Introduction
This is the best manifesto to create emotion. It wasn’t until I was studying manifestos regularly that I even noticed the pattern for this type of structure. Now that I’ve tuned into it, I see it everywhere.
The structure has two distinct halves. The first half always pulls the listener down into the valley of the problem. The manifesto then turns upward, and we rise up, up, up, up toward the insight at the end. The positivity in the second half is essential for success. The strong rise balances the bad vibes from the first half.
Because of that, you need to make sure that you have an insight or story with enough power to pull us all the way out of the valley. You can’t just drag us in with tales of how bad it is and leave us there to die. But if you have a really good insight or really good solutions, everyone will agree it’s worth the journey.
How it works
Step 1: Fall — Demonstrate the depth of the problem
You want and need to pull people into your problem. This takes courage, and to write a great U Shape, you have to be willing to make people uncomfortable. You’re going to talk about your problem for a full half of the script. You can’t let up for the entire time. If even you’re not a little uncomfortable by the halfway mark, you probably haven’t gone far enough. Don’t hold back. Make it vivid, tangible, intense, real, and immediate.
We have a situation on our hands. And the clock is ticking. When a girl turns 12 and lives in poverty, her future is out of her control. In the eyes of many, she’s a woman now. No, really she is. She faces the reality of being married by the age of 14. Pregnant by the time she’s 15. And if she survives childbirth, she might have to sell her body to support her family. Which puts her at risk for contracting and spreading HIV. Not the life you imagined for a 12-year-old, right? …
—from “The Clock is Ticking,” Girl Effect
Not all manifestos need this much explanation. Both Z Shape and S Shape manifestos tackle the problem in only a few sentences at the top of the scripts. But those scripts are designed for different purposes. The Z Shape goes for the mind, while the S Shape goes for the heart. When you want to go for the gut, that’s what the U Shape is for.
Don't do the right thing.
God knows, you'll be tempted.
The right thing sounds so good in meetings.
It looks fantastic in charts.
The right thing soothes racing pulses,
and settles churning stomachs.
Everybody can get on board with the right thing.
The right thing is "good enough."
But good enough is not enough.
Don't do it.
Don't do the right thing.
Avoid it like the plague …
—from “Do the Brave Thing,” TBWA\Chiat Day
Most U Shape ads have a serious tone, but not all of them have the weight of the world. You can use this same intensity and emotional persuasion to talk about problems that are more common. The key is to pack it with enough insights that show you’re not just a tourist to this problem. Your brand knows it better than anybody.
Okay, odds are if you’re one of the people in America with a pickup truck, it ain’t a luxury. It’s a way of life. And chances are you’re not making your money pushing a pencil or hand modeling. You’re actually working for every dollar and need your truck. So at a time when gas is more expensive than bourbon and you got to get more done in less time, it’d be nice if there was a truck that had more than just payload, towing, and mileage numbers …
—from “F150 Way of Life,” Ford
There are a lot of shorter scripts that use the U Shape to great effect as well. When I started studying manifestos, it took me a long time to realize that these were U Shape scripts. Given their smaller size, they sometimes resemble Z Shapes, but when you step back and do the math, they have all the signposts of a great U Shape, just shorter.
Greatness.
It's just something we made up.
Somehow we've come to believe
that greatness is a gift.
Reserved for a chosen few.
For prodigies. For superstars.
And the rest of us can only stand by watching …
—from “Find Your Greatness,” Nike
A quick note on studying U Shapes. Since most of the manifestos on this site come from commercials, the words on the page don’t always represent the pacing of the script. The U Shape always has two balanced halves, but in films that’s determined by time, not word count. Some commercials space out the first or second half differently, so even though there are fewer words in one section, the Turn still comes at the halfway point.
The first half of the following Oculus script is 10 words longer than the back, which is significant when there are only 64 words in the whole piece. But when you watch the original, the Turn is right where it should be.
Reality doesn’t believe in the impossible.
It doesn’t believe in moving without limits.
Or breaking the laws of physics.
Reality will never let you enter magical realms.
Will never let you stop time.
Or wield a lightsaber …
—from “Defy Reality,” Oculus
So, how do you write a good Fall? There are two main ways. The first is with a story, argument, or narrative.
