Good Advertising Advice For Microsoft

Posted by Joseph_Phoenix on February 23, 2012 08:44 pm 10

I just read this post on Mashable.com and I thought it was on point for Microsoft and it's advertising. Here's the main points they make

1. Focus on strengths: The company’s strengths, as I see them, are software, productivity and the Xbox. This is where Microsoft can reasonably claim that it is superior to the competition. And this is where its marketing effort should focus.
2. Adopt strengths: Everything you need to know about Microsoft’s problems with identifying its strengths is summarized in the following sentence: Microsoft Office is still not available for Android and iOS devices, although rumors have surfaced that its launch is imminent. Software is a strength, but software for computers became uninteresting five years ago. Microsoft should be adopting its excellent productivity software — as well as its tremendous gaming platform — for phones, tablets and the cloud.
3. Abandon weaknesses: Smartphones are not Microsoft’s strength. In fact, Microsoft phone market sharefell 20% in the fourth quarter to 4.7%. Nokia or not, there is little Microsoft can do in smartphones to gain on Android’s and Apple’s devices.

   Further, while Microsoft’s Bing search engine has resonated somewhat with Internet users, it is not a strength. Microsoft’s U.S. search engine share in 2011 was up just 0.1% to 15.2%. Google’s was 61%. This war is lost. It’s time for Microsoft to abandon and redirect its marketing budget.

4. Focus marketing on consumers: Consumers, not businesses, create market passion. Corporate customers are critical, but likely saturated with Microsoft products long ago. Rather, Microsoft’s marketing should focus on consumers. These are the people who can become evangelists, drive market energy, and ultimately affect the share price.
5. Gather powerful, qualitative customer insights: If you’re going to market to consumers, you need to understand what consumers think, say and want in the first place. You should know precisely how they use your products — and your competitors’ products. To gather these insights, interview customers qualitatively for 20 to 30 minutes each. Internet surveys and focus groups won’t uncover the kind of compelling language and messaging that resonates with consumers. There is no replacement for one-on-one customer conversations.
6. Aggressively communicate: Once Microsoft understands what to say, it must continue repeating its message relentlessly, with a focus on consumer life improvement. Remember when Apple mercilessly hammered Microsoft with its "I’m a Mac" ads? Microsoft requires the same kind of frequency and focus.

Source: Mashable