Gates and Seinfeld
2 Comments Published by Frank Lane September 11th, 2008 in Differentiation, Execution, Focus, Way OffWe have had numerous questions about our opinion on the new Microsoft advertising featuring Bill Gates and Jerry Seinfeld. Since we tend to strong opinions, I have always tried to remember the dictum that nothing is ever as good as it seems and nothing is ever as bad as it seems.
Well readers, this advertising breaks that dictum. This advertising is absolutely as bad as it seems, and possibly worse.
Our friend Rowland Hanson, retired from Microsoft, but responsible once for Windows, Word and Office introductions, reminds us that Advertising was never a key component of Microsoft’s strategy to start with. Further, he confirms that in his opinion, “this advertising is poorly executed and that it is strategically ludicrous for Microsoft to try to ‘outcool’ Apple to start with. Microsoft should concentrate on building its own strengths and making them more important, just as Apple is doing for its own strengths.”
We could not agree more. This may be one of the worst examples ever of bad, beyond belief, bad adveritising. Everyone involved should be embarrassed.
As someone who recently switched to the Mac this doesn’t give me any reason to think of Vista as an option. I sit starting at the ad wondering, What’s the point!
As a former full-time techy (now a small business owner) there were many reasons to stay away from Vista in the first place.
I did not see the advertising, however, you nailed it. Microsoft pulled the campaign. The current one that they are running, “I’m a PC” pokes fun at the apple campaign, and is certainly focused and aligned. But it sells hardware, not software. Microsoft Vista is a disaster, and many hardware manufacturers still offer XP. This may all be moot in a couple of years, however, as computer functions begin to shift more and more to online and off of operating systems and software programs.