Manly Mental Health Tips: Cooking – ManTherapy.org | Clapboard Ad Archive

A Model Mouth - The American Academy of Periodontology | Clapboard Ad Archive

A Model Mouth sees The American Academy of Periodontology partner with Weber Shandwick to deliver a sharply conceived film campaign that subverts health marketing conventions through a pop-culture lens, leveraging the familiar tropes of modeling culture to reframe dental care in unexpectedly witty fashion. Launched in the United States in Year 2017 and targeting the healthcare audience, the campaign follows the story of fictional “mouth model” Carl Hasgood and his periodontist, Amanda Garvey, orchestrating a mockumentary-style narrative that gently satirizes the world of beauty and celebrity to foreground the realities of gum disease and the expertise of periodontists. The creative approach, squarely in what Clapboard’s taxonomy classifies as FORMAT#12—Parody or Borrowed Format, draws on the visual language and narrative beats of industry profiles and talent documentaries, repurposing them to command attention for critical—yet often overlooked—oral health messages. This fusion of parody and education sidesteps the clinical flatness and generic seriousness common to healthcare communication, instead cultivating delight and memorability through character-driven storytelling and relatable humor. By making the stakes of periodontal health play out as the dramatic arc in a “model’s” professional journey, the work deconstructs vanity with a purpose, enabling the American Academy of Periodontology to own a distinct point of view and solidify its standing as a category authority that understands both patient anxieties and the culture they inhabit. The film’s language is accessible, the stakes relatable, and the characters crafted not as mouthpieces for information but as vehicles for empathy—subtly persuading the viewer to see expert dental care as not just prudent, but essential. By blending medical authority with cultural savvy, Weber Shandwick and the American Academy of Periodontology achieve a campaign that informs without lecturing and entertains without undermining trust. The campaign earns a 63/100 in Clapboard’s global creative archive. In recasting familiar content genres to serve health education goals, this campaign signals how even the most technical or specialized topics can find resonance when marketers meet audiences in the shared space of popular culture.

Better tomorrows - Sick Kids Hospital | Clapboard Ad Archive — archive collection thumbnail

Better tomorrows - Sick Kids Hospital | Clapboard Ad Archive

Sick Kids Hospital’s Better tomorrows campaign, launched in Canada in 2014 and developed by JWT, is a rare demonstration of sustained, high-frequency narrative storytelling in healthcare marketing, weaving 45 unique spots over 45 consecutive days to immerse audiences in the extraordinary, everyday realities within the hospital’s walls. Each film spot foregrounds the deeply personal journeys of patients and families, with Sick Kids Hospital positioned not as a backdrop but as an active, driving agent in the pursuit of brighter outcomes—an approach that sits squarely in Clapboard’s FORMAT#5—Exemplary Story classification, where organizational impact is inseparable from the resolution of each narrative. This strategy transforms the institution itself into a protagonist, underscoring not just breakthrough moments of medical intervention but also the resilient optimism and ongoing human connection that characterizes care at one of Canada’s most prominent pediatric hospitals. The campaign deploys immersive, cinematic storytelling to bridge emotional distance and render the complexities of pediatric healthcare urgent, vivid, and accessible for a broad public, thereby reinforcing Sick Kids’ reputation for excellence and compassion among existing donors while broadening the hospital’s appeal to new audiences. JWT’s film-led framework amplifies the authenticity of each child’s or family’s narrative journey, bypassing abstract claims in favor of lived detail and visible transformation—a tactic that both personalizes and contextualizes the scale of the hospital’s mission. By opting for daily, episodic release rather than a single flagship piece, Better tomorrows builds habitual engagement, inviting viewers to see the institution not as a monolith but as a vibrant ecosystem where incremental acts of care accumulate into remarkable collective progress. Presented in English and distributed via the SickKids Foundation, this work foregrounds the ripple effects of clinical expertise, medical innovation, and community support, threading individual triumphs into a broader institutional narrative. For the healthcare market category, Better tomorrows exemplifies how continuous, multi-part branded storytelling can deepen audience empathy and drive sustained donor or public mobilization—even for organizations defined by complex, ongoing work rather than discrete product launches. The campaign earns 69/100 in Clapboard’s global creative archive. Its relevance lies in proving that exemplary, format-driven narrative techniques—when harnessed to institutional storytelling—can shift perceptions and galvanize lasting advocacy within professional services.

