TikTok teamed up with creative agency TBWA Sydney, as well as the Melanoma Institute Australia (MIA), to throw shade at tanning, highlighting not just the dangers of lying in the sun in it's latest 'Tanning. That's Cooked' campaign.
The campaign invited TikTok creators to use humour to expose tanning.
AdNews spoke with the chief executive officer of TBWA Sydney, Evan Roberts who provided insight into the creative strategies.
Roberts says that globally Australians are known for being bronzed and tanned
Roberts: “The ambition of this project is lofty – to change Australia’s perceptions of beauty when it comes to tanning. And specifically, call out the utterly bizarre act of tanning itself.
“We completely understand this is no small task, “the bronzed Aussie” isn’t just entrenched in our own psyche – it’s what we’re known for globally.”
Melanoma Institute Australia CEO, Matthew Browne said: "Our medical directors put out a plea about the urgent need to stop the glamorisation of tanning, to save young lives, and we are delighted TikTok provided its support, led by our creative partner, TBWA. One Aussie is diagnosed with melanoma every 30 minutes; and melanoma claims more lives than the national road toll.”
TikTok general manager Brett Armstrong said: "We've seen first-hand the impact TikTok can have on driving cultural change with younger demographics through campaigns with the United Nations and Movember.
“To further this work on our platform, we'll be kicking off a world-first initiative in 2023, the TikTok for Good Launchpad, focused on helping not-for-profit organisations and their creative partners get world- class CSR campaigns off the ground."
Roberts provided insight into the executional elements of the work.
He said: “What this campaign is beginning to do is question the notion that tanning is beautiful by highlighting how nonsensical it really is. I mean, when you think about it, tanning is utterly mad – as a nation we spend billions of dollars on beauty regimes in an effort to look younger, then we go and fry ourselves in the sun. It’s utterly contradictory.
“The other important executional element is that we create a discussion between peers. We know telling kids about the dangers of sun exposure is not going to work – they know that already and we all continue to tan.
“So rather than the traditional authoritarian PSA announcement, we chose to use TikTok to full effect by getting creators to mock the act of tanning. The hope is that ultimately this generation will be the first to end what is a preventable skin cancer.”
Have something to say on this? Share your views in the comments section below. Or if you have a news story or tip-off, drop us a line at adnews@yaffa.com.au
Sign up to the AdNews newsletter, like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter for breaking stories and campaigns throughout the day.