15 Clever Examples of Interactive Print Ads

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Written by Jami Oetting | @jamioetting

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Print ads were once the standard format for creative advertising. But as more and more advertising dollars are allocated to digital outlets, print advertising is seen as an expensive, untrackable, traditional media format.

You would think the category is void of innovative ideas, but that’s certainly not the case. In fact, many brands are finding new ways to merge the digital and physical world through magazine and newspaper ads. 

Here are 15 print ads that should make you rethink the word "traditional."

1) Glacial

If you’ve ever wanted to speed up the beer-cooling process, you’ll understand the allure of this print ad from Glacial. You soak the ad in water, wrap it around the bottle, and put it in the freezer. The print ad was made with salt particles, which reduce the freezing point of water.

2) Nivea 

This print ad won the Mobile Grand Prix at Cannes in 2014. The ad includes a wristband you could attach to your child as he runs around at the beach. The app lets you set a distance and receive alerts if the child wandered beyond the limit.

3) UTEC

UTEC, an engineering and technology university, wanted to recruit more students. Instead of placing the smiling faces of young graduates on a billboard, it created an ad that pulled moisture out of the air in Lima, Peru, which sees very little rain each year.

4) Motorola

The brand teamed up with Wired to promote the Moto X’s custimization. People could change the color of the phone by pushing buttons.

5) Kontor Records 

Kontor Records wanted to get the attention of creative advertising professionals. Instead of mailing out the latest CD, it sent a vinyl record with a paper turntable that could be played with an iPhone.

6) Peugot

This print ad for the car brand features a one-page ad with a front view of the car that asked people to hit the ad. The spread following it included a mini air bag that inflated when hit.

7) Lexus

In 2013, Lexus released an ad that, when placed over an iPad, revealed the car in action with different backgrounds and music.

8) Lladro Lighting

Why advertise lamps when you can give people an ad that transforms into a lamp? The print ads act like a pop-up book, allowing people to create their own lamp shape by mounting the paper in a corner.

9) Ford

To show off the features of the Ford Explorer, the brand published three print ads with interactive elements. The reader could scan a QR code and then line up the phone on the ad to see the car in action.

10) Volkswagon

Volkswagon published a three-page spread so readers could take a test drive. You could download an app and can try out different features, including the "Lane Assist" mode that would cause the phone to vibrate when it got too close to one side of the road.

11) Sonera

The telecommunications company highlighted its 4G wireless speed with a print ad that served as the game board for an iPhone game.

12) C&A

Fashion retailer C&A published a print ad in customized magazine editions that were linked to a person’s Facebook account. Readers could Like their favorite looks on Facebook by pressing the button in the ad. The data was then sent to a leaderboard in the store.

13) Nivea

To promote its sunscreen products, Nivea created a print ad with a solar panel that could charge a cell phone.

14) Shikun & Binui Solaria

Israeli energy company launched this print ad to promote green energy. The print ad just seems like a simple black and white drawing. However, when you hold it up to sunlight, vibrant colors appear.

15) CW Network

The CW published this print ad in Entertainment Weekly in 2012. The ad featured a LCD screen that is updated with videos from the network and a stream of live tweets.

170 U.S. Brands Are Already Using This Ad Tech That Can Target People in a Specific Building

 xAd shows how precise location data is getting By Christopher Heine

Article

• March 4, 2015, 3:27 PM EST
• Technology

Location ads are starting to hit smaller targets. | Photo: Shutterstock

The motto of the 28th annual Mobile World Congress is "The Edge of Innovation," and xAd's message at the conference is particularly on theme. The New York tech company can literally target you with an ad based on the edges of the building in which you stand, a capability that's brought to life with an accuracy-verification data feed called Blueprints. 

Blueprints works with xAd's larger program dubbed Footprints, a satellite-based system that has been recently utilized in the United States and is now going live in the United Kingdom. It lets brands visualize audiences based on store locations and then target these consumers with mobile ads.

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So, in theory, a lingerie retailer can be confident that when it is trying to steal customers currently browsing a a competitor brand's shelves, its campaign is hitting the right targets. The marketer can not only view the location data—the numbers, in other words—but it can actually see the buildings or areas it is zeroing in on.

The bevy of xAd clients in the U.K. that will now have the system at their disposal include Adidas, Pinkberry and Walmart-owned Asda, while 170 brands (including Outback Steakhouse, as seen in the example below) have quietly been leveraging the system in the U.S.

