Seinfeld, Gates, churros and shoes.

[spigot]

A big WTF. Strangest commercial I've seen recently. At first I thought it was an Amex commercial, then it just got weird.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=afR5J7eskno

Better version at http://www.microsoft.com/windows/

[kratz]

I was amused.

[kadnod]

I liked it, too.  They probably could've ended it at the 1 minute mark, but it was still pretty good. 

[YellowKing]

Well, if their goal was to create something so bizarre it would get people talking about Microsoft, they succeeded admirably.

[Eel Snave]

Yeah, my wife an I were both like, "huh?" when we saw this.  If they're trying to rebrand Microsoft, this isn't the way to do it.  Brevity is the soul of wit, and all that.

Although the picture of the young Bill Gates is hilarious.

[Moliere]

Although the picture of the young Bill Gates is hilarious.

The great thing about Bill Gates is is willingness to make fun of himself.

[Rumpy]

WTF? LOL Man, it makes it seem like those two have shoe fetishes or something.

[kathode]

I thought it was great.  I can't wait for my cake-puter!

[rittchard]

Just saw it, have absolutely no idea what to make of it, other than it made me want to bitch slap the both of them.

[ScubaV]

Dumbest commercial EVAR!  Talk about smoking crack.

[namatoki]

Microsoft tries to explain Seinfeld ad

[CeeKay]

bbbuuuuuuuuhhhhh?

[PeteRock]

I thought it was great.  I can't wait for my cake-puter!

[rickfc]

Microsoft tries to explain Seinfeld ad

If you have to explain it, then it's not effective marketing.

[dmd]

Seinfeld once again proving he sucks. Hard.

[th'FOOL]

Microsoft tries to explain Seinfeld ad

If you have to explain it, then it's not effective marketing.

Well, they should have just kept quiet and left everybody wondering until the next commercial.  I'm betting Crispin Porter is a bit miffed that they made a statement like that...

[rickfc]

Microsoft tries to explain Seinfeld ad

If you have to explain it, then it's not effective marketing.

Well, they should have just kept quiet and left everybody wondering until the next commercial.  I'm betting Crispin Porter is a bit miffed that they made a statement like that...

I agree to a certain extent.  The commercial was so cryptic that the message was lost.  I don't know about you, bit if I'm paying several million to advertise a product, it'd better be clear from the get-go that my product is what the ad is all about.

[th'FOOL]

Microsoft tries to explain Seinfeld ad

If you have to explain it, then it's not effective marketing.

Well, they should have just kept quiet and left everybody wondering until the next commercial.  I'm betting Crispin Porter is a bit miffed that they made a statement like that...

I agree to a certain extent.  The commercial was so cryptic that the message was lost.  I don't know about you, bit if I'm paying several million to advertise a product, it'd better be clear from the get-go that my product is what the ad is all about.

Well, I think the emphasis is going to be on the campaign as a whole.  I'm betting the plan was to get people saying "WTF?!?!?" with this first one.  It certainly has people talking about it a lot more than any of their previous ads.  I'm not sure that this piece of the campaign is part of the message.

All of that said, while the message is to come, I'm trying to figure out who their target audience is....

[rickfc]

Microsoft tries to explain Seinfeld ad

If you have to explain it, then it's not effective marketing.

Well, they should have just kept quiet and left everybody wondering until the next commercial.  I'm betting Crispin Porter is a bit miffed that they made a statement like that...

I agree to a certain extent.  The commercial was so cryptic that the message was lost.  I don't know about you, bit if I'm paying several million to advertise a product, it'd better be clear from the get-go that my product is what the ad is all about.

Well, I think the emphasis is going to be on the campaign as a whole.  I'm betting the plan was to get people saying "WTF?!?!?" with this first one.  It certainly has people talking about it a lot more than any of their previous ads.  I'm not sure that this piece of the campaign is part of the message.

All of that said, while the message is to come, I'm trying to figure out who their target audience is....

Illegal immigrants that stand outside discount shoe stores. Duh...

[YellowKing]

Yeah, it was obviously meant as a WTF commercial just to get people talking about it. Then somebody says, "WTF is this commercial? Here's a link!" and now Microsoft is reaching people that wouldn't have otherwise seen it. Then when they release their next commercial, everyone will link to it to see if it makes more sense than this one, and they've increased their viewership even more.

I think it's less about conveying a message, and more about publicity at this point.

[warning]

I just saw it.  I laughed.

[whiteboyskim]

"Is that the Conquistador?"

Sorry, that made me laugh. The rest made me scratch my head.

[EngineNo9]

I didn't see it as all that funny, but I don't think they should have tried to explain it.  Just let it be and wait until the next one. 

[Rumpy]

Microsoft tries to explain Seinfeld ad

If you have to explain it, then it's not effective marketing.

I happen to agree. I predict an epic fail. Imagine spending all that money on this campaign only to have people scratching their heads in confusion. That's exactly what MS doesn't need right now. With the web of confusion that is Vista, they need something clear and concise to reassure people of their buying decisions, not a philosophical rambling about shoes.

