Commentary

The Princess And The Droid

by Mark Walsh , December 7, 2009

AT&T didn't have much success convincing a judge Verizon Wireless' "There's a Map for That" ads touting its 3G coverage over AT&T's were false and misleading. But the carrier and its wireless partner Apple might be able to make a better case that Verizon's latest spot for the Droid paints a fanciful picture of iPhone users.

The new spot reinforces the idea of the Motorola Droid as the smartphone of choice for no-nonsense, manly cell users in comparison to the iPhone. "Should a phone be pretty? Should it be a tiara-wearing, digitally-clueless beauty pageant queen?" asks the commercial titled "Pretty," while showing a Paris Hilton wannabe holding out a white handset resembling an iPhone.

Contrasted with these images are visual metaphors highlighting how fast the Droid is, including a scud missile, a racehorse and a buzzsaw-colliding banana splattering on the screen. "It's not a princess -- it's a robot. A phone that trades hairdo for can-do," intones the voice-over.

Continuing its "Droid Does" theme, the ad portrays the iPhone as a little more than a fashion accessory for vapid gossip girls. But the typical iPhone user is a male between 35 and 49, according to a study earlier this year by comScore and mobile ad network AdMob. Seventy percent of iPhone users are men and 46% have children.

Granted the Droid ads are toying with popular conceptions about the iPhone and its users. But Verizon's over-the-top approach would have been more on target if mocking the iPod, whose users do skew toward the teen set, with 69% between 13 and 24. But even iPod users are still 70% male. So it's not much of a princess phone after all.

Perhaps Verizon figures most of the Droid's customers are going to be guys anyway, so they might as well go all in on marketing to them. It also means Verizon will need the iPhone more than ever to appeal to the rest of the population.

campaigns, mobile, telecom

5 comments about "The Princess And The Droid".

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Russell Cross from Prentke Romich, December 7, 2009 at 2:50 p.m.
I have to admit to being a little puzzled by the general thrust of the Droid marketing as something more akin to a robotic tool than a communication device. The imagery and language of the commercials doesn't encourage me to go out and buy one. What DOES is the fact that Verizon has a wide coverage area with call stability, and that I can use the device for web access and third-party apps. There's no need to beat up on a glitzy iPhone using black-and-white industrial imagery to persuade me that a Droid is worth considering.
I guess what I am saying is I think folks will buy a Droid in spite of the commercials, not because of.
Reply

Sean Day michael from POOLHOUSE MEDIA, December 7, 2009 at 3:11 p.m.

The iPhone is a laptopMac. It happens to also be a phone. The Droid is a phone that happens to be a PC.

the whole iPhone Versus ANYTHING THAT WILL EVER COME OUT is really just "Im a Mac, I'm a PC" type comparision.

Phones no longer EXIST at least not in and of themselves. A phone is now ONE function of a single device we carry with us everyday.

If Droid wants to win this battle they will lose. Because ther isnt really a battle at all, its just a question of habit and choice for the consumer (us).

If they want to provide a PC device that looks like the Apple device and do so on a network that has better coverage for cellular communication, then they will succeed at having that simple truth as the forefront of their product offering.

Howie Goldfarb from Blue Star Strategic Marketing, December 7, 2009 at 3:12 p.m.

I think that Verizon was actually calling the male I Phone demographic girly as the underlying subtle poke. As for the substance of their ads the problem for Verizon is they sell phone service not computers, and Droid is a computer. Apple of course has been selling computers since the dawn of time. If I was Verizon/Google I would have a device that can survive a 10 ft drop onto concrete if they want to claim being rugged and manly. My friend dropped her I Phone off her desk, screen cracked and was quoted some ridiculous price to fix. So it remains cracked.

David Thurman from Aussie Rescue of Illinois, December 8, 2009 at 9:46 a.m.

Sean

Not to nit pick, but the Droid isn't a "PC" it's a linux OS so not the same, and if you want to compare the iPhone/Pod as a mini me Mac I beg to differ, Windows Mobile beats Apple hands down on PC like functionality.

I find it funny how everyone is looking for that iPhone killer phone, I think to each his own. I have an iPod Touch, have been a HTC WinMo user and now playing in webOS/Palm Pre land and to be honest, each has it's pluses and minuses. It's that old PC vs Mac battle that gets so old and boring.

I think Google is on the path to where it is all headed, the web/clouds for app function, and I am sure Apple will be moving there as well. Soon it will be the interface that makes the phone what it is, not the screen real estate or the apps, as they will all do the same thing on every phone.

The war will be the interface for the user to interact.

Jonathan McEwan from MediaPost, December 8, 2009 at 5:55 p.m.

David: Don't be so literal. Apple built a computer with a unique operating system that happens to make passable phone calls.

Personally, I think the Droid ads are a modern equivalent to VW's 1960s Beetle ads. If you have an ugly bulky thing to sell, embrace it with wit. If you want to sell it, own it.