Ambient Advertising

          Ambient advertising is advertising that exists in unexpected places. Ambient ads usually have a unique way of capturing the attention of the public and surrounding people. The unexpectedness of the advertising captures more attention from viewers than it would if the advertising existed in an original place. Ambient ads convey a message and create awareness that reaches to a wider variety of people. These ads grab the consumers by “surprise”, making them want to look at the ad. These are not just general ads that one would find in a magazine or commercial- most people want to skip over those advertisements. But ambient ads provide a fresh new outlook on advertising, making it enjoyable for the consumer to view the ad. It uses traditional advertising in an interesting and innovative way. Examples of ambient advertising would be ads existing on park benches, toilet paper rolls, clothing, or floors. Other types of ambient advertising would be 3D or interactive ads.

            Ambient advertising is an effective way to reach Otterbein students because it is unique. Students are used to their everyday routine and schedule that they don’t usually pay attention to small things. I can’t tell you how many times I have walked passed all of the bulletin boards with mounds of flyers tacked up promoting some events. Very rarely do I actually stop to look at those flyers to see what is going on around campus. This display is too overwhelming, and so common that no one utilizes it unless they happen to look that direction or are standing by one. If we create an advertisement around campus that is not what students are expecting, it would receive more attention and awareness. This kind of ambient advertising would have a greater effect on Otterbein students than the normal flyer that everyone walks by. If we put something out in the open that would not usually be placed there, it would grab the attention of people walking by. No one ever notices when their surroundings are the same, but once it changes, or once something skews the perception, people immediately notice the difference. That’s what we should be trying to do with our ambient advertising projects.

One ambient ad I found to be creative was an ad for the LG Steam Direct Drive Washing Machine, to promote its wrinkle-free washing. The company reinvented the laundry bag to look like one of their washing machines, and distributed them to dry cleaners and neighborhood laundries. The machine therefore became a mobile advertisement, with a hole in the bag that allowed the public to see through to the “wrinkle-free” ironed clothes. This is effective because it is a walking advertisement. The people carrying the bags are essentially promoting the product, without actually meaning to. This advertisement targets ordinary consumer adults that wash their clothes, and may want an easier way of doing it, without all of the wrinkles.

Another ambient ad I found very effective was an ad for First United that was creating awareness of all the homeless people in Metro, Vancouver. It was unique because they created real-life sculptures of people that did not have a face or head, and placed them in high-traffic areas around the city. These statues represented actual people that they had helped get off the streets and find jobs and homes. While bringing awareness to how many homeless people there were, they also brought awareness to how many people they had helped, and therefore were not homeless anymore. These sculptures captured the attention of the public because of the missing faces. They looked like actual people, but when the public noticed that there was no face, they became very interested in the meaning behind the sculptures and what they were promoting. The ad was even more effective because it directed viewers to a website where they could learn more about the cause, read success stories, and donate. This ad targets people in Vancouver primarily.

You can check out the video for this advertisement here:

http://adsoftheworld.com/media/ambient/first_united_sculptures