Today, I learned the true extent of the growing need to find alternative and innovative ways to engage customers in marketing when I read the US Patent and Trademark Office application submitted by Apple. Their new tool, dubbed as “Evil Ad,” is going to revolutionize marketing and advertising as we know it.
Imagine you are watching your favorite program on TV, and, all of the sudden, a large ad appears. And not just any ad, but one that makes you watch its entirety, then quizzes you on the contents of the ad. And no ad-skipping! You must interact with the ad or you cannot proceed in your television viewing pleasure. How annoying is that? And then multiply this across all platforms of media, such as phone use, internet surfing, iPod listening, and it just gets worse.
Many, including The New York Times, are up in arms about how this goes against the culture and branding of Apple, Inc. and, as most critics of theirs do, are completely missing the point. At some point in time, big marketing brands and TV networks are going to either: a) realize that they need to do something similar to survive, or b) pay to use Evil Ad and save some time and money in R&D.
So, whether it seems to fit Apple or not, it is inevitably the new direction of advertising and in his stroke of genius, Steve Jobs, the lead inventor on the patent, has foreseen this need. Face it, traditional ads today are so easy to maneuver around if you really don’t want to pay attention. And don’t tell the big media buyers, but I could name a list of websites where you can watch current TV show episodes without any commercial interruptions at all!
The moral of the story is this: Media is going to have to become more agressive in the demand for attention and placement, or, we can all pack up our dollars and goods now and call it a day. Because unless we are willing to admit that the audience of consumers available is going to greater lengths to avoid traditional advertising, we’ll never be able to turn a decent ROI. Whether we change with the times or stay stagnant, someone is going to make money, and as usual, it looks like it will probably be Apple.
or make advertisements that are entertaining enough to watch on their own merit, that would work too.