Advertising in Chatroulette

This beautiful, disgusting, hilarious site has had a profound effect on me—for better or for worse—so it’s inevitable that it’s been rearing its proverbial head when I’ve been brainstorming recent ideas (ideas far too scandalous and underdeveloped to include here).

Advertising agencies have been quick to grab this bull by its exposed horns and use its captive audience to their advantage. Ads for Harley Davidson and Purina cat food (the latter is just a concept) are simple and static but users’ reactions to them seem to be positive (they are after all more visually pleasing than the likely alternative) while FCUK used Chatroulette very well as a tool to entice their customers into gaining free wares.

I’m certain this is just the tip of potential advertising in Chatroulette—recent ‘research’ sessions show many websites advertising through it in a manner akin to the Harley Davidson ad, but they seem to be peddling things probably not appropriate for this blog. This is quite crucial though—would brands want to be associated with the kind of content and the particular reputation that Chatroulette has garnered? FCUK’s tongue-in-cheek chat-up challenge fit perfectly with the ethos of Chatroulette and clearly appealed to its male customers but perhaps that’s the same reason why other brands have shied away.

Irrespective of a moral compass, there’s a big idea lurking within Chatroulette and I’ll keep hitting next until I find it.

—Ben