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Nov 18 AT 11:50 AM Angie Wimberly 31 Comments

Android advertising assailment advances

Are you getting sick of the Android TV spots yet? I can hardly turn on my TV without coming across one of the dozen ad spots currently in rotation. Expect the onslaught to continue through the holiday season. Verizon is spending 100 million on Droid ads and HTC claimed they would have “more media coverage than Coca Cola“. Sprint also shows no signs of slowing down and has begun giving their Hero phone more airtime.

Which company do you think has the best marketing campaign so far?

Sprint

T-Mobile

Update (11/21): New T-Mobile myTouch 3G “Music” ad.

Verizon

HTC

Motorola

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31 Comments Join the discussion!

63 SliestDragon 11/18/09 12:25 PM

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There’s not only a lot of android advertisements, but a lot of advertisements with android phones in them. For example, I saw a bank commercial(can’t remember which one so I’ll generalize) with the droid in it.

I do think they are going over board, but I’m just happy that we are finally starting to see advertisements.

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- ranwanimatorGuest 11/18/09 12:48 PM
  
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  It is a Bank of America ad for mobile banking.
  
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98 Clark Wimberly 11/18/09 12:34 PM

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I think HTC’s got the best spots so far. The phone’s-eye-view ad is pretty slick.

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- 1 jakejardashian 01/16/10 2:49 AM
  
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  I agree. HTC’s ad is fantastic.
  
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BigHeatGuest 11/18/09 12:35 PM

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Verizon has the best ads by far. They are doing very well attacking AT&T’s lack of 3G coverage (the “elf” ad mentions the HTC Eris) as well as promoting the Motorola Droid. The “teaser” ads worked and the turn-by-turn navigation demo was equally brilliant (it certainly addressed the complaints from the people demanding that they actually show what the phone can do).

HTC’s “you” ads are also well-done, but they fail to truly promote Android. They promote HTC and their focus on making a phone usable, but they stop short of mentioning Android.

T-Mobile gets points for trying. The T-Mobile CLIQ ad feels a bit weird (even though Neil Patrick Harris cracks me up). I think the MyTouch ads are good, but the device is quickly starting to look aged compared to the two Hero phones (Hero and Eris), Samsung, and Motorola Droid.

Sprint – whatever. They mention that the Hero has access to “thousands of apps,” but do so in the same ad time as the Pre and a ChunkBerry. Weak.

I’m hoping that T-Mobile (maybe with Google’s help?) will step up, take care of the early Android “believers,” and keep Android moving ahead, but they seem content to slide back into the role of cut-rate carrier with so-so phones.

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s15274nGuest 11/18/09 12:38 PM

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I think the droid had the biggest buzz factor, by far. I do like the HTC spots as well.

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jasonleeGuest 11/18/09 1:35 PM

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THE FACT IS, THESE COMMERCIALS ARE ALL GREAT BUT THERE IS LITTLE TO NO MENTION OF THE FACT THEY ARE RUNNING ANDROID. THAT IS HUGE! I UNDERSTAND ITS ALL ABOUT THE HANDSET FOR THESE PEOPLE, BUT ANDROID MAKES THE HANDSET SO SPECIAL AND FAILING TO CAPITOLIZE ON IT SEEMS STUPID TO ME.

ON THE OTHER HAND, THE HARDWARE IS VERY IMPORTANT SO IDK MAYBE I’M WRONG

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- 2 anakin78z 11/18/09 6:20 PM
  
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  SHUT THE HELL UP. I don’t even know what you said, but seriously.
  
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- JayMonsterGuest 11/23/09 10:17 AM
  
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  HTC (Sense), Samsung (TouchWiz), Motorola (Blur) are trying to show what makes their phones different than the competition… not to highlight the fact that the core underneath (Android) is exactly the same. They are promoting THEIR PRODUCT… not Android, so no, they are never going to say that.
  
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TravLadinGuest 11/18/09 1:38 PM

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Vrzw Best adds… Most advertising… I see a droid add every commercial break…. I like the Droid Voice…

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jasonleeGuest 11/18/09 1:48 PM

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SCRATCH THAT, NOT LITTLE TO NO. NONE AT ALL. NO MENTION WHATSOEVER. THATS JUST WEIRD TO ME I GUESS.

