Sound The Excuse
The Book of Man
Issue 57 | December 2020
Agency
TBWA\London
Creative Team
Chief Creative Officer Andy Jex Writer Lauren Buggins Art Director Harriet Russell-Vick
Production Team
Head of Production Poppy Manning Editor Dan Ogunsanwo Illustrator Alejandro Parrilla Head of Design Aaron Moss Designer Kumal Shah
Other Credits
Managing Director TBWA Katie Jackson Sound Studios Wave Studios Sound Engineers Parv Thind, Dugal Macdiarmid Website Developers Crew Studios Media Buying Clear Channel Through Mgomd Client Names Martin Robinson, Mark Sandford
Date
October 2020
Background
The Book of Man is a media brand and a support network offering advice and inspiration to modern men in a time of great change.
Its intention is to challenge stereotypical ideas about masculinity and offer up ideas about new ways to live.
Idea
Another stressful video call? With more people now working from home, stress and anxiety levels are rising. In fact, 80% of Britons said that working from home had had a negative effect on their mental wellbeing. That’s where Sound the Excuse came in. Partnering with The Book of Man, the microsite served up mini disasters in users’ homes that they just had to attend to. It could be a burst pipe, a stampede of cows, the site gave users the perfect excuse to escape video call fatigue and take a moment for themselves.
OOH and social content promoted the content.
Our Thoughts
In June, when it was sunny and restrictions were easing, 49% of people in a UK research study admitted to anxiety. Those numbers will be way up now we’re in a second lockdown and it’s grey and cold.
So this campaign is more serious than it looks. The implicit message is that it’s okay to feel crap right now. Importantly it also suggests that if you’re feeling lonely and isolated, you are not alone. If you can’t laugh at the daft suggestions for ending painful Zoom calls, then it sends you on to thebookofman.com where there is more advice and practical advice.