The world's most effective ad is an eye-testing children's book

A children's book in Australia, which makes it easier for parents to screen their child's vision, has been named the world's most effective advertising campaign.

Australian ad agency Saatchi & Saatchi created Penny the Pirate book, which has eye tests disguised as images on its pages, for optometry company OPSM. The Warc 100, an annual ranking of marketing campaigns that tests effectiveness of ads, placed the book and app as its number one campaign for 2016, based on its performance in 2015.

Combining a traditional book and a tablet app that is available for free, Penny the Pirate incorporates multiple vision tests into a fun kids' book, allowing parents to test their eyesight as they read the story to their child. No frightening optometrist visits here.

The book helps identifies three of the most common eye issues for children: distance vision, colour vision and depth perception.

The book was launched in June 2014, and was developed in conjunction with illustrator and author Kevin Waldron and the Department of Vision Sciences at Melbourne University. 

Following its release, more than 126,000 parents obtained the book and there was a 23% growth year-on-year in the number of children's eye tests conducted by OPSM, according to Warc. The book is also being used by not-for-profit OneSight, a vision care foundation supported by OPSM's parent company, Luxottica. 

Coming in second in Warc's most effective campaigns for 2016 is the #LikeAGirl series by feminine care brand Always, and third is the U.S Navy's Project Architeuthis, which encourages the Internet to solve a puzzle.

Who knew, trying to fix children's vision makes a really good ad. 

[h/t Mumbrella]

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