For those of you who haven’t followed the controversy, Komen recently announced they would (in effect) not provide funding for cancer screenings for Planned Parenthood. Public outrage forced them to reverse this decision – at great, probably permanent expense.

Komen represents a more traditional approach to communications. Though active on social media, their efforts seemed like an anemic translation from old media – abstract, dull, perfunctory. It suggested to me a marginalized intern tasked with completing Facebook posts with no real say in the matter.

Planned Parenthood’s communications were more dynamic, interesting, and timely. They used the immediacy of the Komen decision to lend a sense of urgency to the discussion. This momentum fueled a tidal wave of outrage. It was deftly handled, and Planned Parenthood looked nimble and smart.

Compare and contrast two posts from Planned Parenthood and Komen on February 1.

Brevity is ever the telltale sign of mastery of craft. Though Komen has many more comments, the bulk of them are negative – many even scathing.

There are many great analysis of this incident (this piece by Adovcom is the most interesting and insightful I’ve found) and though they vary in the details, there is a general agreement that the Komen, Planned Parenthood incident is symbolic of a profound shift that is taking place in how organizations think about how they communicate. More than anything else, it’s not a matter of being big, wealthy, or famous, but using the tools you have resourcefully and being imaginative and smart.

Some people separate risks into different categories – physical, social, monetary, etc. – where others think in terms of high or low involvement.

A low involvement choice is a product like detergent, gum, or paper towers.  These sorts of decisions are quickly made on the basis of cost,  convenience, recognizability, and familiarity.  There is little risk involved.

Low involvement marketing materials don't involve a lot of trust or risk. Standing out is hugely important for the success of these products.

High involvement choices evoke  a higher decision process because of greater of risk. The decision is much more thought out, possibly more emotional, less subject to being driven by  price,  convenience, or similar considerations.  For obvious reasons, health care is almost always considered  a high involvement message.

High involvement marketing is much more reliant on trust and understanding, and a brand  functions to create a connection between the organization and the client.

When developing high involvement marketing materials, we often use inclusive language (“we,” “you,” “us,” etc.) to address a relationship, and we respect the audience by providing them with  the information they need to a make an informed choice.  We position our client as the organization that helps solves the audience’s problems , relieves an anxiety, or creates an opportunity.  Design in these circumstances is minimal and uncomplicated, created to calm and frame content without competing with it.

The excessive formatting of this ad is just one of the things about this ad that make it untrustworthy to modern eyes.

If your proposition is high involvement and  your materials are cluttered, busy, or inconsistent, you may want to consider the corrosive effects these qualities have on your audience’s ability to extend their trust.  The perceived need to “stand out” is usually the culprit, taking a potentially simple message and ornamenting  it with extraneous formatting, effects or clipart.

Better to focus on a simple message  that differentiates you, use creative concepts that speak to that message.  It’s been my experience that focusing on a message opens the door to more interesting, creative concepts because they were born out of a real need and won’t change every time there’s a new project.  Over time, these choices will make it easier for your audience to understand, value, and ultimately trust you.