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The Coughing Billboard

Åkestam Holst, Stockholm

[2.17.002]

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A billboard on which the image of a man begins to cough every time a smoker comes anywhere near it.

Eugen Suman: “Even though this is not a classical digital activation, the
idea spread online virally. Shame is a powerful human emotion, and one
of the few instruments you can use when scare tactics or overtly rational
messages don’t work anymore. It has been proven that when it comes to
quitting smoking the most efficient strategy is one of, paradoxically, peer
pressure. Governments and society caught up with this and now it’s becoming
more and more a habit to be ashamed of, a habit that hurts your peers.
This digital OOH plays on those strings – every time someone smokes a
cigarette next to it, it coughs, visibly inconvenienced. Simple and effective.”

More: Åkestam Holst Stockholm

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A billboard on which the image of a man begins to cough every time a smoker comes anywhere near it.

Eugen Suman: “Even though this is not a classical digital activation, the
idea spread online virally. Shame is a powerful human emotion, and one
of the few instruments you can use when scare tactics or overtly rational
messages don’t work anymore. It has been proven that when it comes to
quitting smoking the most efficient strategy is one of, paradoxically, peer
pressure. Governments and society caught up with this and now it’s becoming
more and more a habit to be ashamed of, a habit that hurts your peers.
This digital OOH plays on those strings – every time someone smokes a
cigarette next to it, it coughs, visibly inconvenienced. Simple and effective.”

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