Should you surprise people with marketing images? Is a novel image a good idea? How do you play against expectations?
By Marc Zasada
Managing Director, Screenfire Media
Is your marketing agency showing you something “novel and surprising that’s sure to get people’s attention,” but it leaves you a little uneasy?
A beach ball bouncing off a client’s head. A dragon family flying into the upper story of your hotel. A delivery driver parachuting into a factory.
How “new and unexpected” should marketing be before it starts hurting your brand?
There’s actually a sound marketing principle behind this decision, and it begins with understanding the difference between novelty and surprise.
Both can attract attention. But one is usually the safer bet.
What’s the Difference Between Novelty & Surprise in Marketing?
According to cognitive scientists, something novel has never been experienced before (dragons flying into a hotel suite), while something unexpected or “surprising” is familiar, but occurs in an unforeseen way (a beach ball bouncing off a client’s head).
A good marketing agency uses both carefully.
Imagine you’re advertising beer. You show someone sea kayaking among beautiful islands. Then the camera pulls back and reveals the kayak is shaped like a giant beer bottle.
Some brands might get away with that, but most shouldn’t. Why? Because the novelty exists completely outside normal expectations.
The same problem applies to aliens landing to sample the beer or sea monsters lifting boats to steal fishermen’s cans.
Ironically, images like these are often less memorable than advertisers expect. They don’t fit naturally into how people understand the world, so the brain struggles to connect them to the brand…and ends up not caring at all.
Now let’s look at surprise instead.
We’re back in the sea-kayaking scene. The kayakers paddle to an achingly beautiful island. After they land, one of the kayaks turns out to be packed entirely with ice, beer, and sandwiches.
Not wildly novel. But unexpected.
That small surprise feels believable, enjoyable, and easier to remember.
Marketing “The Unexpected” in Subtle Ways
The unexpected can be even more subtle.
Suppose you’re a global delivery company competing against other delivery companies that have been around for decades. Visitors already have expectations about what your website will look and sound like. Your agency’s job is to push against those expectations just enough to be memorable.
What about a headline that says:
“We’re the NEW through rain, sleet, and snow guys.”
Pair it with a line of delivery vans powering through a snowstorm.
The phrase feels familiar, but there’s a twist. That’s often where memorable marketing lives.
Subtle Marketing Beats Trying Too Hard
Should a delivery company go all-out on surprise and use images of delivery drivers parachuting packages into factories? In the age of AI, creating those visuals is easy.
But I’d often advise against it.
Novelty for its own sake is risky. Audiences quickly dismiss it as inauthentic or as a brand trying too hard. And let me repeat: because it doesn’t connect to existing expectations, it can actually be harder to remember than a realistic image with a clever twist.
The bottom line? Think twice and remember the important differences in approach. Agencies love to wow clients with novelty. Sometimes that’s appropriate. Often it isn’t. Look at all those Super Bowl ads that bomb.
The safest approach is usually not to ask, “How novel can we be?”
Instead, ask:
“Where can we introduce a small, meaningful surprise?”
That’s where attention, memorability, and brand trust often meet.
Stay fiery,
Marc
About the author: Marc Zasada is the Managing Director and Co-Founder of Screenfire. His credits include work for Microsoft, Mastercard, Christie’s, and many other leading companies.
Does your marketing need help? Email us at info@screenfiremedia.com.
