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New Zealand: The Best Place in the World to Have Herpes.

At least, that’s what the ‘world’s first herpes destigmatization campaign’ hopes to achieve.

Awareness campaigns have come a long way since the shock-and-awe tactics of the 90s. Turns out, scaring people doesn’t change behaviour. But making them laugh just might.

In today's newsletter:

• New campaign aims to make NZ the best country to have herpes (find out why they’ve even created a leaderboard to track NZ’s progress!)

• Ad verification practices are problematic—so, where to from here? (here’s what the future of brand safety could look like)

• Trend plug - I like my sootcase 

• Ask the Editor - Why are our paid ads not performing like they used to?  

- Charlotte, Editor ♡

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'New Zealand’s national pride may be waning, but the solution is obvious: herpes.'

This is what the website of agency Motion Sickness reads, introducing their new campaign:

Make New Zealand The Best Place In The World To Have Herpes.

This is the first ever ‘herpes destigmatisation campaign.' It's an effort to educate the country, lowering the stigma surrounding the virus while simultaneously raising national pride.

The campaign compiles educational resources that are often left collecting dust in the doctor’s office into a hilarious, star-studded video course.

The agency has also plastered billboards all over the country. The campaign even features a competitive leaderboard – because we have to actually prove we’re the best country in the world to have the virus.

But wait. How do you quantify something like this?

Well, independent insights agency TRA conducted a pre-campaign omnibus survey across 10 OECD countries.

In the survey, people responded to a question about their views on the Herpes Virus. This provided the baseline for the Herpes Stigma Index that ranked the countries at the start of this campaign.

New Zealand had the second-highest rate of fear of stigmatisation, placing New Zealand 9th in the world.

By watching the video course content and engaging with content online, users can reduce their own stigma and help their country gain points to climb the leaderboard.

Fun and playful? Totally.

Accessible and approachable? Abso-fkn-lutely.

[Keep reading]

-Sophie, Writer

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Ad Verification Practices Are Problematic—So, Where to From Here?

Ad verification may not be the most glamorous part of marketing.

But it plays a critical role in the digital advertising ecosystem.

Think of it like a digital bodyguard. Its primary job is to ensure that your ads appear in appropriate, safe environments in front of real audiences—not on shady sites or in front of bot armies.

The problem is, ad verification has recently become a bit dated.

A recent Mediaocean survey has revealed growing dissatisfaction among marketers with the current 'negative' ad verification model.

Sure, it protects brands from harmful placements and wasted ad spend. But its reactive nature often leaves advertisers frustrated. Instead, they're searching for more proactive, value-driven solutions.

This call for change signals an industry-wide shift toward a more collaborative and insightful approach—one that prioritises trust, transparency, and measurable value creation.

But before diving into why this shift is necessary, let’s first explore what ad verification is and why it matters.

Because look, this sh*t gets confusing for me, too. And the seemingly endless list of ‘processes’ within our industry ensures it’s impossible to know it all.

[Keep reading]

-Sophie, Writer

Trend Plug - I Like My Sootcase

Today's trend comes from the one and only Barron Trump (because, love 'em or hate 'em, the Trumps are trend gold).

A clip from Barron’s childhood has surfaced, and TikTok has run with it. In the video, 4-year-old Barron appears on Larry King Live with his parents. At one point, he says (IN A SLOVENIAN ACCENT), ‘I like my suitcase...I have to go to school now?’

The internet was shocked to find out he had an accent as a child. And now, TikTokers are using this sound in quite a variety of contexts.

Some are taking it literally—using it to feature an actual suitcase (I mean, it works!). Others are lipsyncing to the audio because it's just the kinda earworm that gets stuck in your head for days.

And for those who want a jazzed up version of the original sound, there are plenty of remixes (like this one and this one). Because, why not! (???)

How you can jump on this trend:

Y'all, this sound is pretty random, so anything goes here. Use OST to describe the situation if needed. And don't forget to lipsync along to the sound!

A few OST ideas to get you started:

• My brain when my boss is briefing me on a very important client project

• Me, to myself, after finishing a particularly pretty slide deck

• My intern when I ask what content ideas he has for our new client

- Charlotte, Editor ♡

Today on the YAP podcast…

Want even more ‘YAP’ing? Check out the full podcast here.

Ask the Editor

Q - Our paid ads used to perform well but now the cost of customer acquisition has gone up. Any advice? - Neville

Hey Neville!

Here are a few things you can look at that may help:

1) Take a look at the advertising best practices on the platforms you're using. These things do change over time, so if you haven't made any adjustments in months, this could be why your ads aren't performing well anymore. For example, now the most effective practice is to target everyone in your addressable market, as opposed to targeting lots of narrow audiences. You should also be using all key placements rather than targeting a few areas.

2) Mix up your ad copy and visuals. Ad fatigue is real, so if you've been running the same creative for a long time, it's probably time to update it.

3) Optimise your landing page. When's the last time you did an audit of your landing page? It may be time to update your messaging. Also, check whether it's easy to navigate and make sure all your links and buttons work. A/B test your CTAs to see what is most effective.

- Charlotte, Editor ♡

For the group chat

😂Yap’s funniest home videos: IS SHE OKAY?!
✨Daily inspo: Denzel Washington is just the BEST
😊Soooo satisfying: mouthwatering ice cream pour
🍝What you should make for dinner tonight: 5 ingredient dinner!!

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