It means nothing without central locking...

A few weeks ago I went out for dinner with a couple of my old school friends. This blog is not, as you may suspect, about the rekindling old relationships; the pair in question belong to the "some favourite people” category of my life and so I'm pleased to say I have relatively regular contact with them. No, it’s about a car one of my friends was driving.

As a petrol head, engine enthusiast this said friend knows her stuff about cars (having a best friend mechanic is a particularly skill I pride myself on). We laugh - because she is so small the garage tested her ability to haul tyres before giving her the job. But anyway that’s beside the point:

The week that we had decided to eat out coincided with a week’s worth of work related training for my friend. As a result she had been equipped with a company car to meet her transportation needs. So, naturally she drove to our eatery if choice in the company perk.

The car was nice (my non-professional evaluation). Fitting in with the sleek design of sibling models, this German brand doesn't often fail to please aesthetically; it was comfy and it “drove well”.
My friend harnesses genuine passion for the company for which she works, so if you're after more emotive opinion please do not hesitate to get in touch...

But wait, there was more! This car had been fitted with an innovative device that tells the driver when to change gear for the most efficient driving. Cool or what? We were suitably impressed.

This car, marrying together superficial and functional elements that aspire to provide the ultimate drivers’ experience, is surely at the forefront of upward moving developments? We were in a prototype of the future!

Oh, actually maybe we weren’t. This car didn’t have central locking.   

"This car starts from £6000!”, defends  my friend to this disheartened comment.

"Still. If I was buying a £6000 brand new car I would want central locking”, I retort. I mean come on, my second hand 51 reg plate has central locking!

“You don’t need central locking”

"But you like central locking” chimes my to-become ally. “I thought all new cars had it.”

"£6000!!"

But that's the point; this seemingly random monetary figure had no tangible value to us. What did have value, or significant lack of, was the missing central locking.

And the point of this story? Well it’s this:

In a time where technological advances allow brands to provide increasingly integrated and exponential innovation experiences surely they can’t afford to fail to deliver on the most basic luxuries that we take for granted. By neglecting the basics, that we as consumers understand and regard, are brands not undermining both the pioneering technology and their own image?

The evolution of interactive media?

Innovative technological advances will allow people to engage with media in real time across a number of different platforms. As a result this type of communication will become an increasingly integrated part of our lives, and we ourselves will become a more integrated community. Instead of being required to ‘log onto’ and ‘sign into’ current communicational channels (social media sites, for example) as a separate activity, this resource will be readily presented and available at our finger tips.

Interactive TV

What will this highly discussed product offer?

I believe this product will focus on providing a personalised service. I suggest the screen, offering a flexible viewing window, would be divided between TV channel content and an interactive box linked to the outside world via an internet connection.

Through this box;

·         Consumers would be able to link with ‘friends’ and discuss the content being viewed
 
·         Suggestions would be made for programmes that may be of interest to the consumer based either on their viewing behaviour or ‘friends’ choices. It would also be able to archive programmes the viewer indicated they wanted to watch.

·         Interest relevant news would be offered

·         Content relevant advertising would be supported. This could be in relation to 1) the consumer’s interests or 2) the content being viewed;

1)      If the customer watches the fishing channel they may be interested in a fishing holiday, if they watch the grand prix they may also enjoy the super bikes. Secondary advertisement for hotels and restaurants in the local area could be offered once interest had been shown in the initial advert…

2)      Coinciding with the current TV content, additional information could supplement products being exposed through the TV channel. This would be an exciting development for marketers running TV ads or using product placement.  

Interactive outdoor advertising

You may recall lynx experiential campaign where consumers could interact with a virtual angel. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rFuUFeQIdpk

I see this being implemented on a much larger scale with people becoming features in the adverts to which they are exposed. This would be particularly effective with bill board advertising; imagine seeing yourself model those M&S clothes as you walk on by.

This would also be an exciting platform for game related advertising.

Consumer opinion is a powerful brand asset, especially when it can be shared on a large scale. I believe that, in this communication focused society, real time feedback will become a common feature of outdoor campaigns. People will be encouraged to interact with medium that allows them to share their comments, stories, and aspirations with other people in a public way. Of course this may put more pressure on brands to perform but once they’ve got it right their reputation will be rewarded with consumer trust.