REVEAL THE CONQUERING HERO 79
In one early ad (Angel/Devil), the Mac character gives PC an
iPhoto book. An “angel” and a “devil” appear (the PC character
dressed in a white suit and a red suit). The angel encourages PC
to compliment Mac, while the devil prods PC to rip the book in
half. The metaphor is clear. I’m a Mac/I’m a PC could be titled
“I’m the good guy/I’m the bad guy.”^4
Once the hero is established, the benefit must be made clear.
The one question that matters to people—Why should I care?—
must be answered immediately. In an ad titled Out of the Box,
both characters pop out of boxes. The conversation goes like
this:
MAC: Ready to get started?
PC: Not quite. I’ve got a lot to do. What’s your big plan?
MAC: Maybe make a home movie, create a website, try out my
built-in camera. I can do it all right out of the box. What
about you?
PC: First, I’ve got to download those new drivers, I have to erase
the trial software that came on my hard drive, and I’ve got a
lot of manuals to read.
MAC: Sounds like you’ve got a lot of stuff to do before you
do any stuff. I’m going to get started, because I’m kind of
excited. Let me know when you’re ready. [Jumps out of box]
PC: Actually, the rest of me is in some other boxes. I’ll meet up
with you later.Some observers have criticized Apple’s campaign, saying it
smacked of smug superiority. Whether you like the ads or hate
them, there is no question they are effective, if only to keep
people talking about Apple. In fact, the ads were so success-
ful that Microsoft countered with an ad campaign of its own
showing famous and not-so-famous people in all walks of life
proudly proclaiming, “I’m a PC.” But Apple had landed the first
punch, painting the PC as nerdy and Apple as the cool kid you
really want to be like. The Microsoft ads are fun to watch but
lack the emotional punch of Apple’s ads, for one reason—there’s
no villain.