PROMOSTER: NEW AUGMENTED REALITY AD FORMAT SEEKING LAUNCH SPONSORS
NEW YORK: Promoster LLC, a start-up, interactive Out-of-Home signage company, has patented a co-op augmented reality display advertising format; and is seeking strategic partners, venture capital, and launch sponsors for what the company forecasts to be a new, US $100MM+ ad publication business sector.
Conceived by new media analyst, former trade journalist, digital ad exec and Promoster principal Joseph Serino, the hybrid, dimensionally-information layered, augmented reality-outdoor display medium offers an innovative way of presenting branding, promotional, and direct marketing messages in a shared, dimensional print communication, linked to online activities.
According to Scott Randall, principal, Media Design’s digital product strategy consulting firm, and Promoster’s funding advisor, “this point in media history sees new combinations of creative and technology coming together every day. Promoster is just another in this evolving series, bringing together an ancient art technique, in conjunction with an iconic print medium, and digital technology, creating a hybrid integrated association based commercial communication.”
Components & Elements
Promoster, The Poster You Do, (not just view) is composed of a large format, high visibility, shared scenario, interactive augmented reality-enhanced print scenic, that prompts involvement with each issue’s corresponding mobile website.
Promoster aims at creating a visually visceral presence for its issues. Sponsor product images, symbols, taglines, mascots, texture, coupons, jingles, samples (gum stick, condoms) etc. are enhanced through, 1) prominent finishing techniques (die cuts, varnish, specialty inks), 2) engagement technology (QR/bar codes, artificial reality, sound chips, scratch & Sniff, etc.), and 3) dimensional art techniques like, Chiaroscuro (forced contrast) and Trompe-l’œil (dimensional effect).
Each Promoster issue is a unique, completely custom blending, based on sponsor goals, supplied elements, production techniques, and technology. Themes can be based on time of year, audience interest, advertiser goals, etc. A sophisticated form of information conveyance, that stretches the bounds of co-op advertising through a reinterpretation of the collage art technique, Promoster’s shared message space, has inherent community and lifestyle conveying attributes, which can impart positive association value among sponsors.
Promoster print issue-linked websites contain informational areas with deeper messaging, interactive, engagement activities, additional links, or whatever sponsors’ wish to include as part of their brand story. Promoster’s effort can be tied to a larger effort, be completely stand alone, and have awareness, promotional, education, loyalty, or sales objective; whatever the sponsor wishes.
Promoster’s ad ‘presence’ is sold by print message area – along with the depth and complexity of the user experience – as opposed to a page, column inch, or other common ad formats. Promoster issues also have a Sweepstakes or Contest that promotes visits to advertisers’ areas to perform tasks for the opportunity to qualify for discounts and win prizes.
Cooperative, Communal Communication
Different than most commercial media, engendered in the spirit of communal cooperation and culminating in the realization of each issue’s own original AdARt, Promoster sponsor’s share in a cooperative theme execution, with the WHOLE being greater than any of the individual parts.
All advertisers, no matter the degree of their Sponsorship understand that their message co-exists with the other sponsors elements. If they don’t happen to like, or agree with one of them, that’s unfortunate. However the total visual presence – the attention affecting attributes – of the publication overall must have prominence. If not, everyone loses.
Acquiescing Approval
“Once sponsors are selected, The Design Team creates a series of treatments that are circulated to sponsors for comment. Larger contributors have the most influence. However, with each iteration, each sponsor relinquishes a bit more control, so that after the second, and certainly after any third round of client review, tweeks to the execution are on us.” says Bill AurnHammer, President of Aurnhammer Communications, Promoster’s technology partner.
Serino adds, ““For example, if the design team feels that printing a minor sponsor’s logo in a day glo ink, would assist the attention gathering effect of an issue, we’d discuss it with that sponsor, but might not discuss it with any others. In this way the final reveal is always something of a surprise. Just like Life.”
“There will certainly be some advertisers for which Promoster isn’t appropriate. And there may be issues where one sponsor will prevent another from participating, which is understandable. Unless they were perhaps willing to let the theme of the issue be the portrayal of a conflict. Certainly not expected, but for a controversial political message; like impeaching President Trump, who knows? In fact Serino sees interactive ‘political position’ Promosters as a natural for the augmented reality medium. Think about the Democratic national committee organizing an information theme edition hosting a group of liberal organizations, like Planned Parenthood, The Nation magazine, The Colbert Report, MSNBC, several political think tanks, Medicare/Medicade, EPA, etc. We could create a Shoot the Swamp Scum Cell Phone Shooting Gallery; where disgraced, indicted and guilty-pleading White House and Congressional representatives are paraded for AK16 attack,” Randall offers politically.
Promoster Brand “Story”
Promoster’s brand character and sponsor reflecting selling story is a tale of, communal corporate citizenship, cooperative creativity, team work, ecological efficiency (less ink, less paper), hopeful humanism (artistic communication solution), an appreciative, intelligent, insightful, collaborative, associative approach to problem solving. Today everything is ever more connected and inter-dependent. We all share a world with limited resources. Promoster reflects what is happing in our political, environmental and socio-economic planetary situation; offering a highly efficient way for advertisers to stand together, and show that it’s possible to do things differently. It takes time, and an attitude, and belief that less can be more. ”
Launch Benefits
As a new form of commercial pop art, launch advertisers are virtually assured of winning national creative awards, so there is considerable additional publicity value to getting aboard early. And an extended added bonus is that early issues will be sent to design museums for entry into their permanent collections, resulting in sponsor brands being inducted into the art history through participation in Promoster’s Augmented Reality industry first. Promoster has identified a number of companies – that have historically used posters as part of their brand iconography, and is approaching them as launch partners.
Developmental Next Steps
Promoster LLC has identified a series of theme titles needing detailed, proof-of-concept print and online design prototypes. The executions can be completely blue sky and theoretical, or use real products, hopefully with logical objectives, goals and promotional elements. Serino estimates a three month development cycle to get the operations process tweeked, and the backend analytics calibrated to support a real world product launch.
Partner Criteria
Promoster is weighing whether to operate as a publisher, printer or media company specialty division, and/or an independent venture backed start-up. Serino explains, “It might also be possible as part of an ad holding company, but there couldn’t be pressure from corporate trying to influence the process. This only works if the process has REAL integrity. The aim has to be the ideal. Perhaps I’m being a bit naive, but, to the absolute greatest extent possible, the design concept has to be pure.”
PROMOSTER LLC Website:
www.promoster.com
In Media Communications Website
www.promoster.com
www.inmediacommunications.com
Promoster Patent Application:
https://patents.google.com/patent/US20140279072A1/en?q=inventor%2c&q=collage&q=based&q=integrated&inventor=joseph+serino%2c
For more information contact:
Joseph Serino
[email protected]
201-978-5317