Artvertising

The Science Gallery is currently hosting ‘Hack the City’, an exposition designed to encourage city dwellers to recreate the space in which they live. Contributions have been made by artists, scientists and engineers alike. One of the exhibits which caught my attention is ‘artvertising’, a software platform for replacing billboard advertisements with artist’s work in real time. One of the questions posed to urbanites is ‘who really owns our space’?

From an agency’s perspective, it’s a difficult question to answer. Although advertisers pay for their message to be displayed, media owners’ rates often dictate what’s communicated. At the moment, increasing pressure from government bodies questions the extent to which alcohol will be advertised on outdoor formats in the future. Plans by Dublin City Council mean that some unsightly ad spaces will be removed by the end of the year.

With so many different factors involved, there are a lot of parties with a stake in the urban landscape. It’s also clear that outdoor advertising is changing, with new formats arriving all the time. With online advertising the hot topic of the day, it’s easy to get caught up in the world of analytics, VOD and mobile. But as advertisers and city dwellers alike, let’s not lose track of the world outside.

-Carly

Acer Cupcakes, The Sun Get Involved, and Lynx Chaos Island are just some of the highlights from this week’s Ignition 5

Enjoy!

Aoife

What a Difference a Decade Makes!

On Wednesday last week, thousands of Irish teenagers received their leaving certificate results.   Every year when I hear that the results are out, I think back to when it was my turn.  (That sounds incredibly nostalgic,but it was actually less than ten years ago!)

This year, instead of remembering the knot in my stomach, the tears with friends or the questionable fashion, I thought of how different their experience was to mine.

The students of today live in a world of constant and immediate connectivity.  You only have to look around a crowded Luas in the morning to see them all huddled over their smartphones, barely making eye contact with those around.  Being Facebook ‘friends’ with a number of my younger cousins, I’m constantly surprised and sometimes shocked by the content that they deem to be sharable!  But that’s just it; they share everything.  And frankly, if they’re not telling you what they had for breakfast, where they were ten minutes ago and what terrible things will happen if you don’t share their cursed posts, you might wonder if all is OK!

Their teenage years are so different in many ways to mine, and the day they opened their results was equally as contrasting.  While my Mum was putting me on the phone to relatives for weeks afterwards, they updated their status and everyone knew.  While I was sitting down showing friends the photos after we had them developed, they shared a photo with everyone on Instagram.  While I was fumbling with a calculator, paper and pen, they punched their results into a point-generating App.

Life has just been made so much more instantaneous for today’s youth, and it’s something that we’re constantly reminded of when researching this audience.  They’re much more in control of their media consumption, including the ‘who, what, where and when’! For advertisers looking to make meaningful connections with them, it’s important to take a second and really immerse yourself in their world.  Believe me, it’s a completely different one to the one you and I know!!

-Susan

Comedy Central Siesta World Cup, Listerine Smelly Flipbook and Toyota the Real Deal are just some of the highlights from this week’s Ignition 5

Enjoy!

Aoife

Golden Girl Katie

With the Olympic games closing on Sunday and so much written about the Irish achievements, in particular our Golden Girl Katie Taylor, it is hard not to give it a nod or at least show you some pictures!

That said, I think the most interesting and quirky comments were to be found in the social media sphere.

Here is a look at what I found on my Facebook page.

 

Bray Head to be renamed Taylor’s Head.

 

 The woman men now fear

 

Liam Neeson (of Taken) is now also fearful

– Oilbhe

Bounty Let the spills begin, the Volkswagen Scream Powered Car and Google Fiber are just some of the highlights from this week’s Ignition 5

Enjoy!

Aoife

Ireland’s Smartphone and Tablet Ownership and Behaviour

This week, we’re sharing the second video from Amarach Research’s study on Irish smartphone/tablet ownership and behaviours.   This video takes a look at smartphone and tablet brands and networks, as well as the different types of apps people have on each.  We hope you enjoy!

AMC Networks Walking Dead stunt, Nissan Flash Forward and Sprite Showers are just some of the highlights from this week’s Ignition 5

Enjoy!

Aoife