Apple has debuted their latest “Get a Mac” ad in which “PC” tries to hawk a new book called “I Want to Buy a Computer – Now What?” which is aimed at solving the complexities of buying a PC. Mac explains that it really isn’t that hard, in fact, it’s really easy, if you “Get a Mac.” Apple Stores have personal shoppers to help you pick out the Mac that’s right for and even offer workshops for you after you buy your Mac, you know. “PC” thought of that “afterwards” phase, too and tries to sell his new companion volume “I Just Bought a Computer – Now What?”
Apple Get a Mac Ad: Now What?
Direct link to video via YouTube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kYoQ77tLeq8
Watch the video in higher quality via Apple.com here.
MacDailyNews Take: Apple’s market research must be telling them that there is a worthwhile target audience for this ad’s message. We’re obviously nowhere near said target, since our first take was: “Uh, whatever. If this ad sells even one extra Mac, we’ll be pretty surprised.” But, we can stretch enough to imagine how a certain type of computer buyer would appreciate personal help before and after the sale; we’re just not sure that this ad gets that message across as well as it could have. For one example, simply having “Mac” say the word “free” before “workshops” would have made this one at least a little bit better. Apple Retail Store Workshops are free, after all. Leaving that word out of the ad is just plain stupid.
[Thanks to MacDailyNews Reader “blue” for the heads up.]
now what?
This one does not even come close – and I am a MacAd fanboy!
real – meeh…
And this is supposed to tell me what exactly?
Mac’s line about personal shoppers and training are thrown away.
And guess what?
I want to buy a Mac. Now what?
Oh, we have people to guide you because evidently it isn’t so easy. I mean, if you have to have a person to guide you, is that much better than having a book?
How’d this one get out of the gate?
Eh, I agree to a degree, wings. But I’d definitely rather walk into a store, play with a computer, ask questions to a knowledgeable staff of real people… than spend money on a book. Ya know?
Still, not one of their better ads in the series.
I think it is a good ad. It addresses the confusion that most people have at Big Box Store when confronted with a long row of nearly identical Window boxes. Maybe the ad doesn’t stress the Apple store experience enough, but it is there.
The experience is the product these days, and no one understands that better than Apple.
Of course nothing is free from Apple for long
Are those workshops at the Apple store free? I’m kind of interested, but I don’t know that much about them.
It felt too rushed.
A miss. That’s what.
It’s to difficult for you stupid americano’s
@st1. Three mistakes – spelling, missed capital letter, and wrong use of an apostrophe. Not bad for one short sentence.
Why is it when apple does one type of commercial that it is the same old commercial (same music, visual, etc).
Why don’t they come up with various Mac commercials that actually DEMONSTRATE the functionality of the Mac like they did with the iPhone?????????
Apple is such a great company and producing great innovative products, but I’ve always had a beef with their Mac TV ads. They just seem to lack the power punch potential it could have.
The iPod are good and seem to target the ‘Hip’ audience.
The iPhone is great because it demonstrates the product and produces the ‘Wow’ factor.
The Mac, although the PC vs Mac guys are great comic relief, Apple needs a Mac commercial much like the iPhone as a companion commercial to the PC vs Mac guys.
My 2 cents.
@macmac: I agree.
E.g., show a drag’n drop installation example. (“Boom!”)
Hell, show them drag’n drop all in itself!
PC users don’t use this often because their windows are maximized all the time (Even though the functionality is often there, but in a inconsistent manner, as usual when somebody copies ideas without really “getting” them)
It hits home only for those who get a new computer, excited at what it’ll do, only to find out that there’s not a whole lot– that’s why most use theirs for email and “googling things.”
It doesn’t have the flair of some of the others, but it will resonate with…oh… millions.
The geeks reading this board are not the target audience. Think — the morons at work that can barely turn their computer on. Now that is the target audience; people who would even have no idea that a board like this exists.
I can see my mother in law (my mom already has a Mac) coming to me after seeing those ads and go….
