What to do about Apple's poor advertising

Posted:
in General Discussion edited January 2014
As most mac fans will tell you, Apple does a terrible job of informing the general public about the mac. In the last few weeks I have seen hundreds of XP advertisements and not a one for X. Apple seems content to let information travel by word of mouth. What I am about to propose might seem stupid to you or might not seem possible but here goes. I propose that us mac users get together and pay for high traffic roadside billboard space. We then create our own Apple add. It should be simple but to the point. A text example of what one would be like:

_______________________________

The Future is Here



X



Visit your local Apple Store or

<a href="http://www.apple.com"; target="_blank">www.apple.com</a> today!

_______________________________



[ 11-26-2001: Message edited by: G4Dude ]



[ 11-26-2001: Message edited by: G4Dude ]</p>
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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 22
    amorphamorph Posts: 7,112member
    Companies are generally very sensitive about who uses their trademarks, how and why. As hard as it may be to understand, most companies - and certainly Apple - do not like other people doing their advertising for them.



    You're seeing MS ads but not Apple ads? That's not really surprising. MS is blowing half a billion dollars on XBox advertising alone. Apple doesn't have that kind of money to sling around. I've seen a fair number of full-page ads in magazines, though.
  • Reply 2 of 22
    groveratgroverat Posts: 10,872member
    Just about everyone I've talked to that's seen the iPod commercial has loved it. Most of my family members thought it was great when they saw it over Thanksgiving.



    The only people who seem to dog it are computer nerds.



    That Steven kid for Dell is really effective, too.
  • Reply 3 of 22
    g4dudeg4dude Posts: 1,016member
    I am aware that Apple wouldn't like it but that doesn't mean we couldn't try. It would be up for probably a week before they threatened legal action. And a week ain't bad
  • Reply 4 of 22
    cdhostagecdhostage Posts: 1,038member
    hEY mAYBE i gIVE yOU dOLLA fOR dIS!!!
  • Reply 5 of 22
    g4dudeg4dude Posts: 1,016member
    The more i think about it, the more I wonder "what the hell I was thinking?"
  • Reply 6 of 22
    bellebelle Posts: 1,574member
    [quote]Originally posted by G4Dude:

    <strong>The more i think about it, the more I wonder "what the hell I was thinking?"</strong><hr></blockquote>

    Don't worry about it G4Dude. If I had a dollar for every time I end up thinking that... And I've vowed to be nice to anyone from Portland because I plan to move there sometime in '02.



    One thing of interest, though...

    [quote]I propose that us mac users get together and pay for high traffic roadside billboard space.<hr></blockquote>

    Apple had enormous billboards up on the expressway last time I flew into JFK. There are vast numbers of commuters who saw those signs every day as they traveled into Manhattan. So Apple is advertising in this way, and I'm not entirely certain how effective it is?
  • Reply 7 of 22
    emaneman Posts: 7,204member
    [quote]Originally posted by Belle:

    <strong>

    Apple had enormous billboards up on the expressway last time I flew into JFK. There are vast numbers of commuters who saw those signs every day as they traveled into Manhattan. So Apple is advertising in this way, and I'm not entirely certain how effective it is?</strong><hr></blockquote>



    Right Belle. I know that there are plenty of places in NY that have or had Apple ads. I think Apple needs as many TV commercials as they have billboard ads.
  • Reply 8 of 22
    majormattmajormatt Posts: 1,077member
    Dont worry. I have posted some idiotic posts in the past, luckily they've been lost.



    It's amazing how desperate we have come for apple to improve advertising, to do it ourselves!
  • Reply 9 of 22
    dogcowdogcow Posts: 713member
    If you believe it or not Apple is doing a fairly good job at advertising. While they don't have billions of $ to blow on advertising like MS, they still are getting the word out. (Honestly if i knew nothing about computers i think i would chose to stay away from MS because i really hate when companies flood the market with something, like XP) Anyway, Apple has billboards in major cities, they put front/back cover ads in high profile mags (they even had a full center page brochure in Time.), they have TV ads the while we may bitch about people do like and remember (i can confirm this ), and on top of they they are opening retail stores all over the country that are just one big advertisement (Gezz my English teacher would kill me with a sentence this long, better end it now).
  • Reply 10 of 22
    pscatespscates Posts: 5,847member
    Okay, here it is. This is what I would do if I had a say-so in Apple's marketing.



    1. Hire Gillian Anderson as a commercial spokesperson



    Sexy voice, guys love her, geeks love her, women don't hate her, she's got credibility and she's cultivated this image of brainy sexiness that would mesh well with Apple's style and target audience. In general, people dig her. Certainly more than Jeff Goldblum, you can bank on that.



    She's not a T&A type of spokesperson, not like on a beer commercial. She doesn't inspire thoughts of murder or jealousy in other women that, say, perhaps a more blatantly sexpot-ish type of pitchwoman would.



    In other words, NO Pamela Anderson talking about how "I'm, like, SO into this, um...iBook?"







