HTC has an image problem. Sure, the handset manufacturer has put out what is arguably the best phone of the year with the HTC One, but people still automatically think of Samsung and its Galaxy S4 when it comes to Android devices. Now the company is trying to win over the American public with the man who made Tony Stark a household name.
HTC confirmed an earlier report today by announcing that Robert Downey Jr. has signed a deal that will make him the face of HTC for the next two years. The new marketing strategy is called “The Change” and it’s meant to celebrate “HTC’s disruptive impact on the mobile industry over its 17-year history.” You’ll see the first ad with Robert Downey Jr. appear on YouTube on Wednesday, and then it will start making its way to TV and cinemas later.
Ben Ho, CMO of HTC, says that the new ad campaign will give the company to really highlight just how different HTC is from the competition:
“HTC’s innovation, authenticity and boldness have made us the change-makers in the mobile industry and led us to launch what influencers regard as the best phone in the world, the HTC One. Our original and playful Change platform is different to anything else out there and aligns our brand with the same qualities our phones are already known for. With this campaign, we are affirming what HTC’s role is in the mobile market which is to define change and to lead the industry in developing the newest and most innovative technologies.”
We won’t be able to see the first full ad until Wednesday, but HTC shared a little sneak peak today:
What makes this ad campaign more interesting is that Downey Jr. himself is reportedly closely involved in its creation. HTC says that he’s working with its ad agency to “shape [the ad campaign’s] creative direction” by “offering a variety of unique interpretations of the HTC acronym.”
Can Iron Man convince people to buy the HTC One or the upcoming HTC One Max? Time will be the judge of that, but at least HTC will be able to do better than the incredibly low bar set by Samsung’s ads for the Galaxy S4.
[h/t: DroidLife]