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The Empire Strikes Back

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[Update #2: I found the above "spoof ad" and thought it was funny and related to this post and some of the comments. By the way, I don't actually do new posts on this blog anymore I just update old posts.]

Have you seen the Microsoft ads with Jerry Seinfeld and Bill Gates? Is it just me or should whoever is responsible for these commercials be fired? Now Microsoft has just launched a new series of ads that will respond to the popular "I'm a PC/I'm a Mac" ads that Apple has done. (You can watch all these ads on Microsoft's Video Page.) Microsoft's new ads include a guy saying, "I'm a PC and I've been stereotyped." I think the new ads are better than the Seinfeld ones (though that's not saying much). But isn't there some rule in marketing that you don't respond to somebody else's ad mocking you? Does it work or is it desperate? And don't we already know that most of the world uses Windows? That's what makes using a Mac fun.

[Update: since I obviously have a biased perspective, I thought this article from a pro-PC writer might balance things out. He thinks Microsoft should have continued the Seinfeld ads and thinks the new ones are a bad idea.]

Posted by on September 19, 2008

Comments (19)

I actually saw the latest PC ad last night and I honestly thought it was very witty and clever. Mac has stereotyped PC and this has had a negative effect. This ad clarifies the issue.

Posted by stephen willcox | September 19, 2008 10:21 AM

It looks kind of desperate to me. haha I think they miss the point of the Mac commercials which makes Microsoft's ads look...odd.

Posted by jblaha | September 19, 2008 11:57 AM

Josh, your biased statement in favor of the Mac makes you sound like a democrat, but I love ya anyway.

Nate

Posted by Nate | September 19, 2008 1:04 PM

Nate,

Thanks for the love, bro! I'm an independent but I believe Macs transcend party politics. (grin) But you're right I am completely biased.

Joshua

Posted by Joshua Harris | September 19, 2008 1:13 PM

'But isn't there some rule in marketing that you don't respond to somebody else's ad mocking you?'

Oddly, it isn't the mocking that I find bothersome. It is the blatant dishonesty.

' And don't we already know that most of the world uses Windows? That's what makes using a Mac fun.'

Yet there is a clone army equipped with white earphones and silver notebooks...

Mac users should enjoy the insignificance. Those dozens of unpatched vulnerabilities in OSX are a ripe target for spammers should mac ever get popular... if you want to enjoy your mac indefinitely you are wise to keep the cult small and stop making proselytes.

:)

Posted by Mike J | September 19, 2008 1:40 PM

I'm a PC and willing to switch to Mac anytime. It was fun watching them on Friday morning. Thanks.

Posted by Joe Lee | September 19, 2008 1:41 PM

Mike J,

Thanks for joining the fray, buddy! Great lines delivered with force. I respect you. You should switch to a Mac. (grin)

Joshua

Posted by Joshua Harris | September 19, 2008 1:43 PM

@nate - Conservatives and Libertarians use Macs too! =)

I do agree though, Microsoft should not respond in kind to Apple the way they are. They should stick to their guns (whatever those are) and ignore Apple's attacks.

Apple's ads are a brilliant mix of post-modernism and modernism in that they appeal to your emotions and also provide concrete reasons why Macs are better. Microsoft can't talk at all about better products, because they don't have any. So they *have* to resort to appealing to your emotions while saying nothing about the product.

Posted by Dave Joyce | September 19, 2008 2:12 PM

I'm not sure about the rule, but I thought it was a rather late response. If they were going to respond to the Mac vs. PC ads, they should have done so long ago. Now it just makes them look behind the times. Though, I must say, these new ones are so much better than the Gates/Seinfeld ones, which I found pointless and absurd.

This is coming from someone who is using a PC, but plans on buying a Mac soon as she can. ;)

Posted by Lindsay | September 19, 2008 4:35 PM

Hah! I did think that this round of commercials was better then the Seinfield ones, but it still seemed kinda lame. The whole, "I'm a human being, not a human doing" line was so cliche. I've heard that these ads are supposed to "refute" the Get a Mac ads, but so far, they are doing a horrible job.

Posted by Josh C. | September 19, 2008 6:05 PM

Tell me I'm not the only one who liked the Seinfeld commercials!

And I like the new ones too. It's not just conveying that everyone uses pc's. It's showing that when Mac makes fun of pc's they're making fun of me.

Posted by Jim U. | September 19, 2008 9:22 PM

Yeah for Mac! :)

Sorry, I couldn't resist. My computer made me do it.

Posted by Kaysie Cumbest | September 20, 2008 8:59 PM

I'm not sure I should admit this here. Jim U., you are not the only one who *ahem* "enjoys...slightly" the Seinfeld ads. I found them online and enjoyed them for their own merit, PC vs. Mac aside.

I will be the first to admit I have a strange sense of humor, but when I saw the new ones, I just didn't get it. And I'm a PC.

And a human beeiiinng.

Posted by Heather | September 20, 2008 10:33 PM

I'm a PC. I'm also a fan of Macs, but just not practical in my world at this point. I've also been in the advertising biz for 15 years, so I thoughts I'd comment to your question on "the rule."

Generally, if you are the market leader you do not respond to comparison ads. However, I can imagine what the marketing gurus over at Microsoft are thinking is that their market share is dropping among the younger demographics who have many years of computer purchasing to come. The Mac ads have done a wonderful job of making Macs hip, cool and desirable. This is a huge issue for MS that they feel they must address, and what better way to address it than head-on?

One of the reasons this rule exists in marketing is because a market leader does not want to "lift" their inferior competitor to their level. By responding to their attacks, that is exactly what you are doing. In this case, I don't think MS has to worry about that. For starters, everyone knows what a Mac is already. Second, most people do not consider Mac inferior at all.

It is still a gutsy move by MS. As a student in the school of marketing I'll be very interested to see how this move pans out for them.

Posted by ad dude | September 21, 2008 2:03 AM

yeah, David and i saw one of the MS commercials w/ Gates and Seinfeld and at the end of it, we kind of looked at each other and were like... "uhhhh... and the point of that was??"

anyway, we agree. they're weird.

Posted by casey | September 21, 2008 4:09 PM

Well, normally, I've never really liked ads that try to knock down another product in general, as I think they should focus more on promoting their own product, however, I don't really care with the Mac vs. PC commercials, because I think it's pretty clear that their portrayal of the PC is exaggerated and humorous, just done in fun ;-) And while I also normally can't stand those "revenge ads," I don't recall this new PC one having anything against Macs, so again, in this case, it doesn't really bother me. I'd also add that I'm a PC, and I have nothing against Macs! :-)

Posted by Jordan | September 22, 2008 11:35 AM

Politics aside I am a PC but would be a Mac if they were fiscally conservative. OSX is architected well and Vista is, well, just maddening. It's like the Charles Finney of operating systems.

Posted by Nate | September 23, 2008 1:13 AM

one of the ads came on the other day, and my normally very sweet, very quiet, very meek friend yelled out "WHATEVER... you know all those people REALLY use Macs!!!"
I concur.

Posted by kendra | September 23, 2008 10:22 AM

OSX is pure genius, unfortunately for everyone Apple knows this...which is why the macbooks (pro) cost about as much as a small house...

Posted by Philip Davis | September 27, 2008 6:52 PM

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