<description>&lt;p dir="ltr"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 12pt;"&gt;Ever seen an ad so bizarre you couldn't look away?&lt;br /&gt; &lt;br data-start="327" data-end="330" /&gt; A woman eating a boiled egg for 90 seconds.&lt;br data-start="373" data-end="376" /&gt; A cigarette brand that never showed the cigarette.&lt;br data-start= "426" data-end="429" /&gt; A $40M Burger King campaign about a guy named &lt;em data-start="475" data-end="481"&gt;Herb&lt;/em&gt; who'd never eaten there.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p dir="ltr"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 12pt;"&gt;In this episode, Nate and Sarah play Two Truths and a Lie: 1980s Ad Edition and then break down why the strangest, most nonsensical ads of the decade actually worked.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p dir="ltr"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 12pt;"&gt;We'll talk about:&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;ul&gt; &lt;li dir="ltr" style="font-size: 12pt;" aria-level="1"&gt; &lt;p dir="ltr" role="presentation"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 12pt;"&gt;🧠 Semantic Closure β€” why your brain can't stand an open loop.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt; &lt;br /&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;/li&gt; &lt;li dir="ltr" style="font-size: 12pt;" aria-level="1"&gt; &lt;p dir="ltr" role="presentation"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 12pt;"&gt;🧩 Processing Fluency β€” how confusion turns into curiosity.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt; &lt;br /&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;/li&gt; &lt;li dir="ltr" style="font-size: 12pt;" aria-level="1"&gt; &lt;p dir="ltr" role="presentation"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 12pt;"&gt;πŸ’€ Fear vs. Wonder β€” and why one still sells better than the other.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt; &lt;br /&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;/li&gt; &lt;li dir="ltr" style="font-size: 12pt;" aria-level="1"&gt; &lt;p dir="ltr" role="presentation"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 12pt;"&gt;🎭 The Burger King campaign that cost $40M (and flopped for all the right reasons).&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt; &lt;br /&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;/li&gt; &lt;/ul&gt; &lt;p dir="ltr"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 12pt;"&gt;It's a crash course in how to make people think about you later β€” even if your ad makes zero logical sense in the moment.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p dir="ltr"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 12pt;"&gt;If you've ever wondered why your "clever" creative underperforms,&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt; &lt;br /&gt; &lt;span style="font-size: 12pt;"&gt;πŸ‘‰ Learn more how to become a psychology-based performance marketer: &lt;a href= "http://skool.com/tether-lab%5C"&gt;skool.com/tether-lab&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p dir="ltr"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 12pt;"&gt;CoHost: Nate Lagos&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p dir="ltr"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 12pt;"&gt;Twitter: &lt;a href= "https://x.com/natelagos"&gt;https://x.com/natelagos&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;LinkedIn: &lt;a href= "https://www.linkedin.com/in/natelagos/"&gt;https://www.linkedin.com/in/natelagos/&lt;br /&gt; &lt;/a&gt;Tactical and Practical Podcast: &lt;a href= "https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/tactical-practical/id1752915534"&gt; https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/tactical-practical/id1752915534&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p dir="ltr"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 12pt;"&gt;CoHost: Sarah Levinger&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p dir="ltr"&gt;&lt;span style="font-size: 12pt;"&gt;Learn more at: &lt;a href= "https://www.tetherinsights.io/"&gt;https://www.tetherinsights.io/&lt;br /&gt; &lt;/a&gt;Twitter: &lt;a href= "https://x.com/SarahLevinger"&gt;https://x.com/SarahLevinger&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;Linkedin: &lt;a href= "https://www.linkedin.com/in/sarahlevinger/"&gt;https://www.linkedin.com/in/sarahlevinger/&lt;br /&gt; &lt;/a&gt;Instagram: &lt;a href= "https://www.instagram.com/sarah.levinger/"&gt;https://www.instagram.com/sarah.levinger/&lt;br /&gt; &lt;/a&gt;Watch me on YouTube: &lt;a href= "https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCKwfjt_7PU5N_2fTfHemXXg"&gt;https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCKwfjt_7PU5N_2fTfHemXXg&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;Β &lt;/p&gt;</description>

Brain Driven Brands

Sarah Levinger

Two Truths and A Lie: Why the Weirdest Ads Work (and Yours Don't)

OCT 28, 202526 MIN
Brain Driven Brands

Two Truths and A Lie: Why the Weirdest Ads Work (and Yours Don't)

OCT 28, 202526 MIN

Description

Ever seen an ad so bizarre you couldn't look away? A woman eating a boiled egg for 90 seconds. A cigarette brand that never showed the cigarette. A $40M Burger King campaign about a guy named Herb who'd never eaten there.

In this episode, Nate and Sarah play Two Truths and a Lie: 1980s Ad Edition and then break down why the strangest, most nonsensical ads of the decade actually worked.

We'll talk about:

  • 🧠 Semantic Closure β€” why your brain can't stand an open loop.

  • 🧩 Processing Fluency β€” how confusion turns into curiosity.

  • πŸ’€ Fear vs. Wonder β€” and why one still sells better than the other.

  • 🎭 The Burger King campaign that cost $40M (and flopped for all the right reasons).

It's a crash course in how to make people think about you later β€” even if your ad makes zero logical sense in the moment.

If you've ever wondered why your "clever" creative underperforms, πŸ‘‰ Learn more how to become a psychology-based performance marketer: skool.com/tether-lab

CoHost: Nate Lagos

Twitter: https://x.com/natelagosLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/natelagos/ Tactical and Practical Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/tactical-practical/id1752915534

CoHost: Sarah Levinger

Learn more at: https://www.tetherinsights.io/ Twitter: https://x.com/SarahLevingerLinkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sarahlevinger/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sarah.levinger/ Watch me on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCKwfjt_7PU5N_2fTfHemXXg