We live in a world where information is constantly being thrown at us. From news headlines
to social media notifications to the unending pressures of daily life, it can be hard to keep up
as our minds are flooded with a flurry of stimulus. It’s no wonder our thoughts are bouncing
around our brains like marbles in a jar rolling down a hill. When will we learn to declutter our
minds?
This was the basis for a recent campaign executed by the team at content production
powerhouse, Prodigious South Africa, who managed to turn heads with print-only NESCAFÉ
campaign, “Decaf Your Mind”.
The campaign creatively illustrated the different ways in which our minds are unable to
switch off – calling for the need to take a step back and grasp any semblance of serenity we
can.
According to Jacques Shalom, Executive Creative Director at Prodigious, the concept of
“Decaf Your Mind” may seem unusual, but it couldn’t be more relevant in an era where
stress and overthinking are taking over our lives.
“We collated hundreds of weird night-time thoughts, recreated the most entertaining ones
and placed various ads in national newspapers to show how NESCAFÉ can help
unscramble your mind,” Shalom says.
This resulted in 7 creative print executions that all uniquely demonstrated how our minds can
unravel in a cacophony of craziness – resulting in an inability to focus. According to Nivasha
Pather, Category Marketing Manager at NESCAFÉ, the campaign is authentic, relevant and
exciting work for a segment of the coffee category that often gets over looked.
Why print? Shalom believes print media has a unique ability to reach a wide array of
audiences and impact them in way that digital mediums cannot. Print advertisements are an
effective way to attract potential customers, especially when creatively executed around its
greatest strength – the ability to catch consumers in a moment of rest and reflection.
“Our goal was psychological,” says Nick Liatos, Executive Creative Director at Prodigious.
“Where else can you really get a consumer to sit down and appreciate a large-scale piece of
creative and actually reflect on its message? It certainly doesn’t happen on our phones.
Press is a hive of what keeps our minds occupied and therefore the executions themselves
are an extension of the medium.”
The campaign’s message of unscrambling your mind has caught the attention of industry
giants like Brendan Seery, who called it a “wacky but brilliant concept with a fantastic
creative thought at its core” and highlighted it in BizCommunity’s coveted

OrchidsandOnions column.

“This campaign serves as a reminder that print media still holds a valuable place in the
media matrix. Despite the allure of digital, print’s innate power to captivate and engage
audiences in a deeply tangible way is undeniable and underestimated,” Liatos concludes.

Published on Brandfit.