Parody

There was no choice but to parody the Apple iPad promotional vignettes.

Someone had to do it;

and,

Power to the People

The post-modern consumer is a different species to the one that reacted to the post World War 2 marketing paradigm. The four P’s is an archaic and ineffective way to do business in this day and age.

Our consumer now wants more than the consumption of a product or service, they want dialogue, they want democratic marketing, they want tribes but a sense of individuality, they want a platform for advocating brands and creativity. They want it all! The marketers job therefore is a tough one; trying to understand all these parts of the average consumer.

Crowdsourcing is another string to the post modern consumers bow. And advertisers need to stand up and take note. It could be the future of advertising.

Crowdsourcing is the act of taking a job traditionally performed by a designated agent (usually an employee) and outsourcing it to an undefined, generally large group of people in the form of an open call.

Victors and Spoils, the first crowdsourced advertising agency has been established in the U.S., they will strategically do the planning and executive aspect to the job but outsource the creative via the internet in an open call and it’s just the start.

While DVR’s and SKY+ boxes have made the advertisers of today search for alternative means of persuasion, is it possible people won’t skip through the adverts when they are amateur/D.I.Y/not direct from Madison Avenue?

Pepsi-co’s Dorito brand now challenge their consumers to make their Superbowl adverts every year, in fact it’s becoming very popular. Peperami, Pringles, they are all seeing the potential.

Two Doritos commercials were among the most-watched among all the spots in households with TiVo digital video recorders.

Here’s one of them;

Obviously, it is a unique brand engagement tool as well as a source of fresh ideas from somewhere other than the ad agency. Instead of having the agency do the job, why not get the consumers to; the people the brand means something to, who understand it and who personify the brand?

It is definitely something we should all be cognisant of, especially the practitioner.

While it may never become the principal way of producing adverts, the power of the people is scary and something that can help brands.

See crowdsourcing guru Jeff Howe’s site crowdsourcing.typepad.com for the details.