Advertising tracking firm Ace Metrix says viewer reactions to the new “celebrity” ads for Apple’s iPhone 4S are registering well with consumers. Generating scores higher than any other iPhone 4S ad released so far this year, the new ads feature Samuel L. Jackson and Zooey Deschanel.
“Apple’s ads for iPhone had been falling rather flat earlier in the year, all scoring below the Apple iPhone norm of 620. This new creative tack that uses likeable celebrities struck a chord with American viewers,” said Peter Daboll, CEO of Ace Metrix. “These ads performed very well, especially with younger women, who did not react as strongly to Apple’s more feature-focused ads from earlier in the year. Celebrity ads are risky, as many celebrities can be polarizing. In these latest ads, Apple has chosen wisely, using celebrities with broad appeal.”
While the new ads performed very well, they were unable to out-rank Samsung’s Galaxy Note as the most popular mobile phone ad of 2012. The iPhone 4S and Galaxy Note hold the top nine positions among mobile phone ads released so far this year. Samsung’s “Samsunged Again” Super Bowl commercial, which directly targeted Apple and iPhone users, placed tenth in the list.
The new iPhone 4S ads fall short of the ranking of the iPhone 4S camera ad from late October 2011, which was named the top mobile phone ad of 2011, with a score of 659.