In a recent post we looked at the hype surrounding the new Apple tablet and the evolution of print media. In the November Wired Magazine, there was an entire page dedicated to interactive advertisements, including a description of how to interact with select ads in that issue. Anyone with an iPhone or Android-supported mobile device could download the free kooaba app and then receive instant product information by taking a picture of specific ads.
I decided to download the app and give it a shot. I started by snapping a picture of the Microsoft Office ad. The app then verified the Microsoft ad and presented a few different options. In this case it was tell a friend or watch a video. I was a bit underwhelmed.
Next I tried an ad for Victorinox Swiss Army knives. This time there were many more choices. In addition to the tell a friend option, I could Call the Victorinox Swiss Army (linking directly to the phone number), Send an E-mail to Victorinox, Buy Now (opened their Web site), Digg This, Reddit This, Twitter About This or Visit Website. At this point I wondered why Microsoft didn’t give me the same options to connect through social networks or find more information.
After trying a few more and getting mixed results, I felt like some brands really “got it” while others completely missed the opportunity.
The lesson for marketers is to think through the user experience on any new platform you’re committing to even if it’s just a test.
Since traditional magazines will probably be around for a bit longer, I’m sure we’ll see more attempts like this to engage readers with ads. Augmented reality will certainly play a role and we’re likely to see much more of this technology used in 2010.
How do you see magazine advertising evolving?
Here’s a video of the kooba app in action. This time the user is interested in learning more about a movie poster – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wysfEM6YgCM
