BBH’s Zag Needs To Stop Zigging

Bartle Bogle Hegarty has two new products coming out of their brand invention firm Zag: Pick Me – a vegetable ready-meal and a personal alarm system called Ila Dusk. The system is targeted at women and when used, emits a female scream rather than a siren.

Wouldn’t you love to see the data that made Zag think these two products were a good idea? Really, does the world even need more prepared food? The siren slash scream personal safety system – is that really an invention? These questions don’t seem to matter to retail chain Tesco who has put Pick Me in 800 storefronts, nor Marks Spencer that has picked up the Ila Dusk. Apparently, BBH has data that says the noise of a woman’s scream has been “shown to elicit the strongest reaction from passers by.”

And yet, experts say that screaming is absolutely not effective. Jo Walker, spokeswoman for the Suzy Lamplugh Trust, the personal safety campaign group said: “We advise people to try not to scream, because bystanders have no idea how to react. You should shout instructions, such as, “Call the police!” – it has been proven this has more of an effect.”

Neither of these products sound like a good bet. These are remixes of old ideas in very crowded marketplaces. You guys aren’t zagging. You’re zigging along with everyone else.

More: Sir Hegarty’s Wine Label

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