    Gillian Anderson would look right at home walking up to the camera, all dressed in black and clutching a Titanium PowerBook G4 and cooing its praises.







    Besides, any further opportunity to look at Ms. Anderson is good enough reason for me.



    And at her absolute WORST, she'll mop the floor with anything that idiot Goldblum ever did in any Apple commercial.



    As it is, every tech/computer company has guys in it: Steven the Dell kid, the ponytailed Gateway guy, Goldblum for the old Apple ads (hell, even the newer ones with the airplane brat and the iPod spaz are both guys, as was the "Rip, Mix & Burn" kid). I'm trying to think of a computer company or techie type of company that features women as the centerpiece of their commercials/marketing strategy.



    Apple, truly "think different" and SHOW A CHICK!



    2. Dispel the myths.



    Take your pick, as there are probably a good 10 or so spouted by every know-nothing, Mac-oblivous person out there. The people walking around actually believing (a) Apple is going out of business, (b) Microsoft bought Apple and owns them, (c) the Mac is ONLY for graphics and the creative arts, (d) software isn't available for Macs, (e) Macs are too cool-looking (or outright cute) to be thought of as "serious" computers, (f) need I go on? You get the picture.



    And, for the love of God, tackle that ****ing MHz thing, will you?



    3. Show the products BEING USED



    Hey, I'm all for arty, clean spinning iBooks on a white background, but Apple's problem in their marketing is that image - and image alone - is carrying the water.



    Real people in the real world need to know what these cool LOOKING Macs can actually do. But drop the cuteness and the forced storylines.



    Nobody seemed impressed by the shithead on the airplane taking up his passengers trays with his ham-handed attempts to make the most of his digital hub. I would've beaten his ass with a food tray if I was waken from sleep and some kid dared to play "Who Let the Dogs Out", as if seeking my approval on it.



    Show (using the lovely and talented Ms. Anderson from above) the G4 doing it's thing with the SuperDrive. Or show Gillian on one side of a room with an iBook and an AirPort Base Station on the other in a spot about AirPort wireless networking. Write some cool (NOT CUTE AND NOT SMARMY) copy to accompany these things. Be serious. But in a casual, cool and engaging way.



    Does that make sense?



    Apple has all these kick-ass products out: AirPort, Cinema Display, iBook, iTunes, OS X, etc. that have either gotten NO screentime OR get some stupid vague treatment from a commercial that nobody gets OR pays attention to.



    I guarantee you, you put a babed-up Agent Scully, some cool lighting and camera work, GOOD music, clever writing and scenarios all in the same room and film it, and things will turn around dramatically.



    If done right, it'll create a buzz OUTSIDE the already indoctrinated Mac community.



    And that, my friends, is the only way things are ever going to start to turn around.



    Talk about the retail stores!

    This SHOULD be a no-brainer, but...



    How in the hell do you expect to do this whole "marketshare turnaround" thing with these new retail stores, when it's apparent that the only people who truly know about them are us, the current Mac-using, Apple-worshipping crowd? My mom and all her PC-using friends don't know there are Apple retail stores out there and what they offer. My Windows-frustrated co-workers don't know that there are Apple retail stores out there either. If I didn't tell them that one just opened up here in San Diego, they NEVER would have known.



    How can you open up a chain of 25 stores across the nation and simply trust word-of-mouth and some PC user accidentally stumbling across maccentral.com one day and seeing the story of a new store opening?



    You can't, and that's the problem.



    If, after this initial period of good-feelings and "cool...Apple has a store for us now!" sentiments subside (and it will), if these stores languish and fizzle out and close down, one after the other, you, Apple, only have yourselves to blame.



    And it is going to be so hard for me to resist saying "I told you so...".



    Get a ****ing clue and realize that we, the faithful, can't carry ALL your water, ALL the time.



    One last thing (heehee...)



    If Ms. Anderson's busy schedule prohibits her from signing on, then simply do the next best thing:



    Think about it people. What do every one of us do twice a year? We practically spurt ourselves getting keyed up and antsy over Steve Jobs Macworld Expo keynotes.



    And why? Charisma, straight-talk, RDF in full effect, etc.



    Apple, whether or not they know it or have even considered it, probably has the best pitchman they could EVER hope to have, right under their very own nose.



    What would be so bad about Steve himself, in regulation jeans and black turtleneck, doing the talking, the demos, the cheerleading and so forth?



    If that ugly, no-presence dipshit from Gateway can star in HIS commercials, well...



    Steve's MUCH better-looking, has a much more engaging style, makes the demos of iTunes, iMovie, etc. look far more interesting and cool than they really are, etc.







    The "vibe" (for lack of a better word) that he brings to the big keynotes could be broken down into a cool series of well-written 30 minute spots, some focusing on hardware, some on software.



    Make sure a little humor and humility seep in to the proceedings, along with GOOD slogans and catchphrases, and you have the makings of quite a nice little campaign.



