\"Get a Mac\" Campaign - Grade: A PDF

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an analysis of an advertising campaign and your own idea on how you would create a new campaign for this product. ...

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NYIT Spring 2019 ADVG 101 Apple’s “Get a Mac” Campaign Everyone is familiar with the ongoing debate between which is superior MAC or PC. It's been a constant argument between tech lovers and the average consumer for decades. In 2006 Mac used this popular conversation to create the “Get a Mac” campaign that only continued to fuel the argument. We are very familiar with Apple products and many at one point probably owned one. Whether it be a Macintosh computer, iPod or the latest iPhone X. Apple was created in 1976 in California. Like most great ideas it grew from a garage by three friends, Steve Jobs, Steve Wozniak and Ronald Wayne. Originally the name Apple came from Steve Jobs when he use to work on an apple orchard. They brainstormed various ideas but kept coming back to Apple. Apple is dominating the technology field with numerous different products. They catered to every market of tech product from computers, phones, to software like iTunes. They are the leading pioneer in the technology world not only creating innovative products but also completely changing the way we use our computers and for what we use our computers. Apple INC as of 2018 is valued at over one trillion dollars. They continue to hold forty-three percent of the market share with Android being second. Apple products are sold all over the world and it seems to only be getting more popular. They have manufactured every type of technology you could think of. Their first product was the Apple Computer One created in 1976 a desktop computer. This has advanced to the latest model the iMac as of 2017. They have also conquered the cellphone market with the iPhone first created in 2007 now the latest model being the iPhone X. Apple doesn't seem to be slowing down anytime soon. As of 2018 they are the largest

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technology company in the world and the eighth largest company in the world according to Forbes magazine. The first “Get a Mac” commercial premiered on May 2nd, 2006 created by TBWA\Chiat\Day advertising agency. The characters were dressed to represent the computer they were portraying. Mac dressed in a casual fashion portrayed by a young man that supposed to give off the “cool” fun vibe. While PC was an older man dressed in a boring suit and glasses. He was supposed to represent the uptight no creativity of PC. It was also to poke fun at the founder of Microsoft, Bill Gates. The general point of the commercial was PC embarrassing himself and showing all the reasons a Mac is better. The campaign was actually created just because Steve Jobs decided they needed a new commercial after they switched to an intel-based processor. Jobs was heavily involved in the making of the commercial ending up in them making over three hundred commercials and only sixty-sixty of them airing. The campaign ran from 2006 to 2009 airing in the U.S, New Zealand, United Kingdom, Japan, Canada, and Australia. The actors were changed for the U.K and Japan commercials to accommodate that market. The need for this campaign was because at this time Microsoft was leading the market. Apple was also decreasing in sales in 2005. Apple was having a difficult time convincing the public that Macs were better than PC. At this time most people weren't aware of the uses of computers and what's good or bad. Therefore, most just bought any computer. Apple objective was to capitalize on this ignorance. Based on a survey by American Consumer Satisfaction Apple realized that Mac was leading in customer satisfaction over PC. PC users already knew of the flaws their computers had so the campaign wanted to point out to these users that Mac did not suffer from these faults. This made their target audience the “swing” consumers who would switch at any time. There was no need to

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convince Mac users to get a Mac they already had one. So, they decided to point out all the flaws in PC to convince users to switch over. Two months after the release of the commercials Apple sold over 200,000 computers. Third quarter sales the Macintosh sales increased by 12%. Apple announced that they had shipped 1.3 million Macs in the United States. They're sales increased by 39% at the end of the fiscal year ending September 2006. Sales of Macs vastly increased over the four years of the campaign. The Campaign entirely used the soft sell approach. One of main objective in the commercial was to be humorous. Television was their main source of advertising making it traditional advertising. At this time Apple wasn’t widely popular so it was brand marketing. The “Get a Mac” was comparative advertising since it directly named the competitor and tried to show why their product is better. Apple faced quite a bit of criticism from the public over the campaign. Some said that they thought Apple was too mean spirited towards PC. Some PC users said the ads didn't make them want to buy a Mac at all only made them dislike the company even more. However, Apple took this with a grain of salt. They went by the motto “all publicity is good publicity”. As long as people were talking about the advertisement it was successful and this showed in the sales. In 2019 everyone knows what Apple is. They don't need a commercial to tell people to buy their products. However, the thing they are lacking is relatablitiblity to the public and a general good reputation. According to the Harris Poll Reputation Quotient ranking they were ranked 29th in 2018. In 2016 they were ranked 2nd. Apple’s brand appeal has taken a dive over the years. Before it seemed like Apple created products for the consumer, to make our lives easier. However, over the years their quality has declined. Most products are released with very few improvements at a staggering price. This can make the consumer feel like Apple is just

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trying to take their money. To project a more open, likeable imagine I think Apple needs to do a cause marketing. For being one of the highest grossing companies in the world we don't hear about Apple giving to charity. Bill Gates, Microsoft founder is known for his prominent position in the philanthropy world. Apple needs to do some catch work. My idea would be five commercials very simple, focusing on children and the joy and wonder over the computers instead of the computer itself. In many third world countries children haven't even seen a computer in real life. Being from a third world country myself I didn't know what WIFI was until I was nine when I moved to America. Now we see toddlers with iPads and it normalizes technology. But in other countries technology is completely foreign to them. My idea is that apple would build smart hubs in various third world countries especially countries that don't usually get media attention. These smart hubs would be equipped with all types of Apple products and software and have people ready to teach the people of the countries to use the products. The hubs would be a place where people can come and learn about technology and how it can help advance the world. Then the commercial would show the process of building these hubs and the kids interacting with the computers for the first time. Then it would show a year later how the children have changed because of these technologies and the effect it had on their lives. The smart hubs would be built in at least five different countries, so it would be five different minute long commercials telling the story of kids first interactions with technology and the impact it would have on their lives. The campaign would be called the “All you need is a Mac” campaign. Soft sell would be the main use since we are trying to emotionally target the audience. The commercials would mainly air on YouTube ads and television. I would also use print ads and social media ads. Especially on twitter I would share the commercial since twitter help spread things faster. The main story I would try to tell with the campaign is that children and

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technology is the future of our society and Apple will be the ones to provide children with the tools needed to build a better future.

Bibliography “Mobile OS Market Share in the U.S. 2018.” Statista, Statista, www.statista.com/statistics/266572/market-share-held-by-smartphone-platforms-in-the-unitedstates/. Stoller, Kristin. “The World's Largest Tech Companies 2018: Apple, Samsung Take Top Spots Again.” Forbes, Forbes Magazine, 6 June 2018, www.forbes.com/sites/kristinstoller/2018/06/06/worlds-largest-tech-companies-2018-global2000/#1777be514de6. Rhoads, Kelton. “Get a Mac Campaign Analysis”. 10 January 2007, http://www.workingpsychology.com/download_folder/GAM_Campaign_Analysis.pdf Nudd, Tim. “Apple's 'Get a Mac,' the Complete Campaign.” – Adweek, Adweek, 13 Apr. 2011, www.adweek.com/creativity/apples-get-mac-complete-campaign-130552/. “Reputation Quotient.” The Harris Poll, 2018, theharrispoll.com/reputation-quotient/.

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