I have to say first and foremost that I love graphic and multimedia designers. I think a creative graphic designer is literally worth their weight in gold. A compelling visual can drastically shift people's perspectives on a given issue.
Which brings me to the following video that was created to obviously drum up support for the legalization of marijuana.
I don't really have a hard stance on the issue myself, although I lean towards legalization as a result of my libertarian mindset. Tax revenue and regulation is probably a better scenario than law enforcement expenditures and incarceration costs and the unregulated state of buying something on the street - not to mention the harms associated with labeling people criminals.
But I can also appreciate the slippery slope argument - if you legalize pot, then what's next, cocaine?
Anyway, I think the whole thing would be a non issue if we lived in a society where people didn't feel the need to self medicate.
But all that aside... the reason I thought it interesting to highlight this video is that it shows that marketing / PR is crucial in any hearts and minds campaign. To date we tend to get experts on each side telling folks to be afraid or telling them that there is nothing to fear.
This is the first time I've come across a well crafted video that doesn't take a debate stance, but rather attempts to connect with the audience on an emotional level.
We all want peace in the world right?
And that's what the video does. It ties the notion of peace and happiness with marijuana being legal. And it works. By the end you start thinking that maybe marijuana should be legal.
The irony however is that you could easily create a very similar video and show people living healthy, happy lives drug free.
And that's the important point... that how you present your position, the emotions you tap in to in your audience, can have a significant impact on how your message is received.
Anyway, forget whether pot should or shouldn't be legal... this is just a good example of how creative, innovative messaging can have an impact. In less than a month this video already has over 500,000 views.
Which brings me to the following video that was created to obviously drum up support for the legalization of marijuana.
I don't really have a hard stance on the issue myself, although I lean towards legalization as a result of my libertarian mindset. Tax revenue and regulation is probably a better scenario than law enforcement expenditures and incarceration costs and the unregulated state of buying something on the street - not to mention the harms associated with labeling people criminals.
But I can also appreciate the slippery slope argument - if you legalize pot, then what's next, cocaine?
Anyway, I think the whole thing would be a non issue if we lived in a society where people didn't feel the need to self medicate.
But all that aside... the reason I thought it interesting to highlight this video is that it shows that marketing / PR is crucial in any hearts and minds campaign. To date we tend to get experts on each side telling folks to be afraid or telling them that there is nothing to fear.
This is the first time I've come across a well crafted video that doesn't take a debate stance, but rather attempts to connect with the audience on an emotional level.
We all want peace in the world right?
And that's what the video does. It ties the notion of peace and happiness with marijuana being legal. And it works. By the end you start thinking that maybe marijuana should be legal.
The irony however is that you could easily create a very similar video and show people living healthy, happy lives drug free.
And that's the important point... that how you present your position, the emotions you tap in to in your audience, can have a significant impact on how your message is received.
Anyway, forget whether pot should or shouldn't be legal... this is just a good example of how creative, innovative messaging can have an impact. In less than a month this video already has over 500,000 views.
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