When a message is just right it is a very powerful thing. In the 1980s the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) was intrigued by the relationship between a bag of popcorn, a coconut and a trip to the cinema. Can you guess what they have in common?
In the 1980s the move to eradicate saturated fats from a healthy diet was paramount in a number of circles. The CSPI were part of this crusade and their research came up with some astonishing results. The average medium size bag (and in the US who eats only a medium size bag) of popcorn at the cinema contained 37 grams of saturated fat. This fat came from the coconut oil it was cooked in.
This information on it's own is very dry and is unlikely to create an impactful message. Even a graph showing that is almost twice the recommended daily allowance is unlikely to make it to a second news day. They found a way to get this message across that created fundamental reaction. They held a press conference where they had a bag of popcorn and a range of other foods. A cooked breakfast, burger and fries, and a steak with fries and trimmings. They had one simple message. The medium size bag of popcorn had more saturated fat than not just each of the dishes demonstrated, but all of them put together.
Popcorn sales stopped almost overnight. The story was on the front page of USA Today the next day, it was on the major news bulletins and on the late night chat shows. Coconut oil was wiped out of the market. *
Lucky, Creative or Designed?
At The Freedom Factory we can share with you the key tools that are used to create such powerful messages, as powerful messages are critical in making an impact with new clients and revitalising existing client relationships. We believe that far from being a lightening strike, such messages can be created in a predictable way that will inform your team and that of your clients.
We can engage with you from a half day sessions on presentation skills right through to fully engaged consulting assignments on complex deals worth many tens of millions of dollars where a small investment in making the message impactful can make a deal winning impact with a client.
* There is a sting in the tail of this story. It turns out that like animals, all saturated fats are equal, however some are more equal than others. Today coconut oils are recognised as being beneficial to health and are being developed in the treatment of a number major conditions, AIDS being one of them. For coconut oil it has been a long way back as the producers and supply chains are still recovering from the fall out of a single story over twenty years ago.