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Google's Pixel-iPhone BFF ads!

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DEC 10, 2023
Nimish And Akriti (We Write)
NimishAndAkriti
There ain't anything quite like some competitive advertising to spice up marketing. And  a few months ago, Google hopped on to this bandwagon, taking on the mighty iPhone in a series of ads it titled #BestPhonesForever. Rather unusually, though, it opted for a narrative that revolved around how the iPhone and Pixel were...wait for it...BEST BUDDIES. You read that right. The ads are a series of conversations between these two super phone(y?) pals!
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Nimish And Akriti (We Write)
The ads in the series follow a broadly similar theme in different scenarios- an iPhone discovers it cannot match the Pixel. The conversations between the two phones is generally marked by a melancholy iPhone, and a more cheery Google. Of course, the ads are used to highlight the areas where the Pixel beats the iPhone, but the Pixel highlights them in a friendly manner, without poking fun at the iPhone. There is no edgy banter here, just very friendly chat.
Nimish And Akriti (We Write)
It is a different approach to competitive advertising. And it has got some attention (initially at least).  But does it work? We are honestly not too sure. We love the fact that the ads are not nasty and do not take cheap shots. And they are reasonably well designed too, But they just do not click.  The reason? Simple: while we did not expect Google to showcase a rival in its ads, but its presentation of the iPhone is embarrassingly unrealistic.
Nimish And Akriti (We Write)
We do expect the iPhone to come up short as compared to the Pixel, but the iPhone is portrayed as something close to naive and silly. It doesn't know about foldable phones, and gets surprised by features that have been around for a while. It is also so prone to sadness that it almost always has to be cheered up by the Pixel. Which makes it one heck of a toxic relationship - one friend jealous of the other who cannot help showing off how cool they are!
Nimish And Akriti (We Write)
There will be those who will say "but did not Apple do the same in its epic Mac vs PC campaign?" Well, not quite. The Mac vs PC ads had a very different tone, and the Mac did not seem as if it was sorry for the PC or was trying to cheer it up. It brought out the differences between the two platforms through human representatives and was often dryly witty. The #BestPhonesForever ads alas, are almost too laden with fraternal emotion that seems faux!
Nimish And Akriti (We Write)
The Pixel is also trying to show itself as better than perhaps the highest selling and most popular phone series in the world. Not a vey clever thing to do when the Pixel does not even make the top ten in sales! The fact that some of the ads are not totally accurate does not help- the latest ad in the series shows the iPhone being jealous of the Pixel's frequent feature-laden updates. The iPhone itself is set to get new features through an update!
Nimish And Akriti (We Write)
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All of which tends to undermine Google's rather innovative approach to being best buds with what it perceives to be its rival. We like the core concept of #BestPhonesForever, but it could have worked a whole lot better with perhaps a slightly more realistic approach. We could be wrong, but it might have been a better idea to simply let the Pixel be a little less saccharine sweet while throwing shade at the iPhone, It would have made things more believable.
Nimish And Akriti (We Write)
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We think the #BestPhonesForever is a bit of a missed opportunity. The idea to show bitter rivals as close friends is genius, but the Pixel's never-subtle "I have this and you do not. Awww poor baby! But you are still my friend!" touch and tone messes things up, especially when the 'poor baby' happens to be the most popular phone in the world! You can see the series here: https://www.youtube.com/playli…