The targeting tools mark a departure from the less-precise ad-serving capability known as geo-fencing, which has for years been based on postal addresses, said Scott Zalaznik, xAd's global head of retail. In the past, the lingerie retailer—to stay with the same hypothetical advertiser—may have believed it was getting in front of a competitor's customers when it was actually just reaching motorists driving down the road.

"The No. 1 enemy of pure location audiences is actually the highway," Zalaznik explained. "We needed to build technology that finds the building themselves."

As of right now, his company can supply mobile advertisers with 16 million "custom fences," as xAd calls them. Through partnerships with numerous popular mobile apps (Weather, Accuweather, The White Pages, etc.), xAd is able to target millions upon millions of consumers. 

Additionally, its Footprints software helps retailers get a sense of how many smartphone-toting folks are in competitors' stores. For instance, in a demo given to Adweek on Wednesday, one could know that there were exactly 921,366 people in Walmart's stores at 10:15 a.m. ET. 

Meanwhile, location data has been a hot topic here at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona. In a speech, AOL Platforms CEO Bob Lord said that now that mobile data is improving, it's time for creative to make a big jump in quality and relevance.

"I have placement nailed; I know where you are and what you're doing," Lord said. "But the reality is that to get to that person and break through ... instead of four creative treatments, I need 4,000 creative treatments. Once I have placement nailed I can overlay the index of creativity on top of it and optimize not only the placement but the creativity, but the challenge is getting that."

Here Are The 10 Most Innovative Digital Ad Products of 2014

Google, Snapchat, Facebook and the rest reshape the industryBy Garett Sloane

• December 26, 2014, 7:08 AM EST
• Technology

Instagram video ads, used by brands like Disney, were among the most interesting of the year.

It wasn't long ago when social media advertising just meant Facebook and digital advertising only reached desktop computers. Well, 2014 saw an explosion in the Internet ecosystem, which has become increasingly mobile with more media-rich formats than ever.

The largest players like Facebook and Google innovated and newcomers such as Snapchat offered ad space that theretofore didn't exist. So here's a look back at a year where fresh ad units routinely emerged onto the scene.

Google Shopping Campaigns

The search advertising giant showed that it wants to take on Amazon as much as any of its other rivals, and it developed its e-commerce platform to do just that, not only with services like home delivery but evolved search ads that more seamlessly include retail. In early 2014,Product Listing Ads, which show up in certain searches directing users to retailers online, were now rolled into campaigns. The new shopping campaigns give retailers more control over when their ads show up in searches and for what products. Google even has tools that let retailers indicate what products are available at the nearest physical store.

In September, Google also launched AdSense for Shopping, which shows product ads on third-party websites. It's all very Amazon, and all part of Google's one-stop shop to track everything from ad served to product delivered.

Snapchat's Sponsored Updates

The youth-focused messaging app didn't take long to get into advertising with sponsored snaps ("snaps" are what Snapchat legions call their momentary messages on the platform) that show up in users' inboxes. The Universal Pictures movie Ouija was the first to buy the new mobile video format, which opens a new channel for social media marketing—especially in terms of reaching young people.

Also, its live feed, which crowdsources Snapchat messages at events like the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, now features commercials mixed in with the snaps from everyday users. For instance, Amazon sponsored Black Friday on Snapchat.

Instagram Sponsored Video

Now with more than 300 million users, Instagram had its first full year of advertising in 2014. Its newest ad product introduced autoplay sponsored videos, and brands from Disney to Electronic Arts to Banana Republic were the first to try them out.

The video offering comes on top of sponsored photos, which were first served in 2013. CEO Kevin Systrom is trying to cultivate a stylish advertising vibe not unlike the glossy pages of a magazine only this is digital, mobile and multimedia, and he still apparently approves all of the marketing on a case-by-case basis.

Facebook Premium VideoWhile tested in 2013, Facebook's Premium Video Ads didn't fully launch until March. These ads are autoplaying videos that are attracting a number of brands such as Macy's during Christmas.

Video is the future of Facebook, according to CEO Mark Zuckerberg, and billions of videos from users and marketers are seen everyday. Facebook is trying to compete with everyone from YouTube to Yahoo to Twitter to AOL with video that can attract brands looking for top publishers.

