For Your Eyes Only

"My first, I was 16."

"I was like a freshman, probably."

"I wanted it for a very long time."

"I lost it in the woods."

"I want it." "I need it."

Of course, all of these quotes are talking about cell phones. AT&T is currently promoting their AT&T Next℠ plan which includes an internet video ad that starts off with these implicative hook statements. The young, tattooed actors delivering racy lines was shown on a website whose audience are primarily males, ages 18 to 34 years old. After these edgy statements, the ad then reveals that they are in fact talking about their cell phones. You will have to trust me however. There is all but no trace of the ad to be viewed on further inquiry anywhere, unlike other current and past AT&T ads.

Audience segmentation may not be new, but the actively holding back an ad from the greater public is something that many of us don't consider. With such a large clientele base, companies like AT&T can avoid negative associations and controversy from non-prime prospects with strategies like this. The ever increasing levels of control advertisers have over who is exposed to a message can lead to many great things. Who knows, we might see a day when no one thinks how pointless or offensive that last ad they saw was since you will never see an ad made for another type of person.