How CEO Ben Keeps Pooping All Day - Depend | Clapboard Ad Archive — archive collection thumbnail

How CEO Ben Keeps Pooping All Day - Depend | Clapboard Ad Archive

Depend’s 2017 campaign How CEO Ben Keeps Pooping All Day finds the brand leveraging a bold creative concept within the healthcare market, enlisting the narrative of Benjamin Dover, an archetypal high-powered executive whose demanding corporate schedule leaves little time to manage personal needs. With Agency activating the film-driven work, the campaign adopts an unabashedly humorous tone to address a topic often considered taboo, using CEO Ben’s relentless workload and unfiltered personality to make a relatable, aspirational user profile the centerpiece of the story—an approach squarely in what Clapboard's taxonomy terms FORMAT#10—Associated User Imagery. By charting Dover’s day-to-day navigation of boardrooms, deadlines, and challenging conversations, the ad directly ties Depend’s product benefit to the needs of busy professionals who require reliability and discretion to maintain their active lives, subtly reframing incontinence management as an enabler of continued achievement rather than a limitation. Two core media assets—including engaging filmic outtakes—build authenticity and deepen the humorous edge, encouraging audiences to engage past the initial narrative and extending the campaign’s reach through participation and sharing. The storytelling is calibrated to generate empathy as well as reduce the social stigma surrounding incontinence by positioning it within the experience of someone with perceived authority, success, and real-world credibility—a choice that both normalizes the brand’s offering and builds emotional resonance with viewers who might see themselves or their aspirations in CEO Ben. The lightness of the delivery, coupled with the pragmatic framing of a universal human challenge, positions Depend on the front foot within a crowded health category, differentiating by virtue of tone, relatability, and directness. The choice to anchor the campaign in Associated User Imagery, as classified by Clapboard's 12-format schema, situates the communication in a lineage of advertising that seeks to drive both identification and aspiration, a strategic move that sees the brand trade up against both stigma and monotony in medical messaging. Clapboard rates this 63/100. For health marketers navigating the balance between sensitivity and standout storytelling, this campaign signals that humor and humanization now have a firm place in even the most personal corners of brand communication.

Control, Tips - TENA | Clapboard Ad Archive — archive collection thumbnail

Control, Tips - TENA | Clapboard Ad Archive

With Control, Tips, TENA and BBDO mark a significant intervention in the healthcare advertising landscape of Year, confronting the persistent stigma surrounding male incontinence with a campaign that places sensitivity, authority, and practical utility at its core. Developed for the United Kingdom, the campaign addresses one of the more under-discussed issues men face—bladder control challenges—yet does so with a tone that avoids either embarrassment or medicalization, instead opting for a direct and relatable storytelling mode. The concept, underpinned by BBDO’s strategic acumen, leans decisively into what Clapboard’s 12-format taxonomy would categorize as FORMAT#2—Show The Problem, opening with authentic depictions of the everyday constraints this health issue imposes before offering TENA Men’s products and a suite of clear, actionable tips as the credible solution. The choice of film as medium allows the narrative to connect emotionally without losing the practical undertone; expert guidance is seamlessly woven into scenes that acknowledge the dignity and agency of their audience. Unlike many health sector campaigns that either evade the topic or sterilize it with distant clinical tropes, Control, Tips fosters an environment in which its users feel understood and, crucially, empowered to manage their condition discreetly and confidently. The decision to centre the messaging in accessible English enhances inclusivity and ensures comprehension across demographic boundaries, reinforcing the campaign’s educational mission. The creative avoids reliance on testimonial or celebrity affiliation, reflecting a belief in straightforward, stigma-busting communication delivered with purposeful clarity. Consistency with TENA’s broader brand promise—to improve quality of life for people facing intimate health challenges—is evident, yet here it is invigorated with a modern, empowering narrative that builds both trust and relevance. The campaign earns 63/100 in Clapboard’s global creative archive. This campaign matters to the industry because it reframes an overlooked health issue with humanity and practicality, reminding brands that trust and engagement flourish when honesty and expertise share center stage.

