Apple’s advertising campaign, Switch, is a big step in the right direction for the computer giant. Previous campaigns, such as Think Different, which exclusively focused on artistic-types who already form the company’s core market could be criticized as “preaching to the choir.” But this new campaign does a wonderful job of sharing Apple’s gospel with the unwashed PC-using masses.
The TV campaign avoids the glitz and pizzazz usually associated with computer commercials. In fact, the ads are about as low-tech as they come: just people standing against an opaque background. Only two of the nineteen ads feature b-roll. The music, with the exception of the ad featuring rappers De La Soul, eschews pulsating synthesizers in favor of piano and banjo in a soundtrack that can only be described as a “shuffle.” Instead of polished actors, the ads feature real people—real looking and real sounding people—from a variety of walks of life (business owners, students, parents, musicians, etc.) describing the virtues of Macintosh computers. The whole package is a folksy approach that sends a message to viewers that what they’re seeing is genuine. Each ad would have been just as effective if filmed in the person’s home or work environment, but the white background unifies the whole series and allows the viewer to quickly connect each successive ad together. (White also symbolizes purity.)
The greatest objection that Apple has to overcome in selling its computers is that it’s impossible to function with a different operating system in a Microsoft Windows world. It’s a myth based largely on misconception, and the Switch campaign does a magnificent job at educating the public.
The first message I noticed in the commercials was what’s so great about Windows anyhow? Anyone who’s ever used a computer can identify with the problems identified in the spots, such as: system crashes, lost files, and missing cables. High school student Alex Schocknecht sums it up when he simply states, “It [his PC] couldn’t work for three days without something going wrong.”
Although the testimonies are frequently punctuated by humor (Ellen Feiss’ ad is drop-dead hilarious), it becomes apparent that a computer problem leaves the user absolutely powerless. Father Bill Swan missed much-needed sleep when his PC would not print his daughter’s homework. Feiss’ computer “ate her homework” and she had to hand in a hastily composed substitute to her teacher. Lawyer Theresa McPherson would waste precious time troubleshooting her computer after it froze up at a critical moment.
Previous Apple campaigns highlighted its computers’ technical superiority or aesthetic beauty. The Switch campaign simply describes how a Macintosh solves problems. Janie Porsche and Gentry Poss explain how the Mac’s plug-n-play features save them time and frustration when hooking up peripheral gadgets. College professor Fabiola Torres describes how Apple’s simple software allows her to improve the learning experience with multimedia. Just to make sure that viewers understand that Macs are compatible with the wider computer world, two of the ads feature computer technology professionals who have to interface with Windows systems everyday.
The ads do a good job of creating a desire to switch from Windows to Macintosh. Since you have to use a computer everyday, why not use the brand that will do what you want it to do? As Scatch DJ Qbert puts it, “You have a dream of it, throw it on my Mac, and boom, it’s reality.”
“It makes me feel powerful.”
Student Hamilton Morris
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