A French digital creative agency has launched an adblocker that serves old ads.
Paris-based Kindai developed 'Social Ads Vintage Edition', a Chrome extension that replaces all Facebook ads with vintage creative from the 80s.
Kindai designed the script to work as a reverse adblocker, with ads from brands including Domain and Luxury Escapes Travel replaced with old creative from Apple, Casio, Corvette, Capcom and BlueWay, originally designed as print ads.
The initiative is responding to the statistics that in France, nearly one in three people use adblocking software, with 25 to 35 year olds the most likely to block. In Australia adblocking sits at 25% use.
Adblockers receive mixed reactions in adland, as AnalogFolk ECD and co-founder Matt Grogan says they are actually a good thing.
“The tendency of people to use adblockers is not at all a bad thing, it's symptomatic of a larger problem. The attitude at the moment with online ads is one of bullying/hitting people over the head until they submit,” Grogan says.
“I think Kindai's extension is amusing. No on likes online ads, the only ones I click on are by mistake. There's a statistic that says you’re more likely to survive a plane crash than click on a banner ad."
He thinks Kindai's activity draws attention to online ad spots and shows the creative could be better.
"I have no problem with the role of online ads, what bothers me is laziness. In terms of Kindai's extension, I think anything that makes us question the obvious, can only be a catalyst for creativity," he adds.
Bashful strategy director and partner Guy Marshall says while the extension highlights Kindai's own hacking abilities as an agency, it completely undermines the creative industry.
“The initiative undermines us. I feel like encouraging adblocking in general as an agency just seems a bit dumb, as sites are essentially denying their source of revenue,” Marshall says.
“Showing off their abilities in a way that disables ads seems like an odd thing to do.”
The ads are unique and eye-catching and it beggars the question: has advertising creative become less engaging in comparison or is the old creative getting attention for the novelty factor?
Marshall thinks the vintage ads are stronger creative, but in an online environment with a greater number of ads being produced, it's not always possible.
“This particular aesthetic is considered quite cool, and I guess advertising has become more disposable that's the nature of online,” Marshall says.
“We should embrace disposable creative. Sometimes you need to create 50 versions of something when designing for online, so you just have to accept there's lots of content and the ad doesn't look as finished as it would if you did one central piece,” he adds.
In an opinion for AdNews in June, The Big Smoke founder Alexandra Tselios said the invasive nature of social media advertising is resulting in an 30% increase in adblocking with around 615 million devices worldwide now blocking ads.
“The statistics are enough to make any CMO nervous... But the truth is a huge issue we need to face is that the majority of our ads are boring, missing the mark and our little 728x90 leaderboard ad is perhaps not worthy of being un-blocked after all. We should at the very least listen to the market threatening blockade,” Tselios says.
Download the extension here, below are some examples of the creative.
Have something to say on this? Share your views in the comments section below. Or if you have a news story or tip-off, drop us a line at adnews@yaffa.com.au
Sign up to the AdNews newsletter, like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter for breaking stories and campaigns throughout the day.