The fact that Comparethemarket.com’s Meerkat iPhone app is charged for rather than free is quite cool. That it is in the UK’s top grossing list on the iTunes store shows it is a revenue stream for the company in its own right.
That brand/creative/franchise is clearly taking on a life of its own… Other brand managers take note – advertising creative done this well can become a business opportunity in it’s own right.
Selling people a part of your own advertising is a brilliant trick if you can do it… I was in New York working for two weeks in Autumn 2008, and found out about 'The Easy Button, from Staples… a shiny red button that does nothing more than say 'that was easy' when you press it. And it costs $5.
(I wrote more about it here – http://j.mp/btIWhm)