“If you don’t have an iPhone…”
I can think of so many ways to end that sentence, and here’s what Apple chose:
“If you don’t have an iPhone, well, you don’t have any iPhone”
…but the message is the same: You’re missing out!
iPhone envy, anyone?
In particular, there is set of ‘iPhone envy’ ads which is a set of three commercials that promotes the iPhone. One tooted about the iPhone having the largest app store, another about having iPod + iTunes features, and the remaining, the iBookstore. Apple is very consistent in its advertising with the white background, and the way the iPhone is held and rotated during the demonstrations.
(Something I noticed offhandedly, is how Apple proclaimed itself to have the world’s largest selection of apps, the world’s #1 music store, but isn’t ranked for iBook functionality.)
The message is very clear and direct, giving a demo of each of the features and the pitch is always ended with “If you don’t have an iPhone, well, you don’t have any iPhone.” Which really drives home the message that they think you’re missing out if you don’t have an iPhone because the featured features are attributes that competitors (such as Android smartphones) are lacking. They might have similar functions, but they lack the brand equity of Apple’s products. From these ads, I think the consumers’ brand awareness went up and for sure, there are going to be some people tempted to visit the Apple store to try out the new iPhone even if not to buy it which probably makes marketers happy either way.