What do conspiracy theory tactics have to do with Michael Cera?
Ogilvy was commissioned by CeraVe to help communicate a brand truth – that unlike some celebrity skincare products, their products are developed by dermatologists. This was to land with a Super Bowl ad, with social in the lead-in.
What could have been a rather hectoring message instead became a sprawling, multimedia mixed-reality comedy. The team decided to seed a conspiracy theory on social media that Michael Cera, the beloved comic actor, in fact invented CeraVe. Cera – who has no social media of his own – was spotted signing bottles, and appeared on podcasts neither confirming nor denying that he, in fact, invented the healthcare products. Influencers were deployed as participants – some in on the act, some caught in the frenzy. Paparazzi moments were staged, and then deployed in mainstream media, all the way up to The New York Times. Then, the carefully planted rumour was debunked with the Super Bowl ad.
Even before the big reveal, the project earned 15 billion in media impressions. Since, it has led to a 25% increase in sales. The D&AD jurors awarded it three Yellow Pencils, in Social Media, Use of Talent & Influencers and Integrated PR, as well as two Graphite Pencils and one Wood Pencil.
“The team decided to seed a conspiracy theory on social media that Michael Cera, the beloved comic actor, in fact invented CeraVe.”
As they used to say in show business, it takes years of planning to have an overnight hit. And seeding a conspiracy theory this realistically chaotic took months of precise planning. “We hit momentum incredibly quickly, which was also scary, because we still had 30 days till the Super Bowl, and we had to maintain the interest until then,” says Charlotte Tansill, President of PR, Social and Influence North America at Ogilvy New York. But fortunately we had a meticulously and methodically planned programme for the following 30 days, where we had hundreds of pieces of content rolling out across different channels and different sorts of communities and places.”
Ultimately, this project depended on an acute understanding of modern media dynamics, and a sensitivity to the way that conspiracy theories are spread. “I think the humour was key to its success,” says Tansill. “Obviously, we're in an era of sensitivity around fake news, and there's a lot of political and societal tension around this. [But] what we found was that our audience loved it, and was here for the joke, and wanted to play a role and choose a side and dive deep on it. So I think CeraVe’s willingness to not take themselves too seriously and to have fun with it is a validation of their bravery. To spread a conspiracy is scary, and it's risky. But the consumer reaction says it all, and it was harmless. It was fun. Have a laugh, you know?”