New Seinfeld Microsoft Ad Runs, Is About Nothing 7 comments
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Those Jerry Seinfeld Microsoft (MSFT) advertisements started today. CrunchGear’s Doug Aamoth recorded the first ad during the Giants/Redskins game and put it up on the site. This is reportedly a $300 million ad spend. Seinfeld gets $10 million.
It’s a cute and cuddly situation comedy about shoes. Has a couple of moments. No mention of Microsoft or Windows other than “are they ever going to come out with something that will make our computers moist and chewy like cake so we can just eat them while working?” A butt wiggle by Gates followed. Overall, I give this a 0/10.
These ads can’t be all tech or they’ll lose the audience. But I can’t imagine this will sell software, either.
Update: So the tech and geek crowd is a little underwhelmed by the new $300 million Microsoft advertising campaign featuring Jerry Seinfeld that kicked off tonight. It’s mostly content free, with just one mention of Microsoft near the end. It’s a far cry from the brilliant Microsoft vs. Mac ads that Apple (AAPL) has run over the years.
So what’s the deal? In an email we’ve obtained from Microsoft SVP Bill Veghte to all employees, he talks about the goals of the campaign. The overall goal is to inspire consumers and “tell the story of how Windows enables a billion people around the globe to do more with their lives today.” This first phase, he says, “is designed to engage consumers and spark a new conversation about Windows – a conversation that will evolve as the campaign progresses, but will always be marked by humor and humanity.”
The ads are just an icebreaker, he adds, to reintroduce Microsoft to consumers. Later this month they’ll do a deeper dive, which I assume means talking about features.
One thing’s for sure - the ads have sparked conversation. Full text of email is below:
From: Bill Veghte
Sent: Thursday, September 04, 2008 5:37 PM
To: Microsoft - All Employees [QBDG]
Subject: Telling the story of Windows
Since it first launched nearly 25 years ago, Windows has been one of the most successful products in the history of the high tech industry. As we set our sights on the next 25 years, it is essential that we deliver incredible offerings on a great platform. We must also tell the story of how Windows enables a billion people around the globe to do more with their lives today. We must inspire consumers with the promise of what Windows uniquely makes possible across the PC, phone and web.
Telling our story means making significant investments to improve the way consumers experience Windows. To that end, we are focused on making improvements at practically every consumer touch point, from the moment they hear about the Windows brand in our advertising to how they learn more about Windows products online; from how they view Windows and try it at retail to how they use the entire range of Windows offerings – Windows Vista, Windows Mobile and Windows Live – across their whole life.
Today, we are kicking off a highly visible advertising campaign. The first phase of this campaign is designed to engage consumers and spark a new conversation about Windows – a conversation that will evolve as the campaign progresses, but will always be marked by humor and humanity. The first in this series of television ads airs initially in the U.S., and it aims to re-ignite consumer excitement about the broader value of Windows. The first television spot aired on NBC during the opening game of the NFL season and will be seen throughout the evening on various primetime programs. Worldwide, you can view this first TV spot at http://msw.
This first set of ads features Bill Gates and comedian Jerry Seinfeld. Think of these ads as an icebreaker to reintroduce Microsoft to viewers in a consumer context. Later this month, as the campaign moves into its next phase, we’ll go much deeper in telling the Windows story and celebrating what it can do for consumers at work, at play and on-the-go. At that time, I’ll be back to share more information about our plans to further strengthen the bond between consumers and Windows – one of the most amazing products, businesses and brands of all time, and, with the right tenacity, passion and agility from all of us, a story that has many great chapters to come.
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This article has 7 comments:
Something better could be a short clip where Bill is in the audience during one of Jerry's stand-up routines. There's a heckler in the crowd. Jerry looks to Bill who then opens up his laptop or turns on his Pocket-PC, the Vista logo appears on the screen, Bill keys something and looks up to Jerry and winks. Picture switches to the heckler who's now clapping and cheering for Jerry. Scene changes to scene of Jerry continuing with his act and the message appears on the screen: "Vista Can Work For You Too".
I'm sure the agency that created this commercial has people that can do better. If they can't, it's time to change. Yada, yada, yada.
Microsoft should not have neglected the under 30 crowd. This crowd will be the first to abandon Microsoft products for web based applications that will perform better and will cost next to nothing compared to MS expensive, bloated offerings.
Go Google and Apple! They have it right.
Go Microsoft!