My little baby girl, You’re all grown up now. You used to play house. And now you manage your own house. And your office. I am so proud.
And I am so sorry. Sorry that you have to do all this alone. Sorry that I never stopped you, while you were playing house. I never told you that it’s not your job alone but your husband’s too.
But how could I say that when I never helped your mom either. And what you saw, you learnt. Your husband must have learned the same from his dad. While playing house, he would have pretended to watch TV, while you would have pretended to make tea.
Sorry on behalf of his dad. Sorry on behalf of every dad who set the wrong example …
—from “#ShareTheLoad,” Ariel
With stories, you want to make sure you keep making things worse and worse. Take a close read to the “Cold” opener from The Big Issue again. It starts with wandering the streets and culminates in intensive violence. Similarly, for the Girl Effect piece above. At the beginning, we learn she’s living in poverty. By the end of the Fall, she’s at risk of spreading HIV. You want to keep tugging at the heartstrings in new, more intense ways. Your goal is to make the listener more and more uncomfortable. That’s what’s going to make them most excited about the Turn in Step 2.
The second way to write the Fall is to list a series of examples. These are usually facts that explain whatever your tension is, but it can also be a bunch of questions or other collections of sentences that feel more like a list than a narrative.
If we show emotion, we’re called dramatic.
If we want to play against men, we’re nuts.
And if we dream of equal opportunity, delusional.
If we stand for something, we’re unhinged.
When we’re too good, there’s something wrong with us.
And if we get angry, we’re hysterical,
irrational, or just being crazy …
—from “Dream Crazier,” Nike
Similarly, with the stories, you want to make the list more intense, more personal, and closer to home. Go from “dramatic” to “hysterical.” Go from “wildfires” to “the hungry and the old.”
While nearly all U Shapes start with the problem, there is one more way to do it. You can also start with a story or series of examples that are unsettlingly positive or hopeful. Only do this if you’re ready and willing to pop the balloon in the second half.
Daddy is the sweetest daddy in the world.
Daddy is the most handsome.
The smartest.
The most clever.
The kindest.
He is my superman.
Daddy wants me to do well at school.
Daddy is just great …
—from “My Dad’s Story,” Met Life
Whether long or short, serious or not, the key to all of these are their ratios to the second half. Don’t get timid and stop short. Don’t go for the full script. You want to build just the right amount of pressure. And when the listeners feel like they’d do anything to feel better about this, that’s when it’s time for the hopeful music.
Step 2: Turn — A short line that signals a shift upward
Remarkably, this step is worth mentioning. Every U Shape has a Turn. This is the small yet unmistakable shift in tone. It’s the first deep breath listeners take during your manifesto, the sign that good things, good feelings, good insights, good ideas, or good solutions are ahead.
You don’t have to overthink this step. In many scripts, all you need is the word “But.” Others add a little bit more texture, depending on the needs of the script:
… But the good news is, there is a solution …
—from “The Clock is Ticking,” Girl Effect
… But when technology gets out of the way …
—from “We Believe,” Apple
If you can use “But,” don’t be shy to do so. It completely disappears. The only thing people will remember is whatever you say after it.
That said, there are many more ways to turn a U Shape. I am continuously surprised at just how many variations I see at the halfway point.
You can use a synonym for “But”:
… Actually …
—from “Brand Manifesto,” Travelers
You can dispel lingering doubts:
… You can forget that …
—from “Find Your Greatness,” Nike
You can tackle the most pressing question:
… So, what are you supposed to do?
The wrong thing? Of course not …
—from “Do the Brave Thing,” TBWA\Chiat\Day
You can get excited about your solution:
… Well, the eagle has landed …
—from “F-150 Way of Life,” Ford
You can take a sudden downshift in tone:
You can even do this by naming your brand.
… The Big Issue Foundation knows that …
—from, “Cold,” the Big Issue
The specific words in the Turn are far less important than simply having it at all. Whatever you choose, just make sure you’re ready to pivot to a completely different place than where you started. This is usually the better way and it all happens in Step 3.
Step 3: Rise — Positive build toward your solution
I don’t think it’s an accident that U Shape scripts are the most likely to make people cry. The other five structures can all create significant shifts in perception, excitement, and motivation. But other than some very rare S Shape scripts, the U Shape has an almost unique superpower to tug at the tear ducts.