You mean I get free training on the computer? yes, you do…
You also get someone waiting for you at the door when you come in if you make a personal shopping appointment.
I think this is huge… if you’ve ever been in an Apple Store on a weekend it’s udder chaos. The fact that she could go in, not knowing a lot about a computer, which for the most of the general population are pretty intimidating (esp if you’re over 55) is awesome.
I’ve poo poo’d the store in the past (I use to work for Apple) and I’ve sent some pretty heated emails to ol’ Ron Johnson… this is something they are doing right.
The target audience isn’t the current fan base, but Christmas shoppers who aren’t tech savvy.
This ad will disappear after the New Year.
Think about it: a car salesman is a personal shopper “to help you pick out the car (Mac) that’s right for.”
Prior to my switching to a Mac, I was trying to use Windows Vista. I had been considering switching to a Mac, but thought Vista would be just fine considering my high end PC. Well, you all can imagine the outcome there. Every time I saw one of these commercials, it was like salt in a wound, a message to me, someone showing me the light, etc. I finally bought my Mac and I am so much more happier.
The reason I say all this is the commercials had a big influence on me and my purchase. So I’m a big fan of the commercials. This one wasn’t my favorite, but I definitely think that they are a good advertisement for Apple.
I agree with macmac….I’ve been touting Mac for years now & finally took my mom to a Mac Store. She was blown away by the stuff demonstrated on the computer…..now every time she sees one of those mac commercials she asks me why don’t they show the cool stuff the computer does like in the store….
Mac is missing the boat big time….most people have never even seen a mac in operation. These commercials should be showing all the cool features that made me switch to a mac in the first place. Show the new additions to Leopard….show how apps are installed…..show all the cool tricks that even I don’t know yet. PC’s suck, but SHOW the PC users why.
That commercials was WAAAAAAAYYYYY to rushed!!!
Workshops cost money. MDN is right, Mac Guy needs to say FREE workshops. Then it would be ok, but still nowhere near the best Mac ad.
“This one does not even come close – and I am a MacAd fanboy!
real – meeh…”
That’s because it’s not meant for you. Trust me, this ad will resonate with a lot of people. I know I spent 4 years at an Apple retail store and people want to know they can get good help when making their buying decisions. People are intimidated by technology and want to have people help them.
Sometimes I think that fanboys and technerds lose sight of the fact that 98% of the rest of the world doesn’t hang on Steve’s every word or want to run a Linux server.
Again. Not yours.
“but I’ve always had a beef with their Mac TV ads. They just seem to lack the power punch potential it could have”
They aren’t making infomercials. These ads appeal to people by taking complex concepts and making them easy to understand. Throwing a bunch of slick graphics up there only appeals to fanboys and the installed base. Guess what, they don’t need to advertise to you.
The thing is, they must be working. While people continue to complain about Apple’s ads, the market share continues to climb, which just goes to show… they know more about advertising that you do.
“Mac is missing the boat big time”
I have a hard time believing your knowledge of the Mac platform when you say “Mac is missing the boat bigtime”. The company name is APPLE not MAC. MAC sells cosmetics.
And yeah they are missing the boat alright. Marketshare has nearly doubled in the last couple years. Yeah, really missing it.
This one sucked, dude.
“I know I spent 4 years at an Apple retail store . . .”
I hope you found a way to shower and shave.
Here’s a story that should be pretty common:
My Dad (>70 yrs) bought a Dell in the UK (I tried to get him to buy a mac but without success)
He had a hard time setting it up particularly since he didn’t have broadband.
Eventually he had broadband install since Dell said it was needed for DLing all the anti-virus stuff etc.
Got the machine to work.
Wanted to print something. The printer worked, but Vista warned of hardware incompatibilities so he updated the drivers etc.
Now the machine won’t logon.
NOW WHAT?
I told him that A wouldn’t remind him that I told him this would happen!! Maybe he’ll be able to send back the PC and buy a mac instead. With the new desktop sharing feature I should be able to troubleshoot his issues even being in the US.