OH AND THE BEST IS THE HTC COMMERCIAL. LOVE THE BEAT LOL

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- 15 gamefreak1218 11/18/09 2:59 PM
  
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  is your caps lock stuck? I realize you’re excited and want your comment to be seen, but all caps is considered rather rude…just so you know…
  
  anyways, I the only commercial I didn’t like was the cliq’s ….till the end…but everything in between made me want to stop watching…
  
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  - jasonleeGuest 11/18/09 4:51 PM
    
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    IM DEF NOT BEING RUDE SIR, IM ON MY PHONE AND FOR SOME REASON ON THIS SITE ITS ONLY TYPING IN CAPS TODAY. NO IDEA WHY. SORRY IF IT OFFENDS YOU
    
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    - 100 Taylor Wimberly 11/18/09 5:39 PM
      
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      YOU MUST HAVE A CLIQ IM GUESSING.
      
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      - 15 gamefreak1218 11/19/09 11:18 AM
        
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        Wow…quite the bug… lol
TomGuest 11/18/09 3:43 PM

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Nice question and one that really hits home with me working in advertising and tech. My 2cents: HTC and T-Mobile have done the best job because they show how the phone is an extension of YOU. It’s not about the phone…It’s about YOU and the phone is a tool to help YOU in your everyday life.

My geek side likes the Verizon ads but they won’t help mass market adoption. Droid ads are the worst from an ‘advertising message’ perspective. They alienate (no pun intended) the mass market with way too much of a science fiction theme. Geeks (I’m not using that derogatorily, I’m one) do not need to be sold. They are already sold on the device…even before they ever saw the commercials. Right? Verizon needs to cast a wider net if they want to attract everyone from soccer moms (Verizon is actually ignoring the female demographic totally) to business folks to students, to young professionals, etc, etc, to gain mass market adoption. Enough with the robots, asteroids, terminator eye. They are lacking any type of “human” element. It’s more about how people can use a device to simplify their daily lives than it is about the actual hardware and software.

@jasonlee Yes Android is awesomeness, we all agree…but it will never be advertised. Surveys show that “normal” consumers – not anyone reading this blog – don’t even know what operating system is running on their phone, nor do they even care. All they want is drop dead simple usability, ability to load apps that help make their life easier …again getting back to the YOU concept, and yes, they also want “cool” design. It’s correct, sexy sells, no matter what the product is. That’s one of the reasons the iPhone sold, and is still selling.

As an “ad guy”, I like to watch what engages people when I’m in a public setting – since I get paid to create those elements for brands. I was recently in Atlanta airport where I noticed a ridiculous amount of droid poster ads on the walls of each terminal. I stood across from one while waiting for my flight. Not a single person looked at the poster. It did nothing to attract. It was a robotic arm holding a droid, with the eye on screen. It didn’t even sell that gorgeous display because the screen was black – except for the eye – so you couldn’t see where the screen edges were. It could’ve been 2.8, 3.5, 1.5, whatever. Why not put an app screenshot on there that may appeal to most people??

Another one: I was at a bar with a good mix of men and women in the croud. The droid asteroid commercial came on. I noticed a few people watching it – all were men. Keep in mind we’re talking “normal/non-tech” folks of which, make up the mass market who ultimately need to adopt a product for success. Most turned away after 5 seconds. One guy said “what movie is that for”. Not more than 30 minutes later the Jesse James/Whoopi MyTouch commercial came on. One woman actually tapped her boyfriend and said “I want one of those”.

My guess is, you will see Verizon abandon the “robot” approach and go in a completely different direction soon. They need to go after mass market – not male geeks.

Advertising Age Magazine just recently did an article titled “New Verizon Ads Take Direct Aim at IPhone, but What Are They Selling?” because most people just didn’t ‘get it’. I did, and you did too, but we’re geeks :)

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- 76 mernen 11/19/09 2:11 AM
  
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  I agree with everything you said. The Droid’s campaign is IMO horrible, way outlandish and unappealing. It’s also disconnected from everything else Android — try to watch the Android 2.0 highlights video after watching one of those ads, it doesn’t even seem to be talking about the same phone.
  
