AdWeek Says Apple's iTunes Music Store Ads "Hit The Right Note"

by , 12:30 PM EDT, May 27th, 2003

AdWeek, a print magazine that describes itself as being "edited for the advertising executive," has published an editorial painting a very favorable look at Apple's iTunes Music Store (iMS) TV commercials. According to Barbara Lippert, Apple is tapping into some basic associative techniques in the spots, and does so well. In the process, she also calls the iMS a "great new, cheap service." Fro the article:

On the surface, these commercials seem so basic, like "Switchers" but without all the angst and the tics. Those also featured people standing against white space. (Do Apple and the Gap each own half of the white-space trademark?) But "Switchers" sold the big-ticket items and featured real people and their tech stories, full of PC fury. Here, the song is the story, and the spots promote a great new, cheap service (the online music store provides the first digital delivery sanctioned by all the major record labels, allowing users to choose from 200,000 tracks). So this campaign is much more fun. It's not as simple as it looks, though, and that's one of the reasons it's so good.

Music is a potent memory jogger -- up there with certain Proust-like smells. So just as this campaign sells individual songs for individual tastes, it also effortlessly targets different segments and demos, and moves Apple into a whole new mind space.

The full article goes on to look at some of the specific spots, with more commentary to go along with that.

The Mac Observer Spin:

We always enjoy seeing positive coverage of Apple in non-Mac media outlets. This is especially true in a magazine aimed at one of Apple's core creative markets. While this piece isn't directly touting the Mac, it certainly reinforces the idea in many a Suit's head that Apple is on the right track. As the economy slowly gets back into gear, and ad spending picks up, that's a message those people need to get as they start buying things like new computers again.

As for us, Apple's all-style, no substance commercials are often a source of frustration, especially when we see the highly effective (and highly annoying) Dell Intern ads that so clearly explain what the heck Dell is offering. The same thing is true with Intel's advertising that does such a great job of touting the things you can do with your shiny new drone-tool, powered by Intel. Those two companies have great advertising (in terms of results), and they are at the top of their respective heaps.

Apple, on the other hand, doesn't directly tout its advantages or products, and is not at the top of its heap. That is really a subject needing its own editorial, because we are talking about iMS commercials. Surprisingly (to us), those commercials don't suck, and are also highly effective. In between the people singing their songs -- each targeted to a specific demographic, as the AdWeek editorials says -- the company inserts some text that explains that you can download your favorite songs for 99 cents.

Imagine that! Clearly explaining the benefits of its products: That's a sound strategy, and one that is definitely working. The success of the iMS with Mac users so far is undeniable, and as not every Mac user hangs out on the Mac Web -- or even at mainstream online news outlets, that are certainly offering plenty of their own coverage of the iMS -- the commercials are definitely reaching people. That's good news.

AdWeek Article