This is absolutely awesome.  Microsoft is putting guerilla marketing to pretty darn good use!  They’re putting small kiosks where you can record your own “I’m a PC” advert outside of Apple stores.  Priceless.

I haven’t been a very big fan of the Apple advertising campaign using John Hodgman and Justin Long.  I see the humor in them and they do make me chuckle from time to time, but I’ve also found them to be inaccurate, pithy, obnoxious, and pretentious.  Everytime I’d like to buy a new Apple product and I happen to see one of those adverts, I become very discouraged and no longer want to purchase that product.  I’ve feel although the Seinfeld adverts were a bit baffling that Microsoft’s adverts have been much classier thus far.  You can say what you’d like about whether they’re “good” or “effective,” but they are definitely of a different calibre than the Apple adverts.

Apple has spent a long time trying to convince me that it is hip and chic and so totally now.  But I still cling to the stereotype that Apple users are obnoxious twats who use their laptops as a fashion accessory rather than a computing tool.

This interesting use of guerilla marketing by Microsoft is not obnoxious, if you ask me.  It’s clever and the correct use of competitive advertisement.  You’re supposed to place your adverts next to your competitor’s.  That gas station has gas for $2.15?  Well, MY gas station has it for $2.05!  That’s the great part of advertising, coming up with new, interesting and engaging ways to attract your customer.  Apple has done that with adverts that can really irritate and annoy a lot of possible customers.  Microsoft has done that with adverts that may not truly articulate its point to the customer.  They’re both flawed, but so far I’m siding with Microsoft in this marketing war*.

*There really is no war happening.  It’s just regular ole marketing.  Let’s not hyperbolize everything.

Feature Article advertisement, Apple, I'm a PC, marketing, Microsoft