In the fierce battleground of fmcg marketing, the default response is often to amplify. Louder campaigns, more innovation, bigger promises. Yet, as shelves overflow and digital feeds scroll endlessly, this ‘more is more’ approach increasingly leads to diminishing returns.
Under pressure to ‘do more with less’, brands often turn to maximalist messaging, believing if they explain harder or say more, they’ll cut through. Problem is, shouting louder simply makes them part of the noise, indistinguishable from the competition.
What if the smarter strategy is to embrace restraint?
Power in the pause
The fmcg purchase journey is fleeting. A glance at the shelf, a quick order at the bar, a click. These aren’t moments for rational deliberation; they’re driven by emotion. When making split-second decisions, the human brain just wants a feeling. A connection. A reason to choose your brand over the rest.
The most effective creative bypasses the rational brain, distilling a singular, potent feeling that resonates deeply, while leaving enough space for the audience to connect on their own terms.
Stella Artois’ ‘Claustrobars’ campaign was guided by this philosophy. The goal was to ensure Stella wins at the critical “order at the bar” moment. While most premium beer brands lean into generic lifestyle imagery and hollow aspiration, we worked with Stella on something more emotionally valuable – on connecting the brand with social moments that feel “worth more”.
The campaign tapped into a familiar, but fresh tension: the sacrifice of personal space for the joy of shared social occasions. Claustrobars brought that human truth to life with a familiar scene: the squeeze of a crowded bar and the blissful anticipation of that first sip. The almost cinematic executions presented a tightly composed image with just two words: ‘Worth it’.
The power lay in its restraint. No sprawling narrative. No overt branding beyond the iconic Stella glass. The minimalist approach invited the viewer to complete the story – to feel the squeeze, anticipation, and ultimately the reward.
Heinz does the same with ‘Ketchup fraud’ – simple visuals of restaurants refilling Heinz bottles with cheaper substitutes, paired with a knowing line. Or Pampers’ most recent work, ‘Pamperszzz’, which evokes the happiness a parent feels while watching their baby sleep.
The courage to ‘say less’ can often feel counterintuitive. But true minimalism isn’t about what you leave out. It’s about what you leave space for – the chance for the viewer to feel the story in their own way, by inviting emotional interpretation, not dictating it.
Tarek Sioufi, chief strategy officer at Grey London
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