You what? Specsavers speaks up over mild hearing loss

Specsavers is aiming to highlight the everyday consequences of mild hearing loss and encourage people to act before it worsens, through a new integrated campaign, “The Whole Conversation”.

While many associate hearing issues with significant loss or age, research shows that people are often comfortable living with partial hearing, rationalising it with lines like “I’m not deaf, I just didn’t catch that.”

As a result, many delay seeking help, even when hearing loss affects daily conversations.

This new campaign aims to challenge that mindset and show that simple solutions are easily available.

Conceived by Specsavers Creative (in house creative department) and brought to life by Bafta-winning director Declan Lowney (Father Ted, Cold Feet, Ted Lasso), the ads use Specsavers’ classic comedic storytelling to show how even missing just a few words can completely change the meaning of what is being said.

Running across TV, VOD, cinema, audio, OOH, digital, and press, the campaign encourages people to book a free hearing check with Specsavers’ expert audiologists.

A 30″ TV spot leads the campaign featuring “Kevin the dog”, a seemingly mild-mannered Afghan hound, whose walker fails to hear the warning that Kevin gets overexcited “when he sees ducks”; cue them both returning home soaking wet.

This is supported by contextual executions with faded-out missed words that highlight embarrassing everyday scenarios that can happen when people don’t hear the whole conversation including in the supermarket, when “You get the melon” becomes “You melon” when not heard in full.

Specsavers head of marketing for audiology Nick Rainbow said: “We know from our audience research that many people live with mild hearing loss for years without doing anything about it. They might be hearing ‘most’ of the conversation, but they’re not hearing all of it. This campaign challenges the idea that ‘getting by’ is good enough and shows how much better life can be when you’re fully tuned in.”

Specsavers global creative director Richard James added: “Mild hearing loss is an extremely common issue that affects millions, yet many people don’t believe their own situation is ‘bad enough’ to need help. We wanted to create something warm, witty and deeply relatable that highlighted how hearing whole conversations matters to and affects people’s daily lives.”

The Whole Conversation will run for six weeks, with media planning and buying led by MG OMD. It follows Specsavers’ ‘Love is in the Ear’ integrated campaign, which was launched in partnership with Jack Whitehall’s bickering parents, Michael and Hilary, to explore the impact of hearing loss on relationships.