Differentiating Singaporean Ads from British or Indian Ads

If you live in Singapore, you may have noticed how boring the advertisements can get. Its very education-oriented, informational and basically, something you aren't really attracted to. What then makes some ad tickle your mind while others turn you off? Ads by Discovery channel, BBC, Apple, Nike and even by Airtel and IDEA(Indian telecomms operators) and some other Indian companies are so much cooler(I shall refer to such companies are A Grade companies here after). They just make want to watch the ad even if you know that "oh, its just an ad and they are just trying to scam me".

The fundamental difference I think is in what they sell. Singaporean ads sell to you to product directly. They tell you everything about the product, its specs, what it can do and what it can't. Very well. Very useful for buyers with the attitude "cut the crap, tell me what it does". A Grade companies on the other hand, don't only sell you the product. They sell you a lifestyle that comes with it. They go beyond informing you what the product does. They subtly enter your unconsciousness and instill a sense of pride within you to own one of the products. For adults, they can easily easily chop out all the extraneous stuff but for the unguarded and innocent minds, this idea catches on like a forest fire gone wild.

Before I blabber on, I would like to share a video with you guys. Its by Steve Jobs of course. This is one of the rare times that Steve actually shares his marketing insight with the public. So, right from the marketing guru's mouth mouth himself:

Did you see that ad? That ad didn't sell you anything. It was just selling you the company's core value "Think Different". Its hard to explain why that is so catchy but mac users (and possibly Ubuntu and Mint) users know within their minds what this means. 

Think about it for a second. I used to feel ashamed of owning a Windows (not because it was inferior or anything, because it never ran well on my Fujitsu). Apple on the other hand, you know it will work. And even if it doesn't you have this spontaneity within you to protect its image. You start saying "Oh, because I installed Microsoft Office for a Mac, my boot time has doubled" (i vouch for this - first hand experience). 

So next time you watch an ad, think about what they are selling - the product or the lifestyle?