14 DAY TRIAL // Google’s home automation wing, Nest, which was acquired earlier this year for $3.2 billion (€2.56 billion), just launched a new marketing campaign that borderlines between funny and creepy.
The company is trying to convince people that its products fit any house and that they have obvious benefits.
This is, of course, quite nice and great, but the fact that Nest is owned by Google usually turns people well away from the idea of buying any of these, which explains why there’s no mention of the Internet giant in the ads. In fact, there were people threatening to rip out their Nest devices from the wall as soon as Google bought Nest.
Regardless, the new ads are pretty funny and they do stress the usefulness of these three devices that Nest sells nowadays. If you weren’t aware, the company sells a smart thermostat, the Nest Protect, a smoke detector device, as well as Dropcam, a device that helps you monitor your home and give you access to live stream from wherever you are.
Obviously, these devices have great purposes in the home. Nest Thermostat will learn when to turn up the heat based on your schedule, Nest Protect will alert you in case there’s a fire in your home or a gas leak, while Dropcam will give you ease of mind when you’re away from home, or a way to keep an eye on pets and even speak and admonish them when they start chewing your furniture.
Nest has promised that it won’t be sharing information about clients with Google, but the words landed on deaf ears since the Internet giant’s name is too loud to be covered by anything else.
Creepy, but funny
The company is stressing some main issues in the new ads. On one hand, they’re pointing to some creepy aspect of one of the devices, but on the other hand it points out the clear benefits of owning it.
One grandpa points out that his grandkids bought the Nest Thermostat, which is great, but it doesn’t require any kind of walking to program it. This, he says, was beneficial for his leg muscles in the past, but with the new Nest his grandkids won’t be able to run away when the “Internets come to life” and the devices come to life.
One owner of Nest Protect loves his device, maybe a little too much, checking his app entirely too often, especially considering that he was actually standing in the kitchen.
The Dropcam, which Nest bought earlier this year, is hated by kids and dogs. That’s because the little boy in the video is a little bit of a rascal and he doesn’t like being seen when he does his mischiefs, while the dog is upset he can no longer chew on mom’s favorite shoes because she’ll yell at him even when she’s not home.
