What the heck?

If you look a little over to your right, you see what’s written in the black bar.

It says, “Uncover what’s really going on”

Now listen: that’s not just a clever tagline.

The Guardian wants you to play on their metaphor for real.

The black strips that you have to unpeel are the censored, fragmented portions of news…

Because a lot of major media houses are bought by political parties or businesses in one way or another.

But not Guardian.

And boom—that's when it hits you. The Guardian just made you literally uncover their story. They're not just telling you they reveal the truth. They're making YOU do the revealing. 

Sneaky? Absolutely. 

Brilliant? You bet.

Here’s why I think it's genius:

1. Curiosity: The longer you take to peel, the longer your open loop remains open. Once you spot it, you can't help but peel all the way through.

2. Interactivity: You're not just a bystander looking at yet another billboard. You're actively involved (if I may) in trying to uncover the truth.

Interactivity boosts memory and memory boosts the message that stays top of mind.

3. Big Idea: Guardian's positioning is that they are 100% independent, cannot be bought and always report the full picture.

Sounds like exactly how journalism should be, right? But if you're aware of the market today, you can confirm that they are amongst the last few.

Their ability to do their job properly is what separates them.

Takeaway

Consider: What’s the one thing that makes you different from the competition + how can you present it in a way that makes people feel involved?

Don’t just stop the scroll and call it a day. Focus on increasing dwell time so you can linger onto their minds long after they’ve retired themselves from their feed.

Some Ideas to Consider

1. Swipeable Blocks

If you have a before/after product with an obvious outcome, let visitors control it on your website or landing page.

Example: Day 1 V/s Day 30 for a hair growth brand but you can toggle the image from left to right to see the change in real time.

2. Hide your best feature

Cover your product's killer benefit with a scratch-off or blur effect. 

Example: Scratch to reveal why 10,000 customers switched to us.

3. Turn features into mini-games

Each swipe reveals a new benefit.

Example: Swipe to see how many hours you'll save this week →

That’s it for today!

What do you think about interactive ads and today’s newsletter?

Hit reply & let me know your thoughts, !

P.S. Don’t forget to tell me your favourite thing about this newsletter. I’m collecting responses to build the next thing in this space.

Cheers!

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