HMN 2025: What is the psychology behind escapist advertising in anxious instances

Why did Aritzia open a café inside its flagship retailer in Toronto? Why did Burberry pivot from vogue images to cinematic advertisements that transport viewers into dreamlike sequences? And why is Simons, Canada’s remaining division retailer, incorporating art and interactive technologies into its retail areas?

The reply lies in a development generally known as escapist advertising. In an period marked by economic uncertainty, local weather anxiousness, geopolitical tensions and relentless digital fatigue, manufacturers are turning to fantasy, storytelling and emotionally immersive design to promote merchandise to shoppers.

Escapist advertising is a technique that creates emotionally immersive experiences to assist shoppers briefly escape from {reality}, typically by fantasy, nostalgia or idealized life. It faucets into the need for aid from stress or monotony by providing imaginative or aspirational narratives.

Escapist advertising has been gaining traction in Canada as shoppers are drawn to manufacturers that spark creativeness and emotional engagement. According to a 2024 Retail Council of Canada report, Gen Z consumers favor manufacturers that supply emotional connection, function and creativity.

The inaugural Great Canadian Brand Index, which one among us (Eugene Y. Chan) helped develop, discovered that manufacturers perceived as adventurous, sincere and imaginative scored highest in total public favorability. These are exactly the qualities expressed by fantastical storytelling.

As advertising professors and researchers, we have been finding out how and why this method works, and we have discovered it is grounded in psychology.

The rise of fantasy in branding

While manufacturers have lengthy used aspiration in their marketing, immediately’s methods really feel noticeably totally different. The focus has shifted from luxurious and exclusivity to escapism itself, and it is changing into more and more seen throughout industries.

Consider Coca-Cola’s “Real Magic” campaign, as an illustration, which makes use of AI-generated imagery to create whimsical dreamscapes. Or Apple’s latest “Mother Nature” ad, which reframes a company report concerning the model’s assist of environmental and social points as a high-concept movie starring Octavia Spencer.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QNv9PRDIhes

In London, Gucci’s “Gucci Cosmos” series invitations guests right into a surreal world of time journey and design historical past.

These advertising campaigns are all designed to be emotional experiences for shoppers. This implies that the emotional reactions shoppers have throughout interactions with a model, services or products affect their attitudes, reminiscences and future decision-making. These feelings deepen engagement and strengthen model loyalty.

As shoppers proceed to really feel burned out and overstimulated, fantasy within the type of escapism provides them psychological aid. Research reveals that immersive experiences—whether or not by leisure, retail environments or model storytelling—can distract from stressors and promote emotional recovery. By offering a short lived break from {reality}, fantasy-driven advertising faucets right into a deep psychological want for consolation and cognitive launch.

Why it really works: The psychology of escapism

To perceive why escapist advertising is so efficient, it helps to take a look at the psychology behind it.

One clarification comes from construal level theory, a framework that examines how psychological distance shapes pondering. When one thing feels far-off in time, house or familiarity, we have a tendency to consider it extra abstractly.

Surreal or fantastical branding will increase this distance, shifting shoppers’ focus from instant utility to emotional resonance, id and creativeness.

While escapist advertising is a broader technique that goals to assist shoppers mentally disengage from {reality}, surreal or fantastical branding is one particular tactic that makes use of dreamlike, imaginative visuals and narratives to attain that purpose.

Not all escapist advertising is surreal, however surreal branding typically serves as a robust type of escapism by transporting shoppers into an alternate world.

Our analysis helps this. In one study, we explored how concave visible design—where advert components curve inward—draws viewers into the imagery, increases feelings of immersion and enhances message recall and persuasion. This is probably going why dream-like campaigns typically use fluid, expansive or distorted imagery.

Another issue is anthropomorphism: the tendency to assign human traits to things or environments. In our research on vacation spot branding, we discovered that people are more emotionally connected to places or products that appear to return alive. These findings assist clarify why fantastical branding resonates so strongly with shoppers, notably in instances of stress.

Escapism additionally pairs naturally with luxurious branding, where emotional desire often outweighs functional need. In a recent study with our research colleagues, we discovered that luxurious manufacturers have been evaluated extra favorably when their positioning felt summary or elevated. Fantasy enhances this impact, permitting shoppers to really feel each wealthier and transported.

Escapism is not a free go

There’s a advantageous line between significant escapism and empty spectacle. If a model’s fantasy narrative feels disconnected from its motion, or seems to masks unethical practices, shoppers are fast to note.

Greenwashing, AI overuse or tone-deaf advertising can simply backfire on companies.

When shoppers understand a model as inauthentic—whether or not by deceptive sustainability claims, extreme reliance on AI or insensitive messaging—it might probably erode belief, set off public criticism and result in model avoidance.

Studies present that such missteps typically end in reputational injury and decreased buyer loyalty, notably amongst values-driven or socially conscious shoppers.

This is where the idea of radical honesty intersects with escapism. The simplest advertising campaigns immediately mix creativity with transparency. They inform imaginative tales whereas additionally acknowledging real-world points like carbon emissions, labor practices and social justice points.

Brands like Patagonia—and Peace Collective in Canada that is working along with McDonalds—have managed to strike this stability by combining emotionally impactful advert campaigns with commitments to moral and sustainable practices.

Consumers need experiences that resonate

In instances of financial stress and cultural fatigue, Canadians are seeking experiences that resonate with them. When finished thoughtfully and grounded in psychology and authenticity, escapist advertising can reply to shoppers’ need to really feel one thing deeper, even by way of one thing as transient as a 30-second advert.

So subsequent time you end up smiling at a surreal industrial or lingering in a rigorously curated retail house, perceive that small brief time period of surprise is a strategic selection, supported by analysis.

But whereas immersive storytelling could captivate audiences, shoppers have gotten extra discerning about what feels genuine. The way forward for escapist advertising could lie within the mixing of digital and bodily realities. Tools like augmented and digital {reality} can allow brands to create even more immersive fantasies.

Imagine ordering coffee from an AI-generated character or in a branded metaverse cafe. While it could appear futuristic and enjoyable, many shoppers really feel uneasy when manufacturers rely too closely on synthetic interactions, fearing a lack of authenticity. This rigidity highlights the rising divide between technological novelty and the human connection shoppers nonetheless crave.

As expertise evolves, so, too, will shopper expectations of emotional, imaginative engagement. The subsequent chapter in fantasy branding could not simply provide us an escape, however may redefine how we {experience} commerce itself.

This article is republished from The Conversation below a Creative Commons license. Read the unique article.