What is a home?
“The fact that my computer connects to the Wi-Fi automatically, without asking for passwords, updating podcasts, etc. That is the feeling of home,” says Henrik, a Swedish native taking part in IKEA’s Life at Home report.
The sentiment is shared by many. In the same report, 49% of Shanghai citizens stated that they thought having Wi-Fi was more important than having a social space in which to nurture relationships. 19% of total participants prioritised catching up with friends online rather than in their homes.
It’s really no surprise. Technology is changing the way we interact not only in the broader world, but right in our very living rooms.
Take Instagram, for example. Almost single-handedly, it has turned the average meal into the subject of a photo shoot for the sake of likes. It’s a compulsion that has resulted in over 15.3 million pictures of food being posted to the social media channel under the tag of #foodstagram, with other searches resulting in millions more.
Such is the basis for Let’s Relax, IKEA’s latest ad campaign. Moving away from their traditional marketing, which is generally focused on modern convenience, Let’s Relax takes us back to the 18th century for a clever spin on what social media would have been like during the age of enlightenment.
Without being overtly preachy, the campaign reminds us what a home dinner is really all about: the people at the table, not anonymous browsers idly scrolling on their phones half the world away.