When walking through a big city, you probably don’t notice the billboards and ads around you that cover every square inch of available real estate, and every nook and cranny that you could potentially look at.
That’s because we’ve trained our minds to be subconsciously aware of advertising, allowing us to easily ignore it as we go about our daily business.
However, a telescope in the middle of the sidewalk is probably a little harder to ignore, and if everyone was looking through it, you’d probably stop to look through it too, right?
That’s what Spore was counting on with their latest ad campaign, and I think the idea worked rather well.
Instead of spending big bucks to buy huge ad spots in heavily trafficked areas, Spore bought a small (14” by 6”) and out of the way ad and then pointed a telescope up towards it from street level, allowing anyone to look through and see what all the fuss was about.
In addition, this creative use of an oddly sized billboard received tons of blog coverage, as advertising and gaming sites alike wanted to cover the “world’s daintiest billboard”.
The Good:
- Out of the box thinking cuts through our ad filter.
- Large amount of coverage despite low cost for ad.
The Bad:
- Ads only used in a few select markets.
- Only one person at a time can view and experience the ad.
The Future:
- Ads move away from traditional billboards and towards creative outdoor installations as companies ‘think outside the billboard’.
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Sun, Oct 5, 2008
Outdoor