Sometimes the big idea looks like a Labubu
George Lois was a basis for the Don Draper character in Mad Men, and was the pioneer of “The Big Idea” who said advertising should be like a ‘poison gas… it should bring tears to your eyes, unhinge your nervous system, and knock you out’.
Lois believed that ‘you can’t research a big idea. The only ideas that truly research well are mediocre, ‘acceptable’ ideas. In research great ideas are always suspect.’ He was one of the leaders of the ‘‘creative revolution’’ of the 1950s, and he wasn’t a humble man
Lois was a founding partner of Papert Koenig Lois, the ‘‘second creative agency’’ in the world, the first creative agency was Doyle Dane Bernbach. How great was his work? Almost as great as he thought it was. His Esquire Magazine covers were on display at the Museum of Modern Art, a rare achievement for a commercial artist.
For anyone reading this far who is asking themself “what does any of this have to do with a Labubu?” Ask yourself one question: name one brand of artificial leather upholstery… other than Naugahyde. I’ll give you a minute for you to finish your Google search.
I know, I have never heard of any of those brands either. Naugahyde dominated what could easily have become a commodity category. Because of Lois’s idea that ‘Great advertising should have a memorable visual image, a kind of graphic mnemonic” the world welcomed this:
Vinyl fabric with a leather appearance was invented in the 1930’s, in Naugatuck, Connecticut, it didn’t become a household name until 30 years later, after the campaign. The Nauga apparently painlessly shed its skin for your faux-leather chairs, unlike leather. It was also, as the ad headline states: ugly.
We will never know if this idea tested well, as stated earlier, Lois believed that great ideas are always suspect. What we do know is it encapsulates the positives aspects of the product (vinyl fabric) , the downsides of the competitor (leather), and packages it into one word and visual: a fictitious animal called a Nauga. Elements of campaign are still being used today.
This is a vivid reminder that effective advertising isn’t just spectacle, there has to be a message your audience finds meaningful. It doesn’t have to be an exciting and exotic product to work. If you are open to seeing things differently than the general population, you will find your big idea.
What will your big idea be?
