So imagine you're at a party and you're knocking back a few beers and generally having a great time having a few laughs after a long week at work. Then that one person breaks into the conversation and starts to talk about ethnic cleansing in Myanmar. Awks.
It's not that ethnic cleansing in Myanmar isn't a topic worthy of discussion, it's just that the context for that conversation just isn't right.
We've all been there, and something similar happened during the Super Bowl.
Amidst all the fun and frivolity of highly paid battering rams running into each other at breakneck speed, Nationwide decided it would be a great time to have a chat about getting health insurance so your kid won't die.
DEAD KIDS! It seemed to yell.
It turns out that people don't necessarily like being forced to confront the darker realities of life when they're trying to escape from it.
People have been scathing about Nationwide for running the ad, saying it was inappropriate. It's hard not to sympathise. There's a time and place for all discussions, but the one moment in time when we're all trying to engage in a spot of escapism isn't it.
Nationwide said in a statement that the ad was designed to start a conversation rather than sell insurance.
“The sole purpose of this message was to start a conversation, not sell insurance. We want to build awareness of an issue that is near and dear to all of us—the safety and wellbeing of our children. We knew the ad would spur a variety of reactions,” it said.
“In fact, thousands of people visited MakeSafeHappen.com, a new website to help educate parents and caregivers with information and resources in an effort to make their homes safer and avoid a potential injury or death. Nationwide has been working with experts for more than 60 years to make homes safer. While some did not care for the ad, we hope it served to begin a dialogue to make safe happen for children everywhere.”
Well, it did start a conversation at least.
However, the conversation isn't about how we all need to get health insurance to protect the ones we love or do more to prevent inadvertent deaths. The conversation is about how inappropriate the ad in that particular context was.
Thanks Nationwide. We were all in danger of having a fun Sunday.
— Guy Endore-Kaiser (@GuyEndoreKaiser) February 2, 2015
"Hope you guys are having a great day. Did you know your kid is probably gonna die soon? Enjoy your nachos & funeral planning!" - Nationwide
— Rob Fee (@robfee) February 2, 2015
Not that darker-themed ads can't work.
This ad from nomore.org was absolutely fantastic, and it was fantastic precisely because it was understated.
It didn't throw the theme right in your face, so it wasn't intrusive. It also helped that people knew that the charity was running a spot as part of a pro-bono deal with the NFL, which is having a few image issues with domestic violence of late.
It was an ad which gave you a moment for pause, rather than making you recoil.
There's a way to have a more poignant conversation in the context of frivolity, and it turns out yelling at people to pay attention to a worthy cause while they're trying to block out the outside world by revelling in that frivolity is not the way to go about it.