Molly’s TED Talk
Can a game of peek-a-boo change the world?
Problem:
The volume of a child’s brain has reached 90% by the age of five. The interactions children have in their early years can have a profound impact on their brain development and wellbeing throughout life.
The brain science, however, can be overwhelming and confusing to well-meaning parents. We needed to demonstrate the simple yet life-changing things all parents and caregivers can do to help children thrive.
Solution:
We created the world’s youngest ever TED Talk; a complex neuroscience lesson in early childhood development, delivered by a 7-year-old girl, Molly.
As the world's youngest ever TED speaker, Molly was able to deliver a simple, clear message to parents around the globe: a game of peek-a-boo really can change the world.
To ensure global reach, we worked with UNICEF to transcreate the talk for markets such as Afghanistan, Kenya and Indonesia, re-recording the content with local talent, in local language. The film was translated into 35 languages and published in 190 countries.
Global toolkits were distributed across UN and UNICEF Networks, with ambassadors such as Shakira and Beyoncé sharing Molly’s TED Talk.
In a classic case of "it's better to ask for forgiveness than permission", we wrote the script in-house, found the talent, borrowed the TED sign and filmed the TED Talk - all without TED's involvement. TED famously doesn't do brand campaigns or collaborations, but when we shared the finished product with them, they loved it and took it upon themselves to push Molly's TED Talk out through their own channels.
Result:
It was the No.1 watched TED Talk of 2021, and the most watched TED Talk on Instagram EVER- little Molly even beat out TED Talks from Bill Gates and Elon Musk.
Beyond the vanity metrics, this campaign delivered lasting impact that will change the world.
This campaign was one of the strongest performing campaigns ever tested by KANTAR. 75% of parents of children 0-5 years who saw the film said they have taken action or intend to. Not only that, 90% of prospective parents said the same, and 69% of caregivers.
We reached 23.14% of parents of children under 5 around the world, which is 162 million parents - nearly 2,214% over our target of 7 million. With no global media spend.
Molly’s TED Talk has the potential to improve the health outcomes for children on a global scale.
