Blog Post 3

In class, we have been discussing advertising in video gaming as well as getting the consumer as engaged with the advertisement as possible. In a video game, the consumer is transformed into the player, so when exposed to an advertisement, he or she is engaging with the ad via the game. In a video I found on YouTube, the hassle of finding a parking spot comes to life with a popular classic arcade game, pinball. Through Ogilvy Paris, Ford advertised in the city by creating a pinball game out of parking a car into a parking space. Ogilvy attached a pinball score board above an available parking spot with the two cars as the bumpers, which light up and replicate a pinball machine, noises and all!

After many attempts by people to fit into the spot, one man is rewarded with his "new record" as worst driver and wins a brand new Ford Focus. The Ford Focus has special features of active park assist technology, therefore the interactive advertisement is perfect for those people who struggle with parallel parking every day. (Nudd, 2012)

Not only does the game exemplify the park assist technology features of the Ford Focus perfectly as an advertisement, the ad also makes parking fun. Any engaging advertisement that is fun for viewers to participate in are for the most part very successful.

While this advertisement is a rare kind of interactive advertising, I believe that this is the way advertising will move into the future. Agencies will be striving for this on every single product that is applicable to this kind of advertising. People remember the experience they have while playing a virtual pinball game and it will stick in their minds as an advertisement over any other traditional media advertisement.

References 

Nudd, Tim. (2012, April 30). Ad of the Day: Ford. Ad Week. Retrieved from

          http://www.adweek.com/news/advertising-branding/ad-day-ford-139942

Ogilvy Paris. (2012, April 18). The Parisian Pinball Park. Retrieved on October 3, 2012 from  
       
          http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DAM_HLj1QOo