While waiting for Public Enemies to start, me and my fellow theatre goers experienced a moment of confusion (complete with loud mumblings of “what?”) when what looked like an ad for an upcoming U2 tour or album or maybe their support of a certain cause turned out to be an ad for…Blackberry. We were informed that “Blackberry Loves U2″ and directed to www.blackberry.com/u2. Being a fan of both (I steadfastly refuse to get an iPhone), I feared this might be a weak attempt fr Blackberry to seem cool, but checked it out. And was glad I did.
The campaign behind that confusing ad is actually an interesting idea that raises questions about both the challenges of joint branding and how Smartphones and the media industry could create a truly convergent marketing platform.
Below the fold:
Brand Confusion – a winning tactic?
Why the Blackberry could be a better iPod
So what? Converging content, spreadability, social networking and location-based services
Brand confusion – a winning tactic?
Let’s start with a look at the ad itself and why my fellow theatre goers were a bit miffed.
So the confusion here is twofold: 1) what has Blackberry got to do with U2, and 2) didn’t U2 do commercials for Apple?
Let’s start by looking at the commercial itself.
A familiar image from the Life on Blackberry campaign, which promoted the Smartphones as devices for consumers' personal, as well as professional, lives (from Blackberry.com)
To recap, U2 is singing about generations changing the world, in a concert venue. For some reason, for me and the rest of the captive audience in the theatre that day, those things don’t really scream “Blackberry” when their logo flashed on the screen.
Sure, they have been doing their “Life on Blackberry” campaign for a while, as of April 1st they have an App Store. But Blackberry isn’t quite Apple, which is another reason why I think many of us in the theatre that day were confused.
The U2 edition iPod, circa 2004 (photo from gizmodo.com)
In the past, Apple was the consumer electronics brand that got the U2 cred. Remember the U2 edition iPod? Back in 2004, you could buy a special black and red device, preloaded with U2 songs. U2 also appeared in several Apple ads with what used to be their trademark black silhouettes with white headphones dancing against a brightly-colored background, and for the first video iPod. Although 5 years might be an eternity when it comes to marketing to the under 24 crowd, I have a feeling that many of the 20- and 30-somethings at the movies made that association, at the very least on a subconscious level.
Was that intentional? You’d have to ask Blackberry and Arc Worldwide (the agency that created the ad) to know for sure. Stil, creating that confusion is a little risky. On the one hand, you might sort of turn people off and they could dismiss the whole thing as nonsensical or worse, a desperate attempt for Blackberry to make itself look hip (really, we love U2!). But, more likely, you might intrigue people like me who like one or both of U2 and Blackberry to answer the call to action and visit the site. And it draws an interesting (and kind of ironic) parallel between a Blackberry and an iPod.
Why the Blackberry could be a better iPod
If you actually go to the site, you’ll see what I’m talking about. Instead of the vague statement about liking U2, you find out that there’s a “mobile album” that will be available on for download on your Blackberry smartphone.
Screenshot of URL for U2 on Blackberry.com
So, here you might say that’s just a weak echo of the iPod, watch the “teaser video”. The campaign actually turns your Blackberry – a device known for its communications capabilities more than its media playing – into a device that integrates those elements together in this campaign, while making the Blackberry a springboard for participation that gives fans an inside track on the band. Not only can you “hear the album” on your Blackberry, but you can also “show the world what the music means to you” and “experience the tour from all angles”. So, not only can you listen to the music and watch videos on your Blackberry, as you can on an iPod, it looks like you can also upload photos and other content,find your friends at the concert venue through your phone, and get news and updates about the tour.
To be fair, none of these elements on its own is totally new – others have tried to use mobile devices as a way to bring people together around events. (One example that springs to mind is CrowdFire, a tent that Microsoft set up around Outside Lands last August.) What is different is the connection to one band, the national advertising, and creating a link to the artists through a specific device rather than a website.
It’s also interesting how they have positioned the campaign. If you sign up on the Blackberry site to be notified when the album is available, you get an email that says you will “recieve an email alert when the experience is available for download”. So, more than a music player, more than an application, U2 and Blackberry are creating an experience.
Screenshot of "teaser video" that gives us a hint on what the social networking elements of the U2/Blackberry experience will be (from blackberry.com)
So, what are the implications of all of this?
First of all, that the iPod and iPhone could see some real competition from other devices on this front if they can deliver better designed, more meaningful experiences to audiences. What they haven’t been able to match in hardware, other manufacturers may be able to do in usability and relevance.
More broadly, what’s really exciting about this campaign to me is it shows us how Smartphones (and wi-fi enabled devices like the Touch) could become a major marketing platforms and an anchor for cross-media promotion.
Around an event like a product launch or a concert tour, Smartphones that deliver four crucial elements: content, spreadability/sharing, social networking and location based services. They also reach elusive audiences like young males. Imagine a similar application around the next Batman movie that would tell you could get tickets nearby, where your friends were sitting in the theatre, text people in your social network who haven’t seen it yet to invite them to join you at the movies and send alerts about promotions at retailers in your area or online. What about a similar experience for the next Olympic games in Vancouver? Or Starbucks? Or a TV show with a complex narrative like LOST?
Until then, I’ll be waiting to try the U2/Blackberry experience.
