The advertising campaign promoting Microsoft has hit a new low. And no, we don't mean another pointless, rambling commercial about nothing.
According to metadata dug up by Flickr user LuisDS, the "I'm a PC" ad campaign images were made on a Macintosh.
What's that sound? It's the sound of a million Mac users, laughing.
So how should Apple respond?
- Ignore it as being beneath their attention, like the Zune?
- Riposte it with some cunning counter-counter-campaign? (Image: "I'm a PC" advert plays, camera pulls back to reveal the ad being edited in Final Cut Pro.)
- Will they, having fooled Microsoft into trying to mirror their success with fact-free advertising, suddenly launch into a technically detailed series of tour-of-Leopard ads?
- Go meta and start a campaign of adverts about the adverts. ("Hello, I'm a PC advert" "And I'm a shrink.")
What do you think Apple's next advertising move should be? Drop your ideas in the comments below.
benet
November 10, 2009 at 11:28pm
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ashdude
September 24, 2008 at 9:26pm
Maybe Apple can hire that "You've got a Dell, Dude." Who was that? Steven? Anyway, I liked him, even if he was a pot head. He was funny.
"Dude! You've got a Mac! Look at the colors!"
crackedpot
September 23, 2008 at 5:33pm
Apple always has an article up on their site about people using Final Cut Pro for commercials, tv shows, movies, etc. They should just do a tribute to whoever is responsible for making the "I'm a PC" ads showing what equipment they used and boast more on how easy it is to make a commercial, even a MS one, on a Mac.
musickel
September 23, 2008 at 7:58am
What exactly is Microsoft advertising? They make no mention of their products. HP is a PC, Sony is a PC, Dell is a PC. They aren't selling anything to us... PC isn't a brand like Mac, granted, when you buy a PC you're getting Vista but that ad was pointless, and a waste of money. At least the Seinfield ads were a little entertaining, though also pointless.
I'm a PC (will someone please help me figure what I really am cause I have no idea.)
Nini
September 23, 2008 at 9:23am
Macs are PCs also, maybe some of the folk in the ad use Macs with Windows on them. They never make the distinction.
MedinaJ78
September 23, 2008 at 3:42am
Being a former PC user, I have been more than impressed by the difference. Moving over was just too easy....and now I'm seeing the attempt to get me back......please! I still work PC's for friends who need repairs or whatever. But being a Mac User for less than 60 days, I'm already trying to convince people to switch over. So they leave me alone! LoL. I been wondering about this Apple staying small thing too.
Excellent idea to show Leopard "in work" as an add. I think that would get more interested. Even the Time Capsule video I saw on the apple site was impressive.
yk4k
September 22, 2008 at 3:09pm
The current Apple advertising campaign is so ingrained in people's minds, that the minute they see that Apple-inspired PC Guy look-alike, they'll think, "Oh, it's a another Mac commercial." None of Microsoft's advertising is ever proactive, only reactive, and even their product releases reflect this: look at the Zune and its advertisments, or just look at some of the features in Windows Vista, some of which have existed in OS X for years. And now, Apple directly competes with PCs in their series of advertisements, so of course Microsoft now has to defend itself. Really creative, guys. It's as if someone at Microsoft watched an Apple ad, got in front of a camera, stuck out their tongue, and said, "Oh yeah, Apple?! YOUR MOM!"
It's similar to the age-old BMW/Mercedes Benz rivalry: you can make all the claims you want, but at the end of the day, it's a matter of what the user prefers. So instead of continuing to take jabs at each other (which carries the risk of boring consumers over time), Apple should slowly introduce new ads into the campaign that further highlight certain features of Macs, similar to the way their iPhone tv ads depict their ease of use. The mobile version of the Internet, for example, which people have been using for years, is subject to certain limitations based on your phone. In contrast, the iPhone offers the full internet in an elegant and simple-to-use format, and they use their TV ads to show consumers exactly how it works. In this way, they'll be letting the actual product experience speak for itself, thus inviting people to visit a store and try one out, just like the iPhone.
Also, the Microsoft ad would be a bit more effective if Microsoft actually sold PCs. Are they advertising Windows or other Microsoft software? A particular brand of PCs? The "pride" of owning a PC? Confusing.
Then there's the whole issue of "stereotyping" PC users: the "Get a Mac" ads use actors to represent the computers, NOT the people using them. Personally, I don't want to be a computer (PC or Mac); I want to be a human being--with a well designed computer that does what I want, when I need it to, and does it easily.
Of course, as a recent and now deeply-committed Mac convert, I have an obvious bias, but I wonder how many of those "proud" PC owners have had Microsoft-induced headaches over the years compared to their Mac counterparts? Or how many of those celebrities--like Tony Parker and Eva Longoria--have Macs of their own? Or iPhones? Or iPods? And I like the part about the PC-blogger for Obama, whose wife, according to Newsweek, purchased two Macbooks for her family...ironic.
maclover
September 22, 2008 at 6:27pm
You put that in perfect perspective. I believe Microsoft is as clueless as their OS at making quality ads. These ads you get bored out of your mind. "I'm a PC and I have a crappy commercial". It is actually sad to say that it was made on a mac, I rather it had been made on a PC!!! And for anyone who says online they like the Microsoft ads, they are obviously Microsoft employees.
As far as the next Mac commercials, I would love to see some more Leopard explanations, because I am sick of people saying that Vista is easier to use than Leopard. My only response to that is "You have never used Leopard, you douche". (Excuse my language)
