The Misery Index
Format: Digital & Social Campaign c.2018
A contextually aware, micro-localized digital campaign gasped and giggled future fans and proved that there are no boundaries in advertising.
What's worse?... “Your Ex Winning the Lottery” or “Your Daughter Landing a New Job at a Strip Club?” These are the existential crises you’ll wrestle with when playing The Misery Index on TBS, featuring Jameela Jamil and the Impractical Jokers crew. TBS dared us to dive deep into our darkest imaginations for some hyper-targeted ad placements, and we were happy to let our minds go where most advertising wouldn't dare.
Site placements were key for developing custom creative that provided maximum impact and drove awareness of the new game show. Sure, our innocent little stick figure animations look sweet, but they showed up in places your mom would blush at—billboards over strip clubs, subway ads, toilet placards—you name it. We even gamified banner ads to give people a spicy taste. The real challenge? Figuring out how far is too far... but let’s be honest, we never found that line.
NeoPangea captured the mood from the popular card game-turned-game-show and in a very short timeline made it into some great award-winning digital and IRL creative that was eye-catching and hilarious.
— Jez de Wolff – Director Program Marketing, TBS
Project Services
The Miserable Process
Below you’ll witness just how little fun we had on this project (spoiler: it was an absolute blast). We didn’t think we could stoop to such delightfully ridiculous levels, but hey, our inner 12-year-olds couldn’t resist going wild.
Disturbing Digital Ads
For the banner placements, we spotted a chance to level up and gamify the ads, letting users get a sneak peek at gameplay scenarios within interactive, expandable units. We didn’t stop there—rich media brought those cringe-worthy moments from the show promos front and center. And to really grab attention, we animated the cast in the main key art, amplifying their shock and horror in a way you definitely couldn’t miss.
Striving for Realism
The card game references? Pure gold. They gave us the perfect launchpad to conjure up a wild mix of ideas for the web, social media, and even those epic OOH spots. We were told there were no limits—and, oh boy, we took that seriously. Boundaries were pushed. Eyes were caught. And hey, if we left a few jaws on the floor, all in a day's work, right?
Shocking Social Media
On social media, we went full freak mode. We threw in some painfully relatable moments—like when your mom decides to post politics on your Facebook wall—alongside absolute nightmare fuel, like accidentally sharing your porn search history on Twitter (now X)). The goal? We wanted people to see the ad, go ‘Huh?’, do a double-take, and then have that ‘Wait... what did I just read?’ moment, followed by pure mortification.
Awkward OOH Marketing
Out in the wild, our OOH ads were as bold as they come. Yeah, we hit the classics—Times Square, subways and transit shelters—but we also scouted some bespoke spots that made people do a double take, chuckle, snap a pic, and blast it all over their feeds. The kind of placements that scream, ‘You have to share this.
