Poster Child for Quick Reactions: Print!
On Monday, news broke that Eliot Spitzer, the governor of NY, had seven (or more) “engagements” with prostitutes supplied by a call girl service. Spitzer was identified as “Client 9.” Virgin Mobile reacted quickly to this week’s hot topic. The day after Spitzer resigned as a result of the scandal, Virgin Mobile hit the press with the ad shown above.
The ad plays off Spitzer’s “Client #9” label, with the thought bubble reading, “I’m tired of being treated like a number.” The ad goes on to say, “…you’re more than just a number. When you call us we’ll treat you like a person, not a client. Whether you’re #9 or #900, you’ll get hooked up with somebody who’ll finally treat you just how you want to be treated.”
The ad will run in two Toronto daily newspapers this week as part of the company’s “You call the shots” campaign. I commend both Virgin Mobile and their agency for being so nimble in their process to be able to seize the opportunity. In case you aren’t seeing the 800 pound gorilla in the room, I’ll point it out for you…
While this isn’t a common occurrence for print – as many times print deadlines don’t lend themselves to this type of creative planning – we don’t see nearly enough digital executions that are this timely. I don’t think this means that print is coming to the table with a better user experience than interactive executions. However, I think that digital initiatives have a lot to add to the conversation around timeliness. What about using this concept on mobile news, using targeted mobile conquesting ads on rival mobile carriers?
We’re all bogged down with the infrastructure of the process of planning and approvals – but I think executions like this one remind us of the endless opportunities to make interactive contacts with consumers relevant and timely, part of the best branded experience equations.
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Interesting that they didn’t have the nerve (balls?) to run this ad in New York
If it wasn’t for the context in the blog I don’t know if I’d get it, while I’ve heard a great deal about the case this is the first time I’ve seen his image.
But yes, very quick turn around for print, I was reading that client9.com and others were registered mere minutes after the news first came out.
Plus, I’ve seen this ad linked to and posted all over the web. Sure, it’s technically playing in Toronto, but the attention it’s getting makes Toronto look REALLY big, and the price of creating it REALLY SMALL. Brilliant.
[...] Child for Quick Reactions: Print! at Experience Matters Posted March 14, 2008 The ad plays off Spitzer’s “Client #9” label, with the thought bubble reading, “I’m tired [...]
The subtlety of this ad is what makes it so catchy. I was out of the country and off the grid when this news broke and wouldn’t have gotten it had I not seen the news many days later.
Bruce Eric
I heard that Virgin was going to continually release new ads that were timely and politically charged. I have yet to come across any new ones. I was so impressed on the delivery, but see the challege of sustainability.
Jaquan…
this is why i always pick my nose….
costumes…
an interesting take on a boring topic….