Well, if they’re going to tout their workshops, they better get a little quality control implemented. I and another employee from our company were considering paying for Apple training and decided to attend a workshop on iWork as a “test drive.” We also hoped this workshop would help us decide whether our (small) company should upgrade to Office 08 or give iWork a try. The workshop absolutely SUC*ED!! The Apple guy started by admitting he didn’t know anything at all about Numbers–which is the main one we were interested in seeing demo’d–then he proceeded to demonstrate that he also didn’t know much about Keynote, though he claimed that he knew that one! He ended up insisting that Keynote couldn’t add page numbering for handouts, as well as other basic functionality. The other employee that attended with me is a Mac newbie who I had recently persuaded to switch. After the “workshop” was over, we stayed around to play around with iWork and, in just 5 minutes, figured out how to add page numbering as well as do all the other things we wanted to see it do. (How embarrassing for an Apple fan!) Needless to say, we’ve put our plans for buying Apple retail training on hold for the time being.
You know, while the workshops are free, if Apple is going to offer them it should do a good job with them! They project an image about the company. We may give Apple another shot at a different Apple retail store in the area (there are several) in a few weeks. Still, Apple is responsible for all of its own stores–they need to do a little more corporate QC.
For those wondering why we didn’t just play around with the 30-day trial versions of iWork, it’s because every minute of company time is valuable. Fumbling blindly with an app you’ve never touched before SHOULD be less efficient than being introduced to it through a focused “workshop/training”!!
I think the ad was decent. It had a message with many people who are afraid of computers. There still are a few folks out there in that category. Maybe it is just me, but I liked the ad.
The problem with Apple’s marketing approach is that they keep trying to reach the CLUELESS shoppers to buy a Mac.
But so for only people that have a clue are buying Macs and the clueless keep buying PCs….. cause the don’t have a clue!
@silverhawk – the difference: commission.
Personally, I prefer the training and support from a local Macintosh Users Group, if you have one in your area. This is where users help other users. You don’t have to re-invent the wheel and you don’t have to be stuck while somebody trying to sell you something is acting like he’s helping you.
http://www.apple.com/usergroups/find/
The Apple stores are great, but people who want to learn how to get the most from their computer need to get involved with their local MUGs too.
This one is not one of their best, but I still find the commercials very entertaining. Keep them coming Apple!
It appears that Apple is going after the few individuals who do not know much about computers but know enough to consider an Apple. Hmm…Apple is also going after those who know nothing about computers and hate the non-Apple computer shopping experience.
To me the ad is like a non-Apple personal computer – rather dull and not very inspiring at all.
Peace.
Poorly done, rushed, obscure. Oh well
I like these ads. This one made me smile. What else do you want?
Also, they get more people aware of the fact that there’s a choice, and they keep hearing the word Mac. That’s a good thing.
Just my 2 pence
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Using the word “Free” will not help any…
It’s too losely associated with getting useless crap with something of actual interest, but likely low quality, thus requiring the f-word to get people to be interested…
Only fools buy things that are advertised as coming with something that is “free,” since only fools don’t know that there is no such thing as free.
By the way, I like the ad, though it’s hardly the best so far. It’s about keeping the name on non-TiVo using TV-viewing people’s minds when they would otherwise be thinking of something else (like the show they are waiting to get back to after the break or what is in the fridge, or straining to empty their bladder before the show comes back on, etc.).
I think the new ad hits it’s target. I occasionally help computer newbies (mainly Mac) at their homes, and it’s the very bottom basics they need help with. And just like in this ad, they often go out and buy these books, and it’s no help to them, because they are not geared to the absolute beginner. Thats where the Apple store workshops shine. They are geared to the new Mac user. I have a feeling that this commercial will help move more than a few computer buyers to the Mac this shopping season.
can we petition apple to not run this ad on national television?
I say Apple knows what it’s doing… so let ’em do it.
By the way, did you guys watch the “related video”
???
Hilarious for those already in the know.