Donkey - Berocca | Clapboard Ad Archive — archive collection thumbnail

Donkey - Berocca | Clapboard Ad Archive

Berocca’s Donkey campaign, launched in the United Kingdom in Year: 2011, represents a decisive creative pivot for the pharmaceutical brand as it introduced Berocca Boost, a new guarana-powered variant positioned to deliver a pronounced lift in energy and alertness. Conceived by JWT and produced by COY!, the campaign leans into clear, consumer-facing symbolism, dramatizing Berocca Boost’s core promise through a narrative device that forgoes literal before-and-after storytelling in favor of exaggerated metaphor. What Clapboard’s taxonomy would classify as FORMAT#9—Symbolize the Benefit, this approach shuns clinical demonstration or real-world testimonials, instead personifying the feeling of sluggishness via a donkey: a universally recognized emblem of slow, plodding exertion. By juxtaposing the donkey’s lethargic demeanor with an injection of vitality that mirrors the brand’s tagline—You, but with a boost—the campaign delivers immediate, visual shorthand for Berocca’s unique product value, bypassing technical explanations in favor of visceral impact. This technique—distinct from healthcare marketing’s typical rational appeals—expands the conversation around pharmaceutical self-improvement to include not only health-conscious consumers but also a wider audience attuned to the broader culture of “performance enhancement,” whether mental or physical. The film medium underscores this shift, capturing audience attention and enabling JWT’s creative insight to play out in a single, memorable execution that resists category clichés. Within the highly competitive and regulated healthcare sector, where differentiation often blurs amid claims of efficacy and vitamin sourcing, Donkey’s commitment to symbolism rather than hard science marks a confident assertion of the Berocca brand’s lifestyle credentials. The campaign’s energetic visual language and strategic calibration of humor and relatability served to modernize Berocca’s voice, situating Berocca Boost as an accessible, everyday solution rather than a medicinal fallback. The campaign earns 58/100 in Clapboard’s global creative archive. As health and wellness brands increasingly court emotionally resonant creative, this campaign highlights the untapped potential for pharmaceutical advertising to engage audiences through metaphorical storytelling rather than conventional product demonstrations.

Campaign Proposition

The campaign from ManTherapy.org titled "Manly Mental Health Tips: Cooking" seeks to deliver a brand proposition centered on reframing mental health support for men in a way that aligns with traditionally masculine identities. By positioning mental health advice within the context of relatable, everyday activities—such as cooking—the campaign aims to dismantle stigma around emotional well-being and promote practical strategies for stress reduction and depression avoidance that men can comfortably adopt. The promise is an accessible, jargon-free approach to mental health that respects and resonates with male audiences, making psychological care approachable without compromising perceived masculinity. Strategically, the campaign leverages a narrative format featuring Dr. Rich Mahogany, a male therapist who embodies a blend of authority, humor, and relatability. This persona serves as a credible yet engaging figure uniquely suited to address men’s mental health, circumventing barriers such as distrust or discomfort often associated with seeking psychological help. Targeted primarily at men in the United States, the campaign uses cultural insight into male behaviors and preferences—framing cooking as a “manly” activity—to shift perceptions and encourage proactive mental health management. Released in 2011, this creative angle was relatively innovative at the time by directly combining traditional gender norms with mental wellness advice. The campaign’s modest engagement metrics suggest a niche yet meaningful connection with its audience, reinforcing the value of tailored messaging that respects the complexities of male identity in health communications.

Creative Device

FORMAT#8 ONGOING CHARACTERS OR CELEBRITIES — Uses a recurring personality or celebrity for brand recall. This campaign leverages Dr. Rich Mahogany, a recurring fictional "manly" therapist character, as the face of ManTherapy.org across multiple "Manly Mental Health Tips" episodes. The creative device is built on ongoing character deployment, establishing brand coherence and engagement via the recognizable persona of Dr. Mahogany, instead of relying on singular testimonials, direct demonstrations, problem-solution arcs, or parody. The episodic narrative structure and meta-description reinforce the use of a recurring character as the campaign's core creative and mnemonic anchor. ADVERTISING FORMATS EXPLAINED: https://www.clapboard.com/blog/branding-and-advertising/brand-strategy/12-advertising-creative-formats

Competitive Planks

Headspace – Market Positioning Headspace positions itself as a user-friendly digital mental health platform offering accessible mindfulness and meditation tools designed to reduce stress and improve mental well-being. It leverages engaging content and a strong mobile presence to attract a broad demographic, emphasizing simplicity and scientifically-backed techniques to normalize mental health care.

BetterHelp – Market Positioning BetterHelp differentiates by providing convenient and affordable online therapy services, connecting users with licensed professional counselors via text, video, and phone. Its focus on accessibility and anonymity aims to overcome barriers in traditional mental health care, targeting individuals seeking flexible support on their own terms.

Talkspace – Market Positioning Talkspace markets itself as a digitally-driven mental health service offering therapy with licensed therapists through messaging and video platforms. It focuses on removing stigmas around therapy by providing discreet, affordable, and flexible mental health support tailored to busy adults and corporate wellness programs.

National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) – Market Positioning NAMI stands out as a leading nonprofit providing education, advocacy, and support for individuals and families affected by mental illness. Their strategic emphasis is on community-based programs and grassroots activism to increase awareness and improve access to mental health resources nationwide.

Mental Health America (MHA) – Market Positioning MHA is positioned as a longstanding advocate for mental health with a focus on early intervention and prevention. It differentiates through comprehensive screening tools, educational resources, and policy advocacy aimed at enhancing mental wellness and promoting systemic change within the healthcare landscape.