The Social Media Marketing Lesson in The NYT’s Latest Ad

The New York Times began running its “The Truth is Worth It” video ad series years ago to promote its fact-driven mission.

• The latest spot from the NYT and Droga5 will run across traditional TV programming and roll out via the publication’s social media accounts.
• “Life Needs Truth” combined 100+ recent NYT article titles into a visual poem.

The NYT's new spot has flashy creative, good music, a clear mission...and a hidden social media marketing lesson?

Applying a social lens

Social media editors have long known that creating understanding is the best way to generate interest in a seemingly complex topic. In psychology, the idea that understanding drives interest is nothing new.

• For instance, research shows that readers find complicated poems or abstract art more interesting when given additional information about what they mean.
• That’s also why pull quotes are so effective.

Connect the dots: Similarly, the creatives behind “Life Needs Truth” generated greater consumer understanding about NYT subscriptions by yanking article titles out from behind a paywall, placing them in front of target audiences and contextualizing them with powerful images.