The Future of Advertising is Here

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And if you really want to reach out and grab the attention of people out in the real world, why not actually, well, reach out? Zebra Imaging in Austin produces large, lifelike holographic images that appear to float in 3-D in front of a filmlike panel -- no goofy glasses or goggles needed. People can even walk around the ersatz object to examine it from different angles. Zebra has created car-show-stopping holograms of automobiles for Ford to showcase new designs, as well as holograms of celebrities for promotions. As the technology's cost comes down and quality improves, says Zebra CEO Robin Curle, these startling images could eventually be popping out routinely at consumers on the street and in stores.

Karen Breen Vogel, for one, is hesitant to be among the first to reach beyond the Internet to tag people in intimate, surprising ways. "It's the next wave for us," she says. "But right now we're in investigation mode."

Advertisers may drool over the promise of smart ads, but many are also wary of invading the public prematurely with clumsy, personalized, unignorable pitches on billboards and cell phones before anyone has a chance to get used to the idea. ClearGauge's Breen Vogel, for one, is hesitant to be among the first to reach beyond the Internet to tag people in intimate, surprising ways. "It's the next wave for us," she says. "But right now we're in investigation mode."

Until marketers can read consumers' minds, there will always be uncertainty about the most effective ways to deliver messages. And mind reading, at least, is a technology that's still a long, long way off. Oh, wait -- scratch that. Neuroscientists at the California Institute of Technology and Baylor College of Medicine are already using high-tech brain scans to measure people's responses to marketing messages. So stay tuned.

As if you had a choice.

Sidebar: Hot New Advertising Tools

Fun, targeted, effective. Being ignored is so 20th century

Accenture has designed a 10-foot-wide touchscreen that lets crowds in malls or on the street interact independently with characters, games, and information.
Imagine a day when you can text-message a discount coupon to a cell phone user just as she walks past your shop. That day is here.
With Reactrix Systems' interactive images, 10 or more people can kick around a virtual soccerball, splash in a virtual pool, or (below) swirl through a logo.
In cities like New York, taxi-top messaging signs are tied to GPS location sensors, so that a cab can pitch nearby stores and restaurants as it roams.
In Massachusetts, Stop & Shop is testing a touchscreen that with a swipe of a loyalty card can remind shoppers of past purchases and suggest alternatives.

Sidebar: Purveyors of the Brave New Ad World

Bringing you the future, and future customers

Name	Location	Specialty
Claria	Redwood City, Calif.	Behavioral targeting service tracks the online habits of Web surfers and hits them with relevant advertising.
Enpocket	Boston	Sends ad messages, coupons, and branded video files to mobile phones -- in some cases tracking the phone's location.
Pulse	San Francisco	Online tools turn a photo of any person or animal into a lip-synched talking head for viral ad campaigns.
Zebra Imaging	Austin	Produces large promotional holograms that make images of objects or people stand out in 3-D -- no glasses needed.
Experian	Costa Mesa, Calif.	Collates consumer data to predict which people are likely to be in the market for particular products.
Reactrix	Redwood City, Calif.	A motion-sensitive projector turns any surface into a crowd-drawing, brandable interactive display.
Massive	New York City	Inserts ads via an online connection into video games while they're being played. Coming is technology that will adapt the ads to individual players.