• by Chuck Martin , Staff Writer, June 8, 2016

Marketing messaging via robots is on the way, even if the substance and form of that messaging has not yet to take shape.

And some of that messaging may be created to come through Pepper the robot, launching in the U.S. market later this year.

Several weeks ago, SoftBank, which makes Pepper, selected an ad agency to launch the humanoid robot, as I wrote about at the time (Pepper The Robot Hires An Agency, Launching In The U.S.)

Yesterday I caught up with executives from SoftBank and its agency, Midnight Oil.

It’s not like Pepper is new, with some 7,000 units already in operation in Japan.

And Pizza Hut recently decided to introduce Pepper to its customers in Asia, with the 4-foot robots acting as order-takers and cashiers.

“Pepper can see you, call you over and respond accordingly,” said Steve Carlin, general manager and vice president of business development at SoftBank Robotics US. “It can stop a shopper, give a message and help close a sale.”

As a start, the agency conducted research, including one-on-one interviews with groups of developers, since they need to create the software to customize what Pepper can do. It then crafted a campaign for developers, which is now launching.

“It’s amazing hardware but really needs software,” said Carlin. “It needs the creativity of developers.”

After developers, the agency focus will be on the business market.

“Your average agency doesn’t get to work with robots,” said Dino Hainline, Lead Strategist at Midnight Oil, the agency tapped with launching Pepper into the U.S. market.

“Our role is to bring her to the forefront of this revolution,” Hainline said, pointing out that Pepper is gender neutral but individuals tend to ultimately refer to it as ‘him’ or ‘her.’

One of the most logical first homes for Pepper will be at retail, though it also is likely to be found at an auto showroom, on a cruise ship or in an office lobby.

“Pepper could greet you in the front lobby and ask who you are here to see,” said Hainline. “It then could offer you to have a seat.

“It has facial recognition (and memory), so you could come to our office and Pepper would say: ‘Chuck, are you here to see Dino again?’"

As to messaging via robots, Hainline notes that it has to be contextual and personal.

“Just as Web banners are pretty much defunct now, ad messaging fundamentally will be different,” he said.

“An ad needed to be good at subsidizing content,” said Hainline. “In the future, it will shift to being about creating value.”

Pepper the robot gets that it’s about engagement.

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