Advertising on-the-go

The effect of advertising on public transport...

Think of the millions of people that use public transport on a daily basis. If you are one of those commuters think back to when you last used public transport, what advertisements did you see that were memorable?

When you commute daily on public transport you are subject to the same things day in, day out. I'm sure a fresh new and exciting advertisement each day would at least grab your attention away from the dull traffic. Instead we seem subject to the same poster, billboard and flyer ads for weeks, sometimes months!

I for one feel adverts on trains, buses etc should be updated more regularly to engage the audiences interest. Some of the best forms of advertising available now are digital, these ads change not just daily but in minutes. Keeping it fresh and original is what advertising is all about.

Everyone has had that really long journey on a train at some point and I'm sure you remember the scenery?... No? That's because more often than not its just the same old field and it's very repetitive, very repetitive, very repetitive. Ambient advertising can change all that! The surprise factor can be key to engaging the audiences interest and ambient ads would stand out on that long and repetitive journey. They would be remembered as the one highlight to your journey and next time you see that ad, brand or product being advertised it will already be in your mind.

Less this...

More THIS...

I feel advertising agencies have yet to really exploit all the opportunities of advertising on public transport. I believe once the advertising industry taps into this market of commuters and public transport users, there will be a significant difference in customer buying behaviour. It would definitely brighten up my day!

The Force of Yoda

I'm sure everyone has seen at least one of these ads by now...

The Vodafone adverts staring Yoda have taken over our screens in the last few months, but what is the message? The slogan 'Power To You' seems to be portraying the fact that YOU can have the power by connecting with Vodafone. The ads are relating the power you will have in your hands with a Vodafone mobile to the power (The Force) Yoda has as a fictional character in Star Wars.

I think the campaign is a bit 'try-hard' from Vodafone, I think they needed help, but they have been doing this for years; They have always used endorsements as a key part of their advertising. The main negative with adopting this theme is that they are decreasing their target market. What about the audience that hated Star Wars? They will switch off as soon as they see little green Yoda.



When Vodafone sponsored Manchester United Football Club and used them in their advertising campaigns back in the year 2000, again they were lowering their market instantly. Think of all the football fans out there that dislike Man Utd, that's a huge chunk of the potential market lost already.

I don't think the Yoda campaign is all bad though...

After all I wouldn't be writing this post if the ads had not grabbed my attention. The ad definitely gets people talking and Yoda is a very memorable character, he just won't be convincing me to switch to Vodafone anytime soon.
 

Brand "Cool" dominated by Apple & Luxury Lifestyles

We all love to buy into a brand. Whether it be a fashion label, lifestyle choices, technology, whatever, we all want to show off with a certain something. Some may call it "peacocking", others may say its materialism.

This year's CoolBrands list has seen Apple retain its title as the coolest brand of the year. The list, as voted for by over 3,000 consumers and a panel of key influencers which included television chef Gizzi Erskine and model Daisy Lowe, measures what type of lifestyle's and ideals we have been buying into for the "cool" factor.

Personally, I wasn't surprised with Apple reigning supreme again. With its release of the iPhone 5S and IOS 7, Apple knows that a tech hungry public want products NOW. This lack of patience explains Blackberry's demise and the closure of PC World's and Curry's round the country. How can you sell tech brands when you can't stay up-to-date? Not cool. At all.

An interesting point about CoolBrands is the re-emergence of luxury brands. No, not like last year's attempt at luxury with Haagen-Dazs, I mean, since when was ice cream luxury? Well, maybe since a 99 wasn't 99p anymore...

Moving on, and well, look, I know we all can't afford a Rolex or an Aston Martin, but they hold the 2nd and 3rd spots on the cool list. Maybe that's why they are cool? They are aspirational brands, engrained into our consciousness. However, how come an easily available brand like Apple came up trumps?

Chairman of the CoolBrands council, Stephen Cheliotis said: "Whether it's due to strong heritage, product quality or a correlation with the reviving economy, this year's list saw a definite swing back to luxury brands."

Well, brand Apple might start as one phone contract on a cheap pay band, but as soon as you buy into one, you want more; the latest version of the phone that has a flippy camera, a Mac that fits in an envelope, even just the latest colour. So in a way, and this is from a writer whose house is dominated by Apple, (yet outdated Apple), the tech giant is just as unattainable, and therefore cool.

Yes, the masses have iPhone's, but not many have the whole Apple lifestyle package. Most are stuck in some rubbish 24 month phone contract, 10 phone models behind. Apple is worse than traditionally luxurious brands, because Apple tease you with near affordability. At least Aston Martin and Rolex are beyond the stuff of dreams.

Another point to make here is how utterly pretentious this entire list is. I can see a a right idiot strolling round Camden with his chewed Ray Bans between his teeth, tap-tap-tapping on his iPhone 5S, tweeting away, wearing a ridiculous pair of Nike high tops whilst on his way to pick up Glasto tickets from his stupidly cool friends.

Unfortunately, I am rather jealous of this hedonistic lifestyle; an interesting juxtaposition of freedom to be cool without social constraints, whilst being chained to brands, all in the quest of individuality & belonging; coolness.

You can read CoolBrands List here