OnePlus wants you to switch off its TV this festive season

A mother tells her kid, “Don’t eat the sweets before I make the entire set.” Trust the kid to try and steal one the moment she turns her eye.

If a brand tells you to not use its products or services, you are bound to check it out, right?

Reverse psychology, when used right, is mighty effective.

OnePlus, the Chinese electronics company, has made use of this neat Jedi trick in an ad for its festive campaign.

Endorsers and real-life couple, Mira and Shahid Kapoor, say, “Switch off the TV this festive time.” But not before showing a neat reel of the many features, which can make a potential customer choose it over rival TV brands.

Vodafone (now VI) released an ad in 2019, where it urged parents to put down their phones and then silence their children, who disturb them during their scrolling time. The ad was for Children’s Day.

Over a decade ago, Tata Sky (now Tata Play) tried its hand with such an ad. It starred actor Aamir Khan, playing a Sikh man. He is annoyed with the set-top box’s qualities, which have got his son addicted to watching cricket on the TV. Anti-ad? A near miss.

The most famous example of such ads? Well, one has to check out Patagonia's spot, which directly asked people to not buy its jacket.

While these are ads for profit, such a technique can work when used in the form of a PSA too. In 2020, HUL’s Lifebuoy soap released a print ad, urging readers to wash their hands, regardless of the brand at hand.