Admit it, Tootsie Rolls probably didn’t rank very high on your “favorite candy” list as a kid. In fact, you found the massive cluster of them at the bottom of your Halloween candy basket slightly disappointing. Tootsie Pops, on the other hand, were a step up. And with advertising like this, how could you not love them? The viral ad that became widespread in 1970 follows a little boy who asks a bunch of animals the million-dollar question—“How many licks does it take to get to the Tootsie Roll center of a Tootsie Pop?” Shortened versions of the commercial still air today, always ending with their famous slogan: “The World May Never Know.”
When exploring the appeal of such a simple commercial, nostalgia always plays a role. Aside from that, marketers have credited strategies such as “SUCCESS” (Simple, Unexpected, Concrete, Credible, Emotional, Stories). Furthermore, the commercial ticks off some of David Ogilvy’s boxes for ad effectiveness: “Do I wish I thought of it myself?” and “Could it be used for 30 years?” Aside from the childhood memories Tootsie Pops remind us of, they also teach us that the simplest ads can make the biggest impact—even 50 years later.