Many years ago, a particularly clever advertising campaign was launched to sell apples in South Africa. Up to that moment, the apples had been exported overseas and some bright spark must have realised that there was actually a local market as well. The Western Cape’s apple growers association, or whatever they were called, wanted to develop this.

This advertising campaign played on the saying ‘an apple a day keeps the doctor away’. Print ads, packaging etc followed through this campaign which had been shortened to just say ‘one a day’. But everybody could fill in the blanks. It was brilliant.

Years later, the campaign was improved on. More apples needed to be sold, it seems, and the slogan became ‘two a day’. One hundred percent inflation. Still, it was a great idea and continues to be relevant until now. More recently it’s been interesting to see vegetables and fruit being advertised as being one of five a day, reflecting on the advice that one should eat five veg and five fruits a day to keep healthy. Mega inflation.

What made me think of this campaign was the gallery of photos I saw on Apple Inc’s website which showed the drama on iPhone selling day. Apple used rent a crowd to supplement the permanent staff so that there would be enough black t-shirted vibey hoopla people to have a parade of honour of applauding staffers to send off the lucky purchaser. Never mind the roped off press taking photographs. What a moment. Oscar anybody?

To add to this wonderful buying happening, Apple Inc also used a fabulous selling gimmick. You could only buy two iPhones. Wow. It would never have occurred to me to buy two. I would really only need one for myself surely. But Apple sold it as ‘two a day’. Consumerism at its best. Check the number of customers with two branded iPhone packets walking out.

One has to remember two further things here. First of all, the iPhone is a high priced item. A fair number of people tend to get their phone thrown in when signing up for a contract. To have to pay either $500 or $600 for a phone was already a big ask. Guess what, the Apple stores sold out of the higher priced ones first.

The second point which one would have thought would go against the purchase of the iPhone was the fact that one possibly had to change service providers if not already on AT & T. That meant a further penalty if one needed to cancel an existing contract with another service provider.

None of this seemed to make a difference. Of course Apple has not, so far, advised how many iPhones were sold during the opening week-end. According to some reports only two Apple stores still have some stock. So it seems the product was sold out. Can you imagine that risk you take to have one million phones in stock at the launch, that’s the rumoured number. It’s mind blowing actually.

So far the hick-ups seem to be predominantly on the service providers side. There have been some disappointed purchasers although I have seen more good reports. A report in an online magazine had the writer explain how he has to hide his phone in his pockets so as to avoid the constant request by friends, and anybody else as a matter of fact, to want to handle the phone.

When last was there such a buzz about a consumer item? I can’t remember actually. In a time where it has become really unpleasant to go shopping, with aisles in shops too narrow, assistants rude, inattentive and ignorant of their own products, isn’t it wonderful to have a moment where shopping is fun again. And you can go to Apple school to learn how to use the thing. Bonus!