Newsletter
Events
These 'InsomniAds' Are Designed to Make You Fall Asleep
Sinai Health's bedtime bid for menopause relief
Nearly 50 percent of menopausal women suffer from insomnia. With help from Diamond in Toronto, Sinai Health Foundation is using its YouTube pre-roll ad space to help, by presenting the digital equivalent of counting sheep.
There’s an underlying theme to these works. They’re drony and packed with mansplaining. Or—in the case of “Office Pizza Party”—needless ruminations nobody cares about that we somehow still encounter with aggressive regularity in white-collar work.
Putting them to use for bedtime is a sly but gentle commentary on how much energy gets expended on stuff that doesn’t matter much. The hormonal and physical chaos of menopause limits patience, making attention all the more expensive. So it’s nice to see these life-sucking moments appear in proper context: as an impetus for snoozing.
“Unbearable insomnia is something far too many women quietly endure,” says Rebecca Flaman, EVP at Diamond. “We wanted to meet the moment with empathy, creativity, and a bit of humor. By responding with something intentionally and painfully dull, we’re offering relief while shining a light on the bigger issue. It’s one part awareness, one part coping mechanism—and 100 percent boring by design.”
The ads will run on YouTube and across social media between 2 a.m. and 5 a.m. They are part and parcel of Sinai’s broader “Hot and Bothered” platform, launched last year to support the creation of Canada’s first Centre for Mature Women’s Health.
The foundation hopes to raise $50 million to close the gender gap in care, research and awareness.
Angela Natividad is the European markets editor at Muse by Clios. She also writes about gaming and fashion, and whatever else she’s interested in, really. She’s based in Paris and North Italy, so if you’re local, say hi. She might eat all your food.
