As brand storytellers, our initial job is to grab attention and maintain interest. Sometimes we’re so focused on creating a memorable idea, we inadvertently sacrifice clarity.

I think we saw it recently with Sprint’s “Framily” concept (which now has been retired). The creative team was trying to find a memorable way to explain the concept. The trouble was that the cleverness got in the way of us understanding what the offering was. If I’m spending time trying to figure out why the father in the family is a hamster, I’m probably not getting why I should I should care about this offering.

It is difficult to create great messages that are infectious and effective. The “Framily” concept is a good reminder that we should take a hard look at our ideas to make sure cleverness is not trumping clarity.