  I love HTC’s ad, it’s quite creative and gives you an overall feeling of friendliness. They nailed it perfectly with the “phone that gets you”.
  
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- JayMonsterGuest 11/23/09 10:24 AM
  
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  I think Verizon’s game plan is far more for “the long run” and less about the up front. Those “geeks” (like me) need something directed at them to become early adopters. Get THEM talking about the phone, about how cool is it, to have one and be able to talk about it when later they broaden the target market and Suzy Ditz and Biff McStyle ask their resident “geek” what phone to buy, they can tell them they love “the Droid” Right now, too much of that market “mindshare” is held by Apple.
  
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- mommydearestGuest 12/21/09 4:24 PM
  
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  As a mom of kids that are more computer savvy than I am, female and by no means a geek even though I like sci-fi,m I saw those posters and adds that you mentioned and I watched and looked at the Verizon ads and commercials because they are my carrier. If it’s not my carrier I don’t watch it that closely if at all. It has nothing to do with Geekiness.
  
  What alot of people look at is the wireless company as they are continually updated with the same service. I have yet to meet anyone that changed carriers because of a phone. They may have changed because of service or abilities. I was stuck with Verizon because they bought Alltell and I can’t afford the deposit wanted to go to a new carrier.
  
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2 anakin78z 11/18/09 6:25 PM

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No, I don’t think there are too many ads yet. One thing that bugs me about the ads though is that none of them mention Android, or at least I haven’t seen one yet that does. I’m guessing that most people don’t have any idea what android is. Walking into a Tmobile store, you’d have no idea that the MyTouch, the Cliq or the G1 have anything to do with each other. They’re scattered about, and none of them really speak to the capability of the phone.
The best ads to date, I think, were the original G1 ads, which actually showed what you could do with the phone, though heavily focusing on google search. Granted, the new Droid ads are pushing features as well, but in a not so friendly way.

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spenceGuest 11/18/09 6:44 PM

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Motorola then Verizon’s Droid commercials

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Todd AGuest 11/18/09 8:19 PM

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Gotta give it to the Droid !

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Dylan AndersenGuest 11/19/09 2:24 AM

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HTC has the best ads. The song is infectious, the ads are so well done, and the Hero is just.. amazing.

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SteveGuest 11/19/09 10:03 PM

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Totally agree with Tom. Htc and t mobile are what anroid needs for mass market adoption. Robots and asteroids don’t do a damn thing to sell how awesome the droid is. The ads are too geeky. Verizon needs to can Whatever agency is doing these ads stat.

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davidGuest 11/21/09 1:15 AM

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i feel u should put the g1 add because i still feel is the best android phone

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AnderlanGuest 11/22/09 2:17 AM

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It’s always warmed by Linux heart that the T-Mobile ads have the emperor penguins on the phone’s screen. (I hate that T-Mo reception at my house is terrible, and that I’m on contract till July.)

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Android and MeGuest 12/02/09 7:30 PM

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[...] handset makers still have a lot of progress to make their phones more female friendly. Of all the Android ad spots, I think T-Mobile has done the best job of producing ads that appeal to both [...]

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asisGuest 01/11/10 2:51 AM

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so nice of HTC , but I can’t get I no have money
but I love this technology

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Droid does dogs, tasers, and underwear – Android and MeGuest 04/08/10 11:35 PM

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[...] always enjoy a good advertisement about Android, even when they are silly and limited to YouTube. Some of these are three months old, [...]

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A Boy And His Android » Blog Archive » Q2 Android sales surge in the UK, record 350% increase over Q1Guest 07/26/10 2:05 PM

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[...] Android advertising assailment advances [...]

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Samsung Galaxy Tab confirmed for all 4 major U.S. carriers, WiFi-only model also in the works | Android Application [dot] usGuest 09/17/10 1:50 AM

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[...] Android advertising assailment advances [...]

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