I'm reminded of a commercial years ago that gave me a serious WTF moment, and not in a good way.  It was a Chevy commercial advertising one of their trucks, only it kept going on and on about "You've Got Mail", and how they loved it. Not once did the commercial say anything about the truck. Not even at the end. It made me wonder what exactly they were advertising. Were they advertising the movie, which was already out on video at this point, or were they advertsing Chevy? It felt like the commercial had an identity crisis. It was also the only time I ever saw the commercial. I figure it got pulled.

[VynlSol]

Imagine spending all that money on this campaign only to have people scratching their heads in confusion.

If that one commercial was the entirety of their campaign, I'd agree it was full of fail. I'm betting there's much more to their campaign.

[Rumpy]

Oh, I don't doubt it. But for some reason, I get the feeling the next ones will be more WTF, and if that's the direction MS is going in, then uhhh what?

Although, I admit, it would be pretty funny seeing Seinfeld take him to the comedy club and have him do standup.

[Isgrimnur]

If that one commercial was the entirety of their campaign, I'd agree it was full of fail.

If only we were that lucky...

[hepcat]

As a piece of comedy, I thought it was pretty funny.  As a commercial, I'm not sure what they were trying to say.  My guess is it's like the Seinfeld show all those years ago:  it's about nothing.

[PeteRock]

Microsoft tries to explain Seinfeld ad

If you have to explain it, then it's not effective marketing.

Well, I certainly did not "get" the point of the commercial given the explanation.  I at first thought it was intentionally odd so that it would stick in people's minds.  That made sense to me.  But the suggested underlying statement Microsoft was trying to make was certainly lost on me.

[rickfc]

I at first thought it was intentionally odd so that it would stick in people's minds.

If 2 weeks ago you were to tell me that I'd have the image of Bill Gates shaking his ass stuck in my head, I'd ask you to share whatever you were smoking. 

[PeteRock]

I at first thought it was intentionally odd so that it would stick in people's minds.

If 2 weeks ago you were to tell me that I'd have the image of Bill Gates shaking his ass stuck in my head, I'd ask you to share whatever you were smoking. 

Rick, I am afraid to ever ask what you might have stuck in your head at any given moment.   

[rickfc]

If 2 weeks ago you were to tell me that I'd have the image of Bill Gates shaking his ass stuck in my head, I'd ask you to share whatever you were smoking. 

Rick, I am afraid to ever ask what you might have stuck in your head at any given moment.   

But Pete, it's FABULOUS...I swear!

[Lee]

It's a very effective commercial, it get you to talk about it. Whether you understood it or not, you watched it trying to figure it out and then saw it was MS.

[Destructor]

Seinfeld once again proving he sucks. Hard.

Agreed. What exactly were they trying to sell again? Shoes?

Plus, if I saw a minute and a half long commercial on TV, I'd find it the perfect time to use the bathroom and grab a beer.

[CeeKay]

Agreed. What exactly were they trying to sell again? Shoes?

I think they were trying to peddle Bill Gates ass......

[The Grue]

Agreed. What exactly were they trying to sell again? Shoes?

I think they were trying to peddle Bill Gates ass......

Sold!

[cheeba]

Microsoft tries to explain Seinfeld ad

If you have to explain it, then it's not effective marketing.

False. Anything that builds interest can be considered effective. This ad has done that for sure. Here we have a nearly 2-page thread about the ad. Had it been just a normal ad, it's unlikely we would even have a thread about it.

[rickfc]

Microsoft tries to explain Seinfeld ad

If you have to explain it, then it's not effective marketing.

False. Anything that builds interest can be considered effective. This ad has done that for sure. Here we have a nearly 2-page thread about the ad. Had it been just a normal ad, it's unlikely we would even have a thread about it.

Not necessarily.  You indeed have an almost-two-page thread about it in a tech-savvy internet community.  From what I've read, the point of the ad was more about the MS gurus or whatever the fuck they're going to be called at stores to help buyers shop for PC's.  I don't know about you, but, firstly, I never shop for PC's at B&M stores, and even if I did, I wouldn't need anyone's help while doing so.

I've talked to several people who are not technophiles, and while they think the commercial is entertaining, they're not discussing the meaning behind it or anything like we are.

IMHO, they missed the mark with the target audience.

[Rumpy]

Yeah, exactly. I think you hit it right on the mark.

The whole significance of this campaign will just fly right over the average computer user. And consider the fact that the average computer user doesn't care about what they're using as long as things work, they won't care about the origin of Windows.

And considering even technologically minded people can't even really figure out what this is all about, think about all the "huh?" and furrowed brows that this is generating to the average user. Just a load more of confusion that MS doesn't need at this point.

[TK-421]

Yeah, exactly. I think you hit it right on the mark.

The whole significance of this campaign will just fly right over the average computer user. And consider the fact that the average computer user doesn't care about what they're using as long as things work, they won't care about the origin of Windows.

In the meantime, sales of the Conquistador and churros have skyrocketed.