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So far Apple's Switch campaign can be considered a great success.
Heck, even my kids (ages 28 to 24) seem to like them. Apple has no
doubt brought awareness to the platform - and likely made a sale or
two because of the campaign.
Like .mac, however, Apple seems to be letting the full potential
of the Switch campaign go unrealized. The switchers have definitely
made an impression on a large number of people. Ellen
Feiss has gone on to become a cult celebrity. Apple's
marketing company has undoubtedly gone out of its way to choose
people others can identify with. That kind of marketing is immensely
powerful if handled correctly.
Take, for example, the
Apple Switch page. On it you can read letters, view the
commercials, and learn about switching to the Mac. It's all useful
information. However, I'm certain that there are people who are
considering switching who would just love to post a message to one of
the switchers in the commercials - maybe get a small dialog going
and earn more about their switching experience.
This would be invaluable to switchers. Of course, they can't be
hanging around the message boards all day long answering questions,
but an online event of some kind that would connect switchers to
potential switchers would create even more down-to-earth credibility
that could do nothing but increase awareness of Apple and its
products.
Take Feiss, for example. Internet users stampeded to read
her
first interview some weeks ago. That traffic could have been
Apple's - if they had given Feiss the chance to speak her mind on
the Apple site. Of course, Feiss may have declined, but if she has
accepted, what a coup!
My point is that Apple is failing to use the Internet to maximize
the quasi-celebrity switchers in the commercials. Again, most
switchers have real jobs that wouldn't permit them to hand around
message boards or answer hundreds of emails.
There are, however, ways around this. For example, Apple could
solicit questions for each switcher, pare them down to the ten best,
and send the questions along. Slashdot
uses this system for their celebrity interviews to great effect. This
system would allow Apple to control the dialog to a certain extent -
and probably save the switchers from having to answer inane questions
("We're you doped up, Ellen?"). In addition, potential switchers
could connect with real switchers in a very real manner.
Stephen Van
Esch is the founder and president of
the
E-learning Foundry, an online training
resource for Mac users. Steve loves the Mac and is doubly bilingual,
since he's also fluent in Windows and French.
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