Earlier this week I tweeted "Is it just me, or are twitter ads getting better?"  I said this because (not once but) twice that day I clicked on a Twitter ad ... and liked it!  This never happens, so I was pleasantly surprised.  One ad was for HipChat and the other was, of course, for the iWatch.  As is often the case, this got me thinking.

The Ads Themselves

HipChat

HipChat is one of those online collaborative things that allow you to meet about stuff without having to go anywhere or technically "meet" with anyone.  The appeal is the assumption that committees, meetings and the associated bureaucracy only serve to slow things down and stifle creativity.  Whereas that is probably true in a lot of situations, I like to meet people.  I get a much better sense of who they are when I actually "meet" them.  So, in general, I'm not interested in such things.

BUT!  This ad had Lumbergh (as played by Gary Cole) from Office Space!  How awesome is that?

The iWatch

I'll be honest with you, I've been pulling away from the Apple products.  I know that they are my brand personality and everything, but I really have been getting irritated with them.  I chose Apple's mobile products because they were so intuitive, but (for me) they have become increasingly less intuitive.  I find this to be so true that I have not yet updated my iPhone from the 6.1.4 iOS.  All the while, my love for Google has grown deeper.  I had even decided that the next phone I get would be a Galaxy, and I may as well get the Note too and the Smartwatch ... maybe just the Fit.

BUT!  This ad reminded me of what is so impressive about Apple products: Their Excellence!

Surprised by Goodwill

Who's to say whether or not I will ever use an online collaborative service.  But if I do, I will strongly consider HipChat.  I don't know when I will ever get a Smartwatch or even another phone for that matter.  But when I do, I'm going to have to take a serious look at the Apple products again.  The fact is, these ads helped to establish (or reestablish) goodwill between me and these companies.  In turn, this has increased my likelihood to buy their products.  That, however, is not the surprising part.

I expect ads to increase my likelihood to buy the products they suggest.  That's what they're supposed to do!  The surprising part is that my goodwill toward Twitter has increased as well.  I have pretty much always hated Twitter ads.  They have almost always been irrelevant and have been increasingly difficult to recognize as ads right away.  As evidenced by the above, this is beginning to change for the better.

This is a very good sign.  People expect for there to be ads on TV, radio and in magazines.  They do not expect to have ads popup in their conversations with people, and this is exactly the goal of social networks.  With luck, advertisers will see the benefit of establishing goodwill ads in these more social markets.  Hopefully we will see more ads that we will like and even share.  When that happens, it stops being an ad and starts being a conversation topic.  Could this be any more ideal!?  After all, the best form of advertising is word of mouth, so give 'em something to talk about.