Is Apple going full retard with its marketing, or is it just me?

[LifeTransformer]

I could just be me, but is Apple going full retard with its marketing lately?

Exhibit 1 (extended / over the top / extra annoying version):

Are they calling their users dumb? Or, are they just putting something annoying in their ad for fun?
Either way, nothing makes me want to buy a product less than an annoying advert.
(humanitarian issues and general shittyness (that's a word) aside of course).

Then, with the Euros on at the moment, they've now put out this beauty:

While the premise of the advert is quite good, the repetition (annoying) and faux motivational tone suck.
Soon as it appears, the mute button is hit, sometimes the power button.

Yes, you're right that I probably shouldn't be bothering to watch it at all (I watch very little compared to 2 years ago), some of you may say. But what do you think, do you think I've got a point? Is Apple's marketing going to shit? Or, is this kind of stuff "hip" these days?

Old Apple ads were motivational and/or creative, what the hell is this crap they're putting out now?

I've not studied marketing as much as other areas of business, but has anyone here read one on advertising where it says; "make your users look like retards, and annoy any potential customers with horrible adverts"?

Just a little bit of a Friday rant. Landfill if appropriate, but it could prompt an interesting discussion on advertising.

PS. I doubt there is anyone on this forum who is particularly into the mac/pc fanboy BS, but just in case there are, I'd be writing the same thing if it were MS or any other tech company currently doing this, I'm not mac bashing.

 

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[Bruh]

The dumb Chevrolet commercials are the ones that bug me. There's also that bs for "binge eating disorder."

I like that second one. The voice is from a popular british artist, might be from a song of hers.

 

[Fox]

It got you posting about it

While the first is annoying it's shareable for just that reason. When you move from consumer to producer you just don't get value from something like this anymore. But there are people who will find this type of ad "ironically" funny and that's who it is created for. Annoying ads cut through the noise and do create a lasting impression. There are plenty of smart ads that you wouldn't remember a few seconds later so in that regard they have been successful.

 

[Lex DeVille]

It got you posting about it

While the first is annoying it's shareable for just that reason. When you move from consumer to producer you just don't get value from something like this anymore. But there are people who will find this type of ad "ironically" funny and that's who it is created for. Annoying ads cut through the noise and do create a lasting impression. There are plenty of smart ads that you wouldn't remember a few seconds later so in that regard they have been successful.

I don't think I'll ever get the recent horrifying Jason Statham or Target commercials out of my head...ugh, please, just make the Stathams stop!!!

 

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[Fox]

I don't think I'll ever get the recent horrifying Jason Statham or Target commercials out of my head...ugh, please, just make the Stathams stop!!!

Ha I'll have to find those and have a watch. I was thinking of Crazy Frog which started off as a ringtone and went on tony make millions. It still gives me nightmares.

 

[GuestUser450]

Are you telling a 40 year old company to get off your lawn?

1. Apple needs to keep reminding people of 3d touch, probably because the next one will use it extensively.
2. Even Apple knows that brand marketing is dying even for them, and performance marketing is growing by the minute. They can afford tv spots like this to capture attention/action online and in stores.
3. Rants are good but cynicism will keep you from making money.

 

[AgainstAllOdds]

The "I'm Picking My Flight" girl is a sitcom actress: Audrey Plaza. She has a built in fanbase that find her very funny by association.

And the other ads I disagree about completely. I think they're genius.

Apple is the first brand to NOT use the full width of the tv screen. They cover the screen in white space, and project their image at the center of the screen. It stands out from all of the competition and captures you. It captured me during the Euros/NBA Finals for sure. Then, when you're watching, they show you everything that was shot with an iphone. The purpose of advertising is inception. It is to plant the thought of "how can I use this product" in the user's mind. With all of these ads they show you exactly what can be captured if only you had an iPhone.

 

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[Kung Fu Steve]

2. Even Apple knows that brand marketing is dying even for them, and performance marketing is growing by the minute. They can afford tv spots like this to capture attention/action online and in stores.

This is the silliest thing I've heard all day!

But I'll give you a shot at redemption

How is brand marketing dying and what is "performance marketing"?

 

[GuestUser450]

This is the silliest thing I've heard all day!

Let me try to top it...

Brand marketing, as in, what everyone did before measurable return on ad spend. When media buyers bought advertising just for the sake of exposure. If one company advertised more than their competitor, they arguably won the 'mindshare' of the market for their brand. For example, television ads.

Performance marketing, as in, measurable sales, leads and clicks. Google and Facebook are performance marketing companies, making money from ads because the results are measurable to the buyer. Educated buyers can pay more because they know how much they can risk. They for pay performance, not just the opportunity to be in front of people.

Tv, for example is old, dying, small and worst of all: overpriced. The only way to have any clue what your return is, is if you channel that attention into a measurable channel.

Maybe a silly/unnecessary term, but I swear I didn't make it up.

 

[Kung Fu Steve]

Let me try to top it...

