Just another day at work and I encountered this article above.I at at some level I disagree, both with the above said 'list' mentioned in the article as well as the context of the article itself. We all(marketeers and advertisers)have conceptualized and executed one to many campaigns ourselves. How often have you got a reaction "I like it." and not "I like it, but...", while sharing a layout. Weather its the Client, the consumer(Pre-campaign launch research), a very senior creative or account management guy from the other team, they all seem to have some or the other suggestion, to make it a little more understandable by the consumer, esthetically appealing, relevant to the brand, etc, etc, etc.
The one thing that all marketeers and advertisers check in a pre-campaign launch research is, that how much does it rank on the 'likability' scale. And more often than not, people like the communication which is lazy and obvious to them and their lives and yet have a element of surprise.
In case of tactical communication which is usually focused at increasing sales, such promotional communication work best when the consumers realizes how pocket friendly the offer is(30% discount on i-Pad 2, 3 years maintenance free with the new Chevrolet car, etc.), than weather it has a human connection with them or not.
And last but not the least, whenever I talk to my target audience, I would like to talk to them in the language that they understand and not the entire universe. Baby, beer, microchips... they are all very different universes in them selves. A shared commonality among them is something that I can only imagine in utopia or wait a lifetime to witness.