I believe that reason is the power of the Rise. After the Turn, we’re headed upward. The clouds have parted and we’re talking about our better way. What does that mean in more tangible terms? One good place to start is to think about the second half as a mirror image of the first half.
If the problem was a story in the first half, make the second half a story about what could happen if that problem is fixed:
… Let’s rewind to her at 12. Happy and healthy. She visits a doctor regularly. She stays in school. Where she’s safe. She uses her education to earn a living. Now, she’s calling the shots. And it looks something like this: She can avoid HIV. She can marry and have children when she’s ready. And her children are healthy like she is. Now imagine this continuing for generation after generation. You get the picture, right? …
—from “The Clock is Ticking,” Girl Effect
If your first half was filled with negative examples from the problem, then shift the perspective and show all the positive ways to look at it in the second half.
… A woman running a marathon was crazy. A woman boxing was crazy. A woman dunking — crazy. Coaching an NBA team — crazy. A woman competing in a hijab, changing her sport, landing a double-cork 1080, or winning 23 Grand Slams, having a baby, and then coming back for more? Crazy, crazy, crazy, crazy, and crazy …
—from “Dream Crazier,” Nike
If the first half was about what people expect you to believe, make the second half about what you actually believe.
… But when technology gets out of the way, everything becomes more delightful. Even magical. That’s when you leap forward …
—from “We Believe,” Apple
Many times, the first half of the U Shape will go deep on an unmet desire. If the first half alluded to the need, put the want in the second half:
… Say hello to the all-new ‘09 F-150. It ain’t just about numbers and brute strength. It’s about doing things no truck has ever done before. It can help load cargo. Find lost tools. Connect you to the internet. Squeeze more out of a gallon of gas and keep your trailer from shaking like a plate full of Jell-O. This thing is 5,000 pounds of, “Hey, can I give you a hand with that?”. And oh yeah, guess what, towing payload, mileage: nobody’s got better numbers …
—from “F-150 Way of Life,” Ford
The U Shape is great for solutions. Now that you’ve outlined the problem, how does your company make things better?
… The Big Issue Foundation knows that helping them isn’t merely about getting a roof over their heads. We also need to understand what’s going on in their heads. So what is it that can make someone who trusts almost no one trust us? We never push. And we’re not out to reach any targets. If anyone decides to sell The Big Issue it's because they need the cash, and The Big Issue is pretty much the only legal way they can earn it. When they collect the magazines, they become aware that the Big Issue Foundation offers support for drink and drug addictions, advice and training for jobs, and of course, help with accommodation. But there's no pressure on anyone to take it …
—from “Cold,” The Big Issue
You’ll also see scripts in which the first half is a critique or criticism. If so, the second half is your place to give advice on how to improve.
… Don’t complain.
Tell it like it is.
Don’t bitch.
Hesitate, and you’ll lose.
Put the pedal to the metal.
Live fast …
—from “Wisdom,” Dodge
When scripts spend the first half of the script being optimistically and unrealistically positive, everything comes crashing down in the second half.
… He lies.
He lies about having a job.
He lies about having money.
He lies that he’s not tired.
He lies that he’s not hungry.
He lies that we have everything.
He lies about his happiness …
—from “My Dad’s Story,” Met Life
If you’re writing a lighthearted piece, let yourself have fun with this section. If you’re working on something more serious, let yourself get mad, angry, frustrated, pissed.
When you make it to the end of your piece, this is the mic drop moment. You need to summarize your point so perfectly and completely that the audience has no choice but to remember it.
Most of the other structures require something specific from the ending. The Z Shape needs the impact of your POV. The E Shape needs a Summary. The S Shape needs a Rally. The W Shape needs a Button. Surprisingly, each one of those could work as the final lines of U Shape scripts.
Some end with a Rally:
… That I can go to parties.
That I can have sex.
That I can be on stage.
—from “Assume that I Can,” CoorDown
Some end with a button:
… That’s why we’re doing it.
—from “Save the Planet,” Dodge
Some end with a summary:
… We're all capable of it. All of us.
—from “Find Your Greatness,” Nike
When in doubt, just start flipping through the example manifestos on this site and see what other brands are doing. You might be surprised where inspiration strikes.
