• by Aaron Baar , October 6, 2009

Sometimes, when presented with a game-changing device, it's best to have the marketing get out of the way and let the product do the talking. That's exactly what Powermat is doing to introduce its new product, a platform that allows people to recharge their personal electronic devices -- without the use of a cord.

"We made the conscious decision not to tell people how it works," says Harry Wood, co-creative director and partner at Woods Witt Dealy and Sons, the agency that created the campaign. "They figure that out for themselves, and even when they do, they don't quite understand it."

Instead, the agency and company opted for a more practical -- yet humorous -- approach, encouraging people to "lose the wires" in a new advertising campaign breaking this week. "If you think of the mess of cords on your kitchen counter, this cleans it right up," Woods tells Marketing Daily. "That's the main benefit of this thing."

A television campaign breaking this week uses the impressions most people have when seeing or using the Powermat for the first time, using bleeped-out expletives as they use the device. In one spot, two college students in their dorm room declare: "That's [bleep]ing cool." "[Bleep]ing A," before concluding that they can get "so many [bleep]ing chicks with this." Another spot in an office features similar dialogue between two co-workers.

"[The strategy] came from watching people at CES, trade shows and at product demonstrations. Everyone had the same, 'What the ...?' expression about them," Woods says. "Sometimes getting out of the way is the best approach."

The company is targeting new technology early adopters, as well as heavy travelers with this introductory campaign, Woods says. "I think there's a lot of crossover between those two audiences," he says. "So much travel now involves taking our hardware and software with us, it goes hand in hand with early adoption."

To reach the early adopters, the television commercials will air on male-skewing programming and channels like Cartoon Network's "Adult Swim" and sports programming on ESPN and ABC. Given that many early adopters are adult males in their early- to mid-twenties, pushing the envelope with the subject matter made some sense, Woods says. "We had a little bit of leeway to be more controversial," he says.

To reach the travelers, the agency created several executions for display in airports in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles and San Francisco. One out-of-home execution uses the automatic sliding doors to depict eliminating the cords in favor of using a Powermat. (When the doors are closed, the wires are shown connected to the devices, but when the doors open, the cords retract into the door construction and the devices move to a Powermat on the other side.)

All of the signage and print advertising -- some of which shows people entangled in charging cords -- repeat the message: "Lose the cord." The campaign, which also includes a heavy online presence and a mobile component to come later, will run through December.

For the record, the product, which went on sale this week, uses magnetic induction technology to repower the electronic devices via a magnetic sleeve that fits onto each device and attaches to the recharging mat.