    This isn't hard, Apple. I'm sitting here in my living room, NOT EVEN TRYING, and am coming up with better ideas than you're had in THREE GODDAMN YEARS!







    That's it. I'm tapped.



  • Reply 11 of 22
    dogcowdogcow Posts: 713member
    pscates, one problem: $$$. Otherwise, all good ideas.
  • Reply 12 of 22
    pscatespscates Posts: 5,847member
    Ahem...







    See what I mean?



    Dogcow, what money? They're already spending it! Just spend it smarter and better. Instead of wasting it in on empty feel-good stuff that no one seems to care about or that's making no real impact, and reshift the focus and do more of what I outlined.



    Nothing I talk about above should costitute some budget-busting approach.



    Money shouldn't be a factor, except for perhaps Anderson. One time outlay and maybe some goodies or some stock? They paid SOMETHING for Goldblum (I don't even want to imagine how much...). Besides, Gillian's on a fading show. She can't ask for TOO much...not as much as she could have 2-3 years ago, anyway.







    My ideas aren't IN ADDITION to the current stuff...they're INSTEAD OF!



    That's why I have a backup plan of using Steve, in case Gillian wants to much money.







    But seriously, how much does it cost to simply quit spending money on stuff that isn't working? That should be free. Every idea I had above, regarding commercials, couldn't cost any bit more than what they spent for "Middle Seat", "Rip, Mix & Burn", "Elope" or "iPod". Especially, with no location shoots or anything.



    My God, how much do you think that lame-ass "Rip, Mix & Burn" ad cost, with all those celebrities and stars?



    Don't tell me Chuck Berry and Iggy Pop showed up for free out the goodness of their heart.



    Do them in studios, like Sela Ward does on those Sprint commercials.



    No big deal.
  • Reply 13 of 22
    pscatespscates Posts: 5,847member
    And with $4 billion in the bank, I'm not really concerned about Apple "going hungry" or not being able to lay out a little bread for a good cause...their own bread and butter!



    I'm not asking for a billboard on every corner and a commercial on every network. They are, of course, NOT Microsoft and don't have a billion to spend on marketing. But I bet they have several million that could be better used than how it currently is.



  • Reply 14 of 22
    Amen.



    Add some sexy, euro-loungey, ultra-chic downtempo grooves to it - I suggest Thievery Corporation...





    MMMMMMMM
  • Reply 15 of 22
    groveratgroverat Posts: 10,872member
    Steve Jobs is just as much an aging hipster as that pathetic ponytail guy for Gateway.



    Jobs' power lies in the Maclot hordes, he knows this. That's why he stays off TV, Joe Schmoe watching football is going to laugh at Jobs like he laughs at the balding ponytail Gateway guy.



    "Look that that guy still trying to fit into tight jeans and black turtlenecks." Not as bad as the bald-ponytail look (which is an abomination before God), but a definite step down from the middle eastern ancestry guy dancing around with the iPod.



    Apple commercials now show the stuff in use. The one with the DVD burning and the 'rents playing it on their stock DVD player. The annoying bastard on the plane was making an iMovie. The semi-cool commercial with Barry White was about burning CDs. The iPod one is a little cryptic to the computer-challenged, but it does well enough.



    A lot better than that ponytail guy talking to a goddam cow.



    More showings of the commercials and more commercials like the iPod one, we may not like it but the people do and that's the point of advertising.
  • Reply 16 of 22
    groveratgroverat Posts: 10,872member
    I think Gillian Anderson is a little too tied to X-Files and using her would tie Apple to X-Files. Might be a bad thing.



    Just something to chew on.
  • Reply 17 of 22
    pscatespscates Posts: 5,847member
    Yeah, but Goldblum was tied to some rather awful movies, so...



    I think "The X Files" crowd and Apple share a common link. Not all (nothing is absolute), of course, but, to me, it's a good fit.



    As I said above, she has (whether true in real life or not, but who cares?) cultivated this image of a smart, sexy and strong person. Good traits to exhibit, if only as a TV character. And good traits to align yourself with and the perception of a person probably held by most of the general population.



    Even so, "The X Files" is pretty universally seen as a strong, well-written quality show, so there's WORSE things for Apple to be "tied" to.



    I'm seeing an image of running lifeguards in red swimsuits...
  • Reply 18 of 22
    [quote]Even so, "The X Files" is pretty universally seen as a strong, well-written quality show, so there's WORSE things for Apple to be "tied" to.<hr></blockquote>



    Yeah like three years ago



    Kind of like the Simpsons
  • Reply 19 of 22
    [quote]Originally posted by pscates:

    <strong>Ahem...







    See what I mean?

    </strong><hr></blockquote>





    I'll take two!!

    :eek:



    Hey G4 dude! Oregon's in the house!
  • Reply 20 of 22
    g4dudeg4dude Posts: 1,016member
    Ya true dat home skillet. Bend is like the greatest city ever. My dad has seriously considered moving us there.
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