Microsoft's Vista Marketing Campaign

Microsoft's $500 million ad campaign for Vista is attempting to bring "global 'wow' reaction" according to an article posted on AdAge.com yesterday. It is being questioned as to why such a large budget has been given to market a product which will soon be found on practically every PC from here on out.

Perhaps the most interesting and relevant part of the article is that the campaign, "The Wow starts now" is supposed to produce 6.6 billion impressions in the first few months. It "encompasses an online consumer-participation promotion themed 'Show us your wow' (the winner gets a trip around the world), sponsored webisodes at Clearification.com featuring 'Daily Show' comedian Demitri Martin and an alternate-reality game called "Vanishing Point" that moves between online and offline." Other advertising techniques include an invitation-only party in Times Square hosted by Bill Gates, a human billboard featuring 16 dancers, and TV ads featuring LeBron James.

It seems uncertain whether "The Wow starts now" will deliver its desired results, but it is interesting that Microsoft has decided to include consumer participation into the campaign. The TV ads are likely to receive the most attention, and according to Advertising Age, it won't all be positive word of mouth that swarms the blogosphere.
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