A full-page iPhone print ad in USA Today(R), featured 16 call outs and 16 brands—18 brands, including iPhone and ATandamp;T(R). It’s not a very sexy ad at all—a bunch of logos inside a big black rectangle with lots of text. There’s a lot going on. Doesn’t this go against what a print
ad should do? One singular message, one singular thought? It could
be argued the main message here is, “There’s an app for that.” There isn’t even a directly spelled-out call to action. Yet, when I saw
this ad, I read every single app call out and immediately went to my
iPhone and downloaded four new apps. I loved my iPhone even more
after engaging with my new-found apps. The ad works. Maybe not the
way marketers once believed print ads should work back in the ’90s
or even five years ago. The world of communication is changing. Who’s
still playing in the 1990s?
