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Justin Long on Apple Ads

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Apr 12, 2001
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LA Times interviews Justin Long who plays the "Mac guy" on Apple's recent ad campaign.

Justin Long comments on his involvement in Apple's ads and his increasing recognition from the Apple ads:

But now, as he prepares to ratchet up his film career .... he is fending off computer geeks who either find his Mac guy righteous or maddening.
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According to the article, while only seven spots have currently aired, there are almost 20 more that will be airing. The Get a Mac campaign kicked off in May of 2006.
 
Article Link
https://www.macrumors.com/2006/08/14/justin-long-on-apple-ads/
I find it amazing he's never used a computer before doing the Mac ads. But he uses a Mac now, and that's all that counts. :)
 
Oh yea, that evidence is so convincing...sugar for flies, wow. It definitely still applies to humans and this situation as all metaphorical cliches are so undeniably true
 
computer geeks who never heard of acting?

Sheesh, these computer geeks never heard of acting? My friend knows an actor in a herpes drug commercial who doesn't have herpes but says he does in the ad (how awkward would that be!).

As nearly all of you know, Justin Long isn't responsible for what he says in the ad. C'mon, think about it, is he really a Mac computer? OK, I will admit that John Hodgman, the fellow playing the PC, said that he was a computer on The Daily Show....

Anyway, Long will do fine with his movie career, no doubt.
 
MSchen01 said:
Oh yea, that evidence is so convincing...sugar for flies, wow. It definitely still applies to humans and this situation as all metaphorical cliches are so undeniably true
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Of course it applies. Your assinine response has me thinking you're a jerk. Had you responded in a positive manner, even if disagreeing, my opinion of you would be entirely different. How's that for a simple real life example? Positivity is always preferable to negativity.
 
uv23 said:
Worst Apple ads ever. You attract more flies with sugar than vinegar, and Apple's all about the vinegar.
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Meh, it was effective enough to get in the LA Times...

...the only reason why I didn't like the campaign at first was because I thought it was dull and everyone would pass it by as if it were just another commercial. But according to this article, it sounds like it has generated some definite interest...which, imo, is a good thing.
 
uv23 said:
Of course it applies. Your assinine response has me thinking you're a jerk. Had you responded in a positive manner, even if disagreeing, my opinion of you would be entirely different. How's that for a simple real life example? Positivity is always preferable to negativity.
Click to expand...
But don't you think everyone is frustrated by the little things that the ads pick apart? And anyone who is is anyone who may potentially switch.

I think it's brilliant.
 
From the interview:

"I had a guy come up to me, in my face, saying, 'You think you're so cool? You're not cool' and I'm saying to him, 'Dude, it's a commercial.'"
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Anyone else from england think of Michael Winner when they read this bit? :D
 
Interesting article on how the Apple ads are turning off potential buyers in the recent InfoWorld. I blogged my thoughts on the campaign and WWDC here.
 
He was really good in Galaxy Quest. That's why when I saw him in the Apple ad, he looked strangely familiar. :)
 
Buschmaster said:
But don't you think everyone is frustrated by the little things that the ads pick apart? And anyone who is is anyone who may potentially switch.

I think it's brilliant.
Click to expand...
The problem is that the ads don't make fun of PCs, they make fun of the people who use PCs as nerdy, boring, stupid types, compared to the people who use Macs as hip, trendy, urban-cool. People put (what they think is) a lot of research into their PC purchases and if someone comes along and tells them they just made the wrong choice in a very snarky, sarcastic way, it can provoke two responses: 1) humiliation, or 2) anger (ego self-defense). Neither of which are good.

These Mac ads, in addition to whatever popularity they've achieved, are stirring up a lot of Mac hatred.

I cannot stand the "Mac guy" myself. He makes me want to switch to a PC.
 
Lemmings

You thought they would have learned with "Lemmings", back in the '80s. You don't gain customers by antagonizing them and telling them they're stupid. The big problem with these "hello, I'm a Mac" commercials is that they're an easy target for parodies. It's a sometimes subtle line to cross, and I'm not sure these "hello, I'm a Mac" commercials are completely on one side, but still, it's all about perception, and if it makes PC users angry, it's probably worth taking note...

One of the most to-the-point Apple commercials aired back 10 years or so ago, it was called "dinosaurs", and showed a dad struggling with DOS/Windows issues (you'd hear him mutter "command.com, autoexec.bat, config.sys, IRQ...") while promising his kid he'd be able to see dinosaurs. After a while, the kid gets up and tells the dad he's going to his friend's house. When the dad asks why, the kid replies "he's got a Mac".

What I'd like Apple to articulate in commercials is, when you buy a PC, that's what you get. When you buy a Mac, you get a Mac and a PC for the same price, what is there to think about?
 
I LOVE THE APPLE ADS!!!!!

THEY ARE THE BEST ADS EVER!!!!:cool: :D :D :D :D :cool:

I love the way they make windoze peecees seem like useless boxes, that just take up space in your house, and are only good for paperweights (which is very true:D )
 
He is merely an Actor.

I love the ads, but the credit goes to the director of the ads. This Justin Long fellow shouldn't be the topic of conversaition. Actuallly the Windows guys is much cooler, he is John Hodgman the author of "The Area's of my Expertise". He also appears on The Daily Show with John Stewart regularly.

I'm not dissing Long, but there are just other people who should be recognized before him.
 
The ads are great

I have had several co-workers come by my office to ask me about Macs since the ads started to air. Two have made the switch and are rippingly happy about it. I hear comments like " iPhoto really does see my camera and open when I plug the USB cord in" and " Mail is so much easier than the e-mail on my PeeCee was" all the time. I believe that anyone who feels antagonized by the ads really needs to take a close look at themselves. After all. they are only ads. I have yet to meet a hard core Windows user who has taken offense at the ads. Our IT guys here are always razing me about Macs, but they think the ads are cool. I like to remind out IT director that he sort of looks like the PeeCee guy. In my humble opinion, the vast majority of folks out there realize that these are ADVERTISEMENTS and do not take any offense.
 
When Apple aired those Intel ads of the Intel fab plant talking about dull PCs, a lot of PC users got angry over that. There was quite a backlash against Apple when they do negative advertising like that, simply making PC users look stupid (which they are of course ;)). It harkens back to the days, post-1984 ad, when they shown PC users as lemmings walking off a cliff. Hehe. :)
 
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