Tag: iAd

Slide to Unlock

AlmapBBDO Brazil has developed a very unique and innovative iAd for the new Brazilian Audi magazine app. The ad seen in the video below appeared in various publications on the iPad and used a nice play on Apple’s “Slide to Unlock” feature to engage the users.

Users who saw the ad instantly recognized the swipe gesture used to unlock Apple devices. So after racing their finger around the track, they were rewarded with a free download of the first Audi Magazine copy from the app store.

Before I could publish this post I came across another “Slide to Unlock” iAd! It seems this iOS feature is becoming a popular creative feature for iAds. In the below example, Amnesty International has created an iAd in Sweden’s largest newspaper, DN, where readers were presented with an image of a prison cell and prisoner inside. “Slide to Unlock” was used to open the prison cell and reveal a strong call to action to join Amnesty International as an activist.

Interactive iPad ad for VGT

VGT (an association combating animal factories) in collaboration with Austrian ad agency Demner Merlicek & Bergmann, created an iAd for the iPad version of DATUM magazine.

In the iAd you could see a young lady wearing a fur coat. When the iPad user would want to continue browsing by making the finger-wipe movement he would find that every finger-wipe would leave behind blood stains on the fur. The more he tried, the more blood would appear.

AXA: iPhone App for Car Accidents

AXA is Belgium’s first insurance company to launch an iPhone app. Their free application helps and guides you through some basic steps when you have a car accident.

To launch this new app Duval Guillaume Antwerp / Modem from Belgium created an innovative print ad that required your iPhone to complete the message.

Why the print idea is a smart match

The product promise is practical. Help me when I am stressed and do not know what to do next. The launch mirrors that by making the iPhone essential to “finishing” the ad, so the viewer experiences the role of the phone immediately.

  • Device as the missing piece. The iPhone is not just where the app lives. It is how the message becomes complete.
  • Low barrier to understanding. You do one simple action and the concept clicks.
  • Print-to-mobile bridge. The campaign uses print to trigger a mobile behavior, instead of treating print as a dead end.

What to reuse from this approach

If the utility of your app is “guidance in a critical moment”, your launch should demonstrate guidance, not describe it. A small, tangible interaction can do that faster than any list of features.

A few fast answers before you act

What does the AXA Belgium iPhone app do?

It helps guide drivers through basic steps after a car accident, providing practical assistance when they need it most.

What made the print launch ad innovative?

The print execution required the viewer’s iPhone to complete the message, turning the phone into an active part of the ad rather than a separate channel.

Why is this a strong launch mechanic for an insurance app?

It demonstrates the phone’s role as a helper in-the-moment, which aligns directly with the app’s accident-assistance promise.

What is the transferable pattern?

Design a simple physical or media trigger that forces a first interaction with the device. Then let that interaction explain the product in seconds.