Why do humans like lying so much?
Not the big, life-ruining kind of course… but the little ones.
The bluff in poker. The fake laugh in a Zoom meeting. The “I’m five minutes away” text when you haven’t left your house.
Lying is a thrill. It’s messy, it’s powerful, and when there are no real-world consequences, it’s kind of... fun.
That’s exactly what Secret Hitler taps into, not just strategy or gameplay, but the deep human instinct to deceive and be deceived. Our campaign didn’t try to tame that impulse. We amplified it. Because in a world of endless rules, politeness, and pressure to “be real,” Secret Hitler invites you to do the opposite.
Secret Hitler: Made for liars.
1: The Spark
There’s always an insight that lights the fuse. The one for this specific firework show was this:
CONSUMER INSIGHT: Couch Conspirators are tired from the rigid 9-5 and long for an escape from real-world repercussions.
BRAND INSIGHT: Secret Hitler allows players to immerse themselves in a new role and entertain their inner liar through the thrill of deceit.
2: Fuel for the fire
A campaign wouldn’t become a campaign without the strategy. Without it, it’s just another edgy idea that sounds cool until someone asks, “But why?”
For this campaign, we grounded everything in a clear, culture-rooted approach:
STRATEGY:
Get Couch Conspirators to ditch the buttoned up nine-to-five and indulge in the deception of Secret Hitler.
3: The Boom
This is where things get twisted. A campaign built around one unapologetic truth:
Secret Hitler is for liars.
We didn’t try to sanitize the brand and instead we let it go full villain. The campaign leaned into suspicion, betrayal, and backstabbing as the selling points. Because in a world full of polite small talk and LinkedIn energy, this game lets you lie to your friends and feel incredibly good about it.
The aesthetic? Dark. The humor? Sharp. The tone? Bold enough to make grandma uncomfortable.
This wasn’t just a game night pick. It was a release. A rebellion.
A beautifully chaotic reminder that sometimes the best version of you… is a little bit evil.
CREATIVE BRIEF
CREATIVE BRIEF
Execution
Slide Execution
What did I learn?
This campaign research pushed me to get comfortable with the uncomfortable — and honestly, I loved it.
Secret Hitler isn’t a safe brand, and that meant the strategy couldn’t be safe either. I had to lean into the strange, the dark, the morally questionable — and still ground everything in insight. It taught me that good strategy doesn’t mean making things palatable. It means making them work. Even (especially) when they make people raise an eyebrow.
I learned how to take an idea that could easily be dismissed as “too weird” and make it undeniable by rooting it in cultural truth, a clear audience need, and a tone that didn’t flinch. I also saw how powerful it can be when a team embraces the odd together, where boldness is collaborative, not chaotic.
This project reminded me that there’s room in advertising for the strange, the sharp, and the subversive. In fact, it’s often the unusual that ends up being the most unforgettable.
THE TEAM
STRATEGISTS: Lily Hansen, Liz Keohane, Elle Gardener