Ads That Let You Check In at Your Favorite Billboard
By: Todd Woody
The New York Times
The train is a very popular mode of transportation for many people. If you have ever taken the train in the city you have seen the huge posters or billboards that are along the walls. They are very eye catching because of their enormous size. A nonprofit environmental law firm called Earthjustice is taking advantage of these eye catching posters by making their own ads that feature adorable endangered species that need help. The ad tells people to “check in now at Foursquare”. Foursquare is a “rapidly growing social network that lets people use their mobile phones to announce their location”. When people “check in” on Foursquare, an Earthjustice donor will donate money. The money goes to protecting the endangered species that are featured on the billboard. People are also able to post their check ins on other social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter. This new approached that they are using is called “location-based fund raising”. Using this approach gives Earthjustie information about what ads were most effective in producing a response from people. It also gives people information about what needs to be done to help protect the environment and what needs to be done to help save the lives of animals that are near endangerment.
This idea is very interesting. If I was standing waiting for the train and looked over to see this little cute animal starring back at me and all I had to do was check in at Foursquare to save the little animal I would. Standing and waiting for the train can be very boring and these ads gives you something to do which makes waiting for the train easier. These billboards are only in California but I think they would be very successful on this side of the country as well. I do not think many people know what animals are endangered or what animals are affected by oil spills or drastic weather changes. These billboards at the train stations give people information and they also give them a chance to help these animals. These billboards also show that by using new technologies like social networks, you can do something to help animals that are on the verge of becoming endangered. The idea of checking in on a social network can also be helpful to marketers in determining where the best place to put an ad would be. If a certain location has more check ins than another, the marketer might want to put the billboard at these locations. Making a connection with fund raising for a great cause and new technologies that are becoming extremely popular is a great way to help save these animals lives. The ads provide information for the people who see them so that they can help
I think this is a very creative way of using the technology that many companies are already using, to try and do something good. Seeing a picture to go with an endangered animal makes you feel bad for it, and unlike a normal sad television commercial, this technology allow you to help the animals by simply checking in with your cellphone while you are waiting for the train, as opposed to having to call up and donate money. I agree that this would be widely accepted on the east coast because people are lazy, but like to feel good about themselves for doing the right thing, which is why this will work. If all a person has to do is check in on foursquare to save a baby seal, and they are just sitting around waiting for the train with nothing to do, of course they will just "check in". I really think this new culture of "checking in" all the time has a lot of potential.
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