A Touch of Frost

McCann Erickson’s campaign for the skin cancer charity, Skcin demonstrates the lack of objectivity some consumers have when facing marketing messages.

The campaign utilised print and outdoor ads, street leafleting, PR and digital seeding to launch a bogus company called ComputerTan which claimed to be able to offer people top-up tans by converting the electrical impulse delivered to PC’s into radiated factor three UVC rays.

I found out about the campaign through one of my favourite blogs, Spinning Around and although the cheesy video clip (and to buzz word, Tantastic) did spark of concerns that this was a bit of a piss take, it did persuade me to check out the uncannily professionally designed website.

Upon starting my free session I realised the true purpose of the campaign as my ‘free session’ soon revealed the dangers of too much sun exposure through a series of shocking images.

I have total admiration for this campaign because I believe that my first perception of the company was like everyone else’s. You suspect that it’s a hoax but there’s a part of you that believes it is true and when you realise that you’ve been fooled, you also realise that all the clues were there to indicate this in the first place. The result is a powerful campaign and the consumer having respect for being hoaxed and such feelings are reciprocated onto the charity, its’ message and its’ intention.

The campaign also demonstrates how the characteristics of the media channel affect the value placed upon the message. Whether Skcin were on a budget or not, I can’t help but think that the campaign wouldn’t have been so successful if it had advertised on television.

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