You must have seen it. We talked about it here last week, Apple’s new ad for their Air Pods. Since its release it certainly has had a lot of media coverage, but we wanted to take a moment here to break it down, what makes it work and what can we learn from it, for when we try to communicate our brands.

1)It relates

It starts with a cool enough looking guy walking across a street. Something we all do on a regular basis. So it is framed on a level that everyone can connect to and a takes a situation people could possibly see themselves in.

2) It then transports

That doesn’t last long though. Like any good narrative, it takes you into a world that is unbelievable and that a couple of seconds ago you wouldn’t believe was possible. Because it is unexpected it keeps you hooked. What is going to happen next?

3) It is driven by a concept

The crux of what makes this a great piece of brand communication is that it entertains. It is selling but at the same time, it isn’t selling. It has linked something very cool and liberating like dancing on a street with wireless earphones, a product that is in its own way, liberating. This simple idea of freedom has been associated with dancing (as what is more engaging and freeing than dancing) and when you can not only dance but dance as you want, as you walk across a city, the connection is built, in a subtle way, that Apple AirPods allow you to do just that.

4) It creates desire

The point of brand communication is not that it makes you run out the door and go and buy a product, I don’t think any form of communication creates that level of action, but what it does do is plant the seed in the mind and make you go ‘wow, that’s cool, I want those.’ You are speaking here to someone who is well aware of the games brands play in creating desire, and yet I’m impelled to also fall for the Air Pods. Not on a level of functionality or what it is that they do, but just that a well pitched advert like this makes you kind of think, ‘I want to be cool like that guy in the video’. Brand communication doesn’t tell you how much something is, where to get it, or what makes it better than their competitors. It just plays with your emotions and creates a simple level of desire.

5) It goes full circle

Like all good stories, it brings you back to where you started from. It completes the circle, back to the guy walking down the street as normal with a cheeky smile, to you the viewer. That split second of connection. That idea of ‘hey join me.’ It’s the cherry on the cake.

The ad hasn’t left you floating in this world that it transported you to. It brings you back to something that you can relate to and that makes you again think, I’m just like this guy. And then it stops. No type pops up that says available at these stores, or online at this price. That would ruin the illusion. It leaves you just feeling ‘wow, that was cool, and you know what I thought they were silly but those Air Pods are cool too.’

That is the art of great brand communication. To find out more drop us an email at yo@blandtobrand.co.uk and we’ll send you though more information about brand.