Oi Oi bad. V bad! (for most decent computer users).
However, what was potentially interesting, was the way they showed the son with billy boy using some "new" software. (Shh dont tell anyone).
Sorry Jerry, the dry comedy and slow action is hurting. However the slow pace might make you more susceptable to the message at the end.
Yet I am still trying to work out how they are carrying their vision.
Here is my take on the campaign. I am expecting to be wrong on these.
1. M$ are working on the "togetherness" feeling and might later show how their software make everything "together". (eg family, new friends, devices and toys, cars, appliances etc) 2. They gonna talk lots about the future rather than the problems now. 3. Jerry is going to "hand over" to more techie ppl as the "series" unfolds.
Four mins of bull-crap and bore and like 10 seconds of product talk. The customer is king, I dont want to hear about your cars and flying houses and status in life, ok, I wanna know about solving my problems and sorting my stuff out.
pMost people are aware that Jerry Seinfeld has been hired by Microsoft (for $10 Million) to help them in their campaign to take on Apple and to revive the tarnished reputation of Windows Vista in the market. The idea is to portray "real life people" using Windows Vista and how it changed their computing life (or ways of doing things). Jerry and Bill Gates are the only celebs featured in the campaign. The rest of the people will be ordinary people like musicians or photographers. (MAC user demographics being targeted here).
I have listed my top 10 reasons why Jerry Seinfeld should not be used for the campaign. What are yours?
10. He is not the IT manager / IT Director of any company, and his business IT motivation means jack to me.
9. Feeling nostalgic about some 90's sitcom wont make me think twice about implementing some cocked up operating system.
8. He has the worst voice in the world. I think that would put me off any advertising campaign!
7. He is an actor, comedian and an avid automobile collector not a serious computer user or a person who would be exposed to some of the "shakier" areas of Vista. What can Microsoft possibly expect a user like that to do on their system. And what about the rest of us who run software drivers and older hardware?
6. The campaign is badly positioned. Jerry is 54 years old. He is basically only representing 7% of the global computer users.
Stats indicate the following percentages of computer and internet users by age group. 18-24: 56% 25-34: 39% 35-54: 33% 55 or older: 7%
5. Come on, he was the voice for Barry Bee Benson in the most horrible kiddies movie of all time, Bee Movie.
4. Official stats show that 35% of all Vista computers are downgraded to XP. Is Jerry going to help us find / write drivers for all the nice hardware we are having trouble with.
3. The campaign's slogan is "Windows not Walls". It will focus on the need to "break down barriers that prevent people and ideas from connecting". I think windows is full of holes and some witty play on words and a $300 million campaign will not change my perspective. A $300 million rewrite of the software certainly will!
2. Making me laugh at witty quips is not going to sway any business decision I make, regarding the future direction of my IT department for the next 3-5 years. Also his jokes and good humor will not cover the ever escalating license costs from Microsoft.
1. In the episodes of Seinfeld you plainly see exclusively MAC computers being used (or at least around)!!! He is not a Windows user nor a fan of Microsoft.
This article is a bit tongue in cheek as Jerry is a super funny guy and I really respect how he has built himself up as a brand over the years. However he knows jack squat about IT.
Microsoft SA has said that there have been difficulties for resellers and end-users around the launch of its Vista operating system. Why are we not shocked!
Furthermore they say there "have been problems with its communications to its channel." Microsoft have always been bad at communicating with system stake holders and channel resellers, so I am still not surprised.
They further indicate that "these communications were not properly planned." They have planned three campaigns for this year to rectify the situation.
The article quoted Tarsus CEO Pierre Spiese "Local distributors, OEMs and resellers have been battling with bulk image blasting, the time and expense of downgrading unhappy customers back to Windows XP, and second-line support."
"Vista doesn't support bulk image blasting; it's just not here yet. We believe the product was launched too soon. [Microsoft has] a lot of catching up to do. Corporates are buying new machines with Vista on and downgrading to XP, in anticipation of Vista being ready in the next two to three years. They are buying the licence, but do not plan to use it until the product is ready."
The article goes on to say that Spies says the situation is interfering with the company's business model. "We're taking serious flak. We've got people arriving in droves to downgrade."
He says the company is downgrading roughly 25% of the Vista machines it sells. "Consumers are not taking a long-term view like the corporates are, they just want it gone."
And rightly so in my view. Each new version of M$ operating system just seems to suck a little bit more than the one before, and tie you a little bit deeper into M$ strangle hold.