Twitter App-Install Ads

The app-install ad was ever important this year, especially at Twitter, where the direct-response model of advertising now offers ways from brands to do more than ever on the platform. Yes, installing an app is one variety, but the ads also direct users to apps that have been dormant on their phones, a trick that Facebook and Google now offer as well.

Also, Twitter has e-commerce ads that have Buy Now buttons and video ads with View Now, and the list of potential actions is only growing.

Tumblr Sponsored Dot

Tumblr was full of new ad ideas this year, perhaps the most intriguing was the Sponsored Dot (that period at the end of its logo). Now, brands can buy it, dressing their logo as the punctuation mark for special occasions, like Starbucks did on National Coffee Day.According to parent company Yahoo, Tumblr is looking at $100 million in ad sales during 2015, so it laid the groundwork for plenty of other new products, too, including video, sponsored trends and app-install ads.

Kik Promoted Chats
This messaging app is just starting its ad business, much like Snapchat. However, it doesn't draw quite the same amount of attention even though it is popular with teens and consistently near the top of app charts. Kik says it has 150 million registered users, and it is attracting big brands and media/entertainment players looking to reach its young audience with Promoted Chats.

The paid chats launched this year and let properties like Funny or Die and electronics brands like Skullcandy to message one-on-one with followers who opt in. It's a new kind of marketing built for mobile and messaging, two increasingly relevant areas.

Promoted PinsPinterest entered the realm of social media advertising with Promoted Pins, which are served when users search for specific categories and keywords. This is the pinning platform's first ad product, which launched fully earlier this year after being tested in late 2013.

Brands like Kraft, Dell, Home Depot and Walmart are paying to boost their Pins, and there are now self-serve tools, too, for managing marketing campaigns on the platform.

Sponsored ListeningStreaming music was an important area for advertising in 2014 with Pandora, Spotify and iTunes all going after brands. Pandora introduced video ads with this Sponsored Listening product, which offers users ad-free listening for an hour in return for watching a sponsored clip. In October, Fox helped promote new shows on Pandora with the help of the format.

Google Giferator

This was a custom ad unit made for EA Sports' Madden football video game, but it shows that Google is allowing advertisers to be more creative on the digital platform. The Giferator was generating dynamic ads in real time that could be highly targeted to select audiences.

The ad technology was developed as part of Google's Art, Copy and Code program, where it tries to blend the creative and technical sides of digital advertising. Also, the Giferator let users create their own Gifs, a format that marketers couldn't get enough of this year.

THE WORLD'S TOP 10 MOST INNOVATIVE COMPANIES IN ADVERTISING

THESE COMPANIES ILLUSTRATE WHAT THE FUTURE OF THE BUSINESS LOOKS LIKE.

BY FAST COMPANY STAFF

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1. GOPRO

For letting everyone in on the extreme-sports video action. Few companies have built their brand identity on the back of content as completely and entertainingly as the San Mateo, California–based camera maker. It's no surprise that a personal high-definition video camera brand founded by a surfer would use action-packed footage as a marketing tool. But GoPro has gone above and beyond amateur and professional sports activities to inspire viral hits. Just hop over to YouTube to see a music video directed by a dog, a fireman saving a kitten, or an eagle's-eye view of flight. Success is measured in views and sales, but when your brand name becomes a verb, you know you're onto something. Later this year, the brand will take another bold step by introducing a GoPro digital channel to Xbox 360 and Xbox One. Read more >>

2. SAMSUNG

For becoming the toughest iPhone competitor in the galaxy. Even Apple fans must acknowledge that there have been few marketing success stories as dramatic and quickly unfolding as Samsung's. In fact, speed is perhaps the biggest innovation Samsung brings to the business of making and marketing mobile devices. When CMO Todd Pendleton joined the organization from Nike in mid-2011, its smartphone brand was almost a nonentity in the United States. But in short time--by establishing a plan and an identity, creating cheeky viral ads that took on the absurdity of Apple cultism, and undertaking ambitious projects like launching Jay Z's new album exclusively on Samsung devices--Pendleton turned Samsung into the iPhone's biggest challenger.

3. VOLVO TRUCKS

For walking all over the competition with unforgettable stunts. Sure, it has long been best known for the boxiest, sexiest station wagons on the planet, but over the past couple of years, the Swedish automaker has taken its B2B business (and knack for online virality) to become the envy of consumer brands the world over. To promote its trucks division, the brand enlisted Swedish ad agency Forsman & Bodenfors to use dramatic stunts--from a tightrope walker crossing between two speeding trucks to the division president dangling high above a Swedish port to Jean-Claude Van Damme's epic splits--to both demonstrate its product quality and, with millions of video views, drive brand awareness across suburban car drivers and highway truckers alike.

