Print magazine features working Facebook ‘Like’ buttons

Brazil-based C&A has created the Like Ad, a magazine commercial that lets readers 'like' products on Facebook by pressing buttons embedded in the print publication.

Regular readers of Springwise may remember Brazil-based department store C&A from our coverage of its FashionLike innovation from 2012, which saw it display live Facebook ‘likes’ next to its in-store products. Now the company is developing the idea further with the Like Ad, a magazine commercial that lets readers ‘like’ products on Facebook by pressing buttons embedded in the print publication.

Created by advertising agency DM9DDB, the promotion ran in a special edition of celebrity magazine Contigo which was delivered only to those who registered for a copy through Facebook. Using technology from Microsoft and telecoms company TIM Brasil, each copy was embedded with a chip that was linked to the individual recipient’s Facebook account. The ad featured two different fashions, each with a ‘like’ button next to it, and asked readers which one they preferred. When they pressed a button, an LED lit up to indicate their vote had been made. The button triggered an automatic post on the reader’s Facebook feed showing their friends which fashion they picked. At the same time, the vote was also sent to the C&A store at MorumbiShopping, where the number of Facebook likes were displayed in real time.

The campaign demonstrated how the online and offline worlds can be integrated in seamless ways, with readers’ reactions to print ads affecting shoppers’ decisions in real time. Are there other ways to make social ‘likes’ more meaningful?