How do you raise awareness of an issue that is so little talked about? MRM's idea of choice was to build a bespoke platform to give the people involved a space, time and, most importantly, the chance to be heard.
Most men feel like they're not worthy of the feelings that come from a miscarriage. Yet, many are affected, and they should still take some time to talk about their mental health. Born out of an open brief to the entire creative department, talkMiscarriage enabled men to talk openly about their feelings on a national platform, and it carried the distinctive mark of the talented team at MRM.
Today we are getting Behind the Idea to learn more about how MRM helped break the stigma around men's mental health with the inspiring initiative below.
What was the brief?
The effect miscarriage has on men – the ‘nearly Dad’s, can be devastating. Unable to talk about their feelings as they didn’t feel entitled to them, their silence was causing toxic issues in their relationships and was destroying their mental health. The brief from The Miscarriage Association was to break this debilitating silence.
How did the initial pitch/brainstorming phase go?
We did an ‘open brief’ to the entire creative dept. Everyone pitched in ideas and there were some great ones that didn’t have the time and budget for. We narrowed the final selection to 3 which we presented to our fabulous client, Ruth.
Tell us more about the concept. How did it come to life, and why was it the right choice?
We really wanted not just to raise awareness about the issue but to actively get men to do something about it. Rebranding Talk Radio to ‘Talk Miscarriage’ on Father’s Day and creating a specific phone in radio show meant that men could open up on a national platform for the first time.
Getting men to talk openly about their feelings is difficult especially around an issue as emotionally complicated as miscarriage. But radio phone ins are one of the few places men traditionally feel comfortable publicly expressing their emotions, so we knew if we created a sympathetic space for them to be heard then we could really reach the other ‘nearly Dad’s’ out there.
What was the production process like? What was the biggest challenge?
The biggest challenge was finding the right media partner which is why Talk Radio played such a huge part. They totally understood the power of what we were proposing and really worked with us to maximise the reach of the idea.
Did Covid impact the production process? If so, how?
Luckily, we didn’t have too many issues.
What is one funny or notable thing that happened during production?
I think the most notable thing was the effect the show had. It’s time to talk about men and miscarriage’ became a trending topic on Twitter on Father’s Day. It went from an issue that no one was talking about to a national conversation in a matter of hours.
What’s the main message of this project and why does it matter?
The shocking fact is suicide is the biggest killer of men under 45, and men’s inability to talk about their issues is a massive contributing factor to this.
The message we are delivering is no matter how unworthy of those feelings men may feel, they should always take the time to try and talk about them. The Miscarriage Association is here for them as well.
How long did it take from inception to delivery?
3 months!
What do you hope it achieves for the brand?
We hope it makes men realise that the Miscarriage Association is there for them as well and they don’t have to pretend to be strong and silent when they are struggling.