4. PEREIRA & O'DELL

For tugging heart (and social) strings to deliver the unexpected. There are few agencies that push the boundaries of social media as far as Pereira & O'Dell does. Having won a record three Grand Prix at Cannes in 2013 for its short film The Beauty Inside for Intel and Toshiba--which starred Topher Grace, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, and ordinary folks who auditioned via webcam--Pereira & O'Dell has provided a creative roadmap for how to deftly combine brand, social participation, and sophisticated storytelling. The agency has also created tear-jerking long-form ads for Skype. And its first work as agency of record for Airbnb, which displays birdhouse-size models of actual site listings, is a prime example of Pereira & O'Dell's signature: adding a layer of the unexpected to all the work it does.

5. BARTON F. GRAF 9000

For using humor to make its odd name a household one. Launched in 2010 by Gerry Graf--a creative who's responsible for some of the ad world's comedy classics--Barton F. Graf 9000 has grown to become a major startup success story. (Graf named the company after his father and a weapon in the game Doom.) Early on, the shop won big assignments for the likes of Ragú, but it has scooped up more culturally penetrative campaigns for Dish Network and Little Caesar's. Its most recent viral hit came in the form of Climate Name Change, a modest proposal to name hurricanes and other weather catastrophes after climate-change-denying politicians like Rick Perry.

6. DEUTSCH LA

For upgrading its ad agency into a product developer too. If your kid is now convinced that he can start the car using the Force, or if a chorus of dog barks replaces the tune of the "Imperial March" in your head, you have Deutsch LA to thank. After many years of creative dormancy, the storied agency has reached a new creative stride in the past few years, owed largely to these Super Bowl spots for Volkswagen. Deutsch LA has also invested heavily in product development with its Inventionist unit, going beyond advertising to produce mobile apps for brands like Pop Secret.

7. ANOMALY

For moving beyond lip balm to tackle the Super Bowl. Closing in on its first decade, Anomaly continues to blaze a path beyond traditional advertising: Its EOS lip balm has been nothing short of a pop-culture phenomenon. It's also teamed with platform Sirqul to offer hyperlocal advertising, deals, and payment solutions for brands, retailers, and merchants. But while it's often heralded as a "new breed of ad agency," Anomaly is also pretty good at old-fashioned TV advertising, impressing with spots for Dick's Sporting Goods and hit Super Bowl ads for Budweiser and Bud Light--including this year's game-winning "Puppy Love."

8. BBDO NY

For using social media to capture the attention of today's distracted youth. The century-old BBDO's corporate motto has long been "The work, the work, the work." But this year, the agency not only delivered great work but redefined what "work" is. The shop helped Lowe's dominate social media with the "Fix in Six" Vine campaign--which offered quick DIY fixes in simple videos. And the "It's Not Complicated" campaign for AT&T proved once again that leaving improv to kids yields some charmingly funny moments. But its work with AT&T also showed incredible range: In partnering with famed filmmaker Werner Herzog, it created From One Second to the Next, the gut-wrenching 35-minute anti-texting-and-driving documentary that juxtaposed the trivial nature of the text messages with the catastrophic damage they can cause.

9. 360I

For collecting product data with a clever campaign. The agency that helped Oreo become the poster brand for real-time marketing didn't rest on its laurels this year. For Hanes, 360i unabashedly asked the Internet what type of underwear it was wearing and shared the responses via the video campaign Undercover Color, which generated a treasure trove of underwear-related data. Most recently, 360i engaged celebrities and everyday people alike in "Roast Joffrey," a Game of Thrones promo billed as the first social media roast.

10. REBELMOUSE

For snatching up brands with its social media sounding board. RebelMouse, the evocatively named social publishing platform launched by Huffington Post CTO Paul Berry, picked up plenty of funding and hearty endorsements from big brands in 2013. Marketers from GE, Pepsi, and MTV have signed on, and one vocal marketing guru, Mondelez's Bonin Bough, quipped--while speaking at a conference on the death of the traditional website--that he could envision all of the conglomerate's food and beverage brands using RebelMouse. The future-friendly platform (it's not tethered to any one social network) reached more than 17 million unique visitors so far and has built more than 300,000 sites.