Friday, February 08, 2019

Walgreens' cool new deal

This morning, publisher for Adage.com, Adrianne Pasquarelli, writes a new piece on Walgreen's new "cooler screens." The American company shocked not many with their new ploy to bring in ad revenue. In short, they're "giving its freezer and refrigerator doors a digital makeover." The doors are digital, enabling (or forcing) a new type of customer interaction with ad displays. Thirsty customers now have to view the ads presented to them in order to grab their refreshing drinks. This new move from Walgreens can set off a trend by corporations and companies making everything within reach a digital money-maker. Doors for restaurants can have digital screens, buses can show ads in an interactive manner, a pet store can have ads display on virtually anything with a screen, and more. What does this mean for the novice entrepreneur on a budget?

Perhaps showing ads just became less expensive? Think about it, what's to stop a person with an uber business or a small shop owner from displaying ads on their windows and the like? In fact, I remember taking an uber this morning and attached to the back of the co-pilot's chair was a tablet with three options: a trivia challenge, a find Waldo-like challenge, and an ads viewing experience for the hip youngster interested in seeing what's new out there while enjoying a calm ride through NYC traffic. The ad-showing experience has gained new heights and perhaps the smaller scale it can now take can make controversial showings less controversial? Perhaps it wouldn't matter if a single uber driver wishes to show the scandalous Kendall Jenner Pepsi ad or a similarly disputed hair product ad. I think the possibilities are endless and the more customizable things become, and the more within reach things become for your average Ahmed (not Joe), the less power things can have in the grand scheme of things. We'll just have to wait and see what happens.

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