The Nokia Lumia 900 has landed on the American shores earlier this week and is poised to take the world by storm. What better way to do that task than to tell people about the Lumia product? As many are aware, several millions of dollars have been utilized to do just that, in Nokia’s Rolling Thunder advertising campaign. So, what is the result of research into the current American trends to make a product palatable for our hungry little fingers? If you haven’t seen them already, take a look:
We begin the advertising blitzkrieg with questions surrounding current smartphones on the market. The consumer is asked (non verbatim) if their smartphone that they’ve invested in feels like a beta test? The message is further bludgeoned with the following commercial:
So what does this all mean and is the beta test over?
Judging by the next advertisement, it seems to be:
And thus the Nokia Lumia 900 has landed, in an effort to save us from some conspiracy theorist brain child smart phone beta test campaign. Of course, the idea is full of lols and vague ambiguities, but the problem is clear: it doesn’t explain the product. How is the Lumia 900 radically different from other smartphones on the market? Of course the answer is vaguely given in the second advertisement, but the answer couldn’t be any more foolish. What does a live tile do, why is it important to the consumer? More importantly, what does the phone offer users versus any other smart phones?
Of course, I can understand something simple – that the commercials at least got a chuckle and that may be enough to sell a product right? A similar advertising campaign sponsored by Microsoft also had a guffaw undertone as well in the REALLY advertising campaigns which not only didn’t work but also placed Microsoft in some legal hot water. But of course, I could be overly critical of Microsoft. But let’s take a look at how the competition advertised important products in the past.
First up is the iphone (circa 2007):
As one can easily notices, the commercial actually goes through simple commands that all users perform on a phone. At the time, the smartphone market was drastically different in that several features that we may take for granted weren’t integrated in many phones due to technological limitations. And yet, the iphone had it. In many ways, that commanded a person’s attention and while it wasn’t a specifications blockbuster, it primed several products that dominated the industry together (ipod + iphone for instance) together.
Android took a similar approach in their message with the droid does campaign circa 2009:
As one can see, the droid capitalized on several nagging complaints that iphone users had for the two years the iPhone virtually dominated the smart phone industry. The commercials were ambiguous, because we never saw a product, but consumers saw a possibility of what a smartphone can do. It can be open without a jailbreak, it can take photos in the dark because of its led flash, and a myriad of other aspects.
When I see a commercial that is advertising a new product, I think of these two launches and I am reminded of how simple, yet powerful the messages were. The commercials for any product broke the proverbial mold for smart phone users and made them aware that concessions weren’t necessary to make a premium user experience that everyone will love.
And then I see the Lumia 900 advertisements. Vague, ambiguous, not listing any details of what the product can do, nor how it is drastically different from any smart phone on the market. Out of every single Lumia commercial so far, I am most impressed with the following:
And while we know that Windows Phones function far faster than what is advertised on the commercial, we notice that the commercial does show a lot in the small time span of 20 seconds. It shows that it is radically different from both a design perspective and an operating perspective. Of course, the operations are ambiguous, but it almost just enough to let us know some things about Windows Phone in daily operations. Users don’t have to scroll through icons, and most information can be updated via live tile. It commands attention and that is something Nokia and Microsoft desperately need in the United States.
However, the most recent commercial does highlight the difference between the Lumia 900 and other smartphones:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4OnBTTqff-4&feature=player_embedded
Perhaps it is just me, but I find the commercial 2 steps back from the commercial I really enjoyed and returns it back to the comedic undertone that makes me not want to take the device seriously. We can highlight the design in so many different ways, but why not show more of the product? How is it superior to any other phone on the market?
Of course, this is my thoughts. Let me know, are these advertisements hits or misses?
