14 DAY TRIAL // We don't want to say we saw this coming but... we saw this coming. All it took was two not-so-catchy ads featuring mogul Bill Gates and comedian Jerry Seinfeld to “break the ice”, after which Microsoft realized it would take much more to break Apple's spirit.
To give you a taste of how the public sees Microsoft's $300 million ad campaign shortly after kick off, here's what one of our commenters wrote: “Microsoft is still no match Apple,” said TJM. “I saw the commercials. I recognized Bill Gates and Jerry Seinfeld. I didn't understand the commercial. Wasn't funny, made no sense, thought it was stupid. The Apple commercials are entertaining; the Microsoft commercials are not.” Of course, this is just one comment, but the guy sounds pretty convinced of the dullness of Microsoft's ads. Adding that the folks behind the Windows OS had their chance at “connecting” with the public by using an actual comedian (a popular one, too), the company couldn't have done worse.
Therefore, Microsoft is set to begin a new ad campaign on Thursday. The ad carries the theme “Windows. Life without walls,” according to The New York Times, and features a guy who strikingly resembles Apple's “PC” character in its own ads. The campaign is aimed at moving away from the enigmatic commercials featuring Gates and Seinfeld, the publication reveals.
Apple's high-ups have been “using a lot of their money to de-position our brand and tell people what we stand for,” said David Webster, general manager for brand marketing at Microsoft in Redmond, Wash. “They’ve made a caricature out of the PC,” he added. Microsoft believes this is unacceptable. The reason - “you always want to own your own story”.
This time around, Microsoft will try to illustrate “a strong desire” among Microsoft managers “to take back that narrative,” Mr. Webster said, and “have a conversation about the real PC”.
Amalgamated, an agency in New York that specializes in “cultural branding” feels that it made sense for Microsoft to engage Apple. Charles Rosen, chief executive at Amalgamated said that “Apple represents the ideology of Silicon Valley, taking on big business as in Microsoft,” using a campaign (Get a Mac) which mocks the PC as it celebrates the Mac.