Hotly anticipated Apple Watch poses challenge for advertisers

Apple’s eagerly anticipated smartwatch poses a conundrum for advertisers: How to tap the enticing possibilities of the tiny gadget without overwhelming consumers with messages. At this week’s Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, mobile-marketing firm TapSense plans to release an Apple Watch ad-buying service. Apple declined to comment on the use of its watch by advertisers, and will not attend CES officially. But many companies that make devices and services based around Apple products will be there, including several that are working with WatchKit, a software-development tool Apple released in November that allows developers to build watch-tailored applications.

If it feels like your smartwatch is turning into a spam box, you will take it off.

Padden Guy Murphy, head of business development and public policy at car-sharing service Getaround

The watch’s main screen allows the display of several tiny icons, including for email, weather, time, and potentially a few favourite service and retail apps. Businesses could use those apps to notify customers of special deals, but only within already-opened apps, TapSense’s chief executive Ash Kumar said. Otherwise, the vendor risks annoying consumers by introducing an ad that is out of sync with whatever they are doing. If a consumer shows interest in an ad, notifications could expand and take up more room on the screen. Conversely, a disinterested consumer could tap an “X” mark to exit the ad, Kumar said. But moderation is key. Push notifications and banner ads on smartphones can be turn-offs. The Apple Watch is being seen by some as a challenge for the tech giant. Venture capitalist Fred Wilson caused a stir last week by predicting the watch “will not be the home run product that iPod, iPhone, and iPad have been.”

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