Brand marketing, as in, what everyone did before measurable return on ad spend. When media buyers bought advertising just for the sake of exposure. If one company advertised more than their competitor, they arguably won the 'mindshare' of the market for their brand. For example, television ads.

Performance marketing, as in, measurable sales, leads and clicks. Google and Facebook are performance marketing companies, making money from ads because the results are measurable to the buyer. Educated buyers can pay more because they know how much they can risk. They for pay performance, not just the opportunity to be in front of people.

Tv, for example is old, dying, small and worst of all: overpriced. The only way to have any clue what your return is, is if you channel that attention into a measurable channel.

Maybe a silly/unnecessary term, but I swear I didn't make it up.

I know a thing or two about marketing -- so I'm following you now. Usually I'm using the terms 'direct response' versus 'branding' -- potato/potato.

I've always been a big fan of direct response and made a pretty good living off of it... but there's something to be said about creating a brand that speaks for itself. That's something that won't ever die out (as long as there's a human element to it).

I think we get so engrossed in the numbers sometimes that we forget all of those 1's and 0's are humans on the other end. What I see with the ads above here from Apple is some dumbass on Madison Avenue who convinced some exec that this was a good idea.

And since most of those agencies rely on "branding" -- they aren't held accountable to their results... ALTHOUGH there have been incredible advertising campaigns brilliantly crafted that created huge up-ticks in sales for large companies. And even though you can't necessarily directly link cause and effect, there's often quite a correlation from superb brand-marketing.

 

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[GuestUser450]

I know a thing or two about marketing --

No doubt. I'm not new; you've given a metric shit ton of value over the years. I wasn't trying to use big words, just been poisoned by industry speak.

What I see with the ads above here from Apple is some dumbass on Madison Avenue who convinced some exec that this was a good idea.

Very well could be, which would reinforce @LifeTransformer 's opinion and is valid.

Apple confuses me too sometimes as this giant cash machine with super smart folks makes big, obvious blunders one day then seems strategically brilliant another. My bet is that they know 2 things really well: how they make money, and how their present and probable future competitors make money. That's why I give them the benefit of the doubt and think they've built advanced tools to program their spend.

 

[JokerCrazyBeatz]

Growth hacking! The new wave

 

[LifeTransformer]

Turned into a very interesting thread rather quickly. Didn't drop off the front page without reply like I expected it to .

Buddha! there's a lot to get through here too! We've had mentions of; Growth Hacking, "Got you to do this" i.e response, Celebrity endorsements I wouldn't even know about, bygone association (see my crazy frog bit below), and design principles that I want to try to adhere to in my work, have all been mentioned. Lots of replies from my favourite posters too (I won't embarrass you by mentioning names)

RE: Crazy Frog: @Fox this little bit is for you:

Do you ever remember trying to stare at a computer screen for as long as you could without laughing? That was the origin of "crazy frog" that I remember from my teen years. Seems to me it somehow became something else. Not entirely sure of the full history of it though.

All I remember was a picture of some racing scene you were meant to stare at, the "crazy frog" bit was playing while you were meant to be not laughing.

Terrible stuff really .

 

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[Kung Fu Steve]

just been poisoned by industry speak.

Haven't we all!?

Apple confuses me too sometimes as this giant cash machine with super smart folks makes big, obvious blunders one day then seem strategically brilliant another. My bet is that they know 2 things really well: how they make money, and how their present and probable future competitors make money. That's why I give them the benefit of the doubt and think they've built advanced tools to program their spend.

It's easy to get comfortable and think you don't have to spend much time/effort into marketing... buuuutt... we'll see what happens with this company the next few years without their fearless leader.

 

[Growth & Learn]

I could just be me, but is Apple going full retard with its marketing lately?

Exhibit 1 (extended / over the top / extra annoying version):

Are they calling their users dumb? Or, are they just putting something annoying in their ad for fun?
Either way, nothing makes me want to buy a product less than an annoying advert.
(humanitarian issues and general shittyness (that's a word) aside of course).

Then, with the Euros on at the moment, they've now put out this beauty:

While the premise of the advert is quite good, the repetition (annoying) and faux motivational tone suck.
Soon as it appears, the mute button is hit, sometimes the power button.

Yes, you're right that I probably shouldn't be bothering to watch it at all (I watch very little compared to 2 years ago), some of you may say. But what do you think, do you think I've got a point? Is Apple's marketing going to shit? Or, is this kind of stuff "hip" these days?

Old Apple ads were motivational and/or creative, what the hell is this crap they're putting out now?

I've not studied marketing as much as other areas of business, but has anyone here read one on advertising where it says; "make your users look like retards, and annoy any potential customers with horrible adverts"?

Just a little bit of a Friday rant. Landfill if appropriate, but it could prompt an interesting discussion on advertising.

PS. I doubt there is anyone on this forum who is particularly into the mac/pc fanboy BS, but just in case there are, I'd be writing the same thing if it were MS or any other tech company currently doing this, I'm not mac bashing.

They didn't become a 600 billion dollar company without understanding their fans, customers, and market desires.

You may be annoyed by their current advertising but don't assume it's not ridiculously effective.