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When good ad campaigns go bad.
Oct. 22nd, 2008 09:31 amOuch, Apple. What happened? You've had your "I'm a Mac. I'm a PC." series of ads, that are without a doubt... hilarious. Witty, clever, you've had plenty of fun pointing out Microsoft's diminishing market share in colleges, pointing out what a strong OS you have. Even how easy it is to switch.
Then Microsoft released their "I'm a PC campaign" and tried to take back their image, as well as focus a positive light on their overall brand- not necessarily the OS.
So you followed up with these two spots: "The V Word" and "Bean Counter." ( Both videos behind a cut to save f-lists )
Do they work? No. They've lost the clever, hip attitude of the ENTIRE ad campaign. "The V Word" seems more in line with the previous ads, but focuses on Microsoft, rather than Apple. In a different way. Even when PC was doing something silly to get people to buy his computers, it was mostly aimed at pointing out how Apple works different. But in "The V Word," there's no mention of Apple's OS. It's just making fun of Microsoft.
Then, there's "The Bean Counter." The sole focus of the ad is pointing out that Microsoft is spending money on advertising. When, if you think about it, we've been inundated with ads from Apple for the iPod, Macs, iPhone. While Apple's advertising was focused on gaining market share, they're essentially calling Microsoft out for trying to rebrand themselves- after Apple has succeeded in labeling them as a "fuddy duddy."
Bottom line, these two ads come across as mudslinging. Minimal focus on products, just attacks. The campaign has been becoming more and more negative, but up until now, they at least tried to be fun.
EDIT: There's ANOTHER new ad called "Bake Sale." Same take, making fun of Microsoft for spending money on advertising rather than "fixing Vista." By the by, if you're actually believing Apple's line... let's look at it this way. The "I'm a PC" campaign was a huge push to revitalize the BRAND for Microsoft. To humanize it, since the brand has always been Bill Gates, who despite giving away more money to charity than just about anyone out there- still comes off as a little cold, geeky and well... just unhip. Vista, as far as operating systems goes, has been touted as a big failure. They build it up as the next big thing, released an OS that isn't compatible with most software and has a tendency to eat up a lot of computer resources. So I don't blame them for trying to change people's minds. It's just good business.
( Bake Sale behind the Cut )
Then Microsoft released their "I'm a PC campaign" and tried to take back their image, as well as focus a positive light on their overall brand- not necessarily the OS.
So you followed up with these two spots: "The V Word" and "Bean Counter." ( Both videos behind a cut to save f-lists )
Do they work? No. They've lost the clever, hip attitude of the ENTIRE ad campaign. "The V Word" seems more in line with the previous ads, but focuses on Microsoft, rather than Apple. In a different way. Even when PC was doing something silly to get people to buy his computers, it was mostly aimed at pointing out how Apple works different. But in "The V Word," there's no mention of Apple's OS. It's just making fun of Microsoft.
Then, there's "The Bean Counter." The sole focus of the ad is pointing out that Microsoft is spending money on advertising. When, if you think about it, we've been inundated with ads from Apple for the iPod, Macs, iPhone. While Apple's advertising was focused on gaining market share, they're essentially calling Microsoft out for trying to rebrand themselves- after Apple has succeeded in labeling them as a "fuddy duddy."
Bottom line, these two ads come across as mudslinging. Minimal focus on products, just attacks. The campaign has been becoming more and more negative, but up until now, they at least tried to be fun.
EDIT: There's ANOTHER new ad called "Bake Sale." Same take, making fun of Microsoft for spending money on advertising rather than "fixing Vista." By the by, if you're actually believing Apple's line... let's look at it this way. The "I'm a PC" campaign was a huge push to revitalize the BRAND for Microsoft. To humanize it, since the brand has always been Bill Gates, who despite giving away more money to charity than just about anyone out there- still comes off as a little cold, geeky and well... just unhip. Vista, as far as operating systems goes, has been touted as a big failure. They build it up as the next big thing, released an OS that isn't compatible with most software and has a tendency to eat up a lot of computer resources. So I don't blame them for trying to change people's minds. It's just good business.
( Bake Sale behind the Cut )
