The brilliance of shoes: What the new Microsoft ad really means

Cornball humor aside, there is a real point to the new Microsoft ad with Jerry Seinfeld. It's not about Windows, really, or about two very famous guys mocking the PC vs. Mac ads. The scene with the goofy picture of Bill Gates is one of the lamest in all of advertising because we don't really think it's funny anymore. And, while I think Dvorak is off the mark on the intentional or unintentional symbolism, what's really going on here is actually brilliant, cutting edge, next-gen marketing.

The whole point of the ad: it's okay to laugh at Microsoft. They want you to laugh. And I don't mean, laugh because the jokes are funny, or laugh because Seinfeld is laughing, or even laugh because of the symbolism or peculiar theme that seems to have nothing to do with Windows. I'm not even sure the ads are supposed to change perceptions about Vista or the budget-conscious PC buyer.

See, according a report in the current issue of Portfolio (not online yet), shoe-buying trends are changing. Apparently, people are not buying certain brands because they want to be known as a Timberland customer, or a Nike customer. They aren't even buying Macs because they want to be known as a Mac user. They aren't buying into the cool factor anymore at all, especially in our current economy. What they are buying into is an open source mentality - whoever builds the best widget will get your money. I see the new MSFT ad campaign as a line in the sand: the old Microsoft is now laughably outdated, and they know it.

So what will be the new Microsoft? If they are leaving their stodgy ways behind and becoming more "hip", then how will they get there? I think the best definition of a better product is one that meets the needs of the customer, and we are all moving more and more to the Web. In facts, the "moist cake" analogy in the ad is interesting because I think it points to a Microsoft that gets service better, gets the Web better. And I have the perfect example. Today, if you are a Microsoft customer and want to set up a meeting on the Web, good luck. It's more like a crusty sandwich experience than cake. You can use some weird amalgamation of several products called Office Live, but it is proprietary and hard to use. Of course, you can use Outlook, but that's not exactly a Web product. For some reason, you can't use Windows Live. And, really, there is no obvious and easy way to do this.

I see Microsoft on a transition to make the Web a more viable piece of their pie, to solve the complexity problem. The hints are leaking out: Midori, a managed code OS that is highly portable, Windows 7, which may partially run on the Web, PhotoSynth is one of the best examples of a Web app, and both Listas and Seadragon are at least trying to be revolutionary. All of these "points of light" are hints that MSFT wants to move away from stodgy computing, and to make better products - shoes that last longer and wear better.

And it will be an interesting transition, or at least a good laugh at their expense.

Thoughts about the Gates-Seinfeld ads

Preston Gralla:

• Gates-Seinfeld 2.0: longer, pointless, uncut
• Is Microsoft's Seinfeld spot the worst TV ad ever?

John Brandon:

• The other shoe drops: second Microsoft ad is about connecting
• The brilliance of shoes: What the new Microsoft ad really means

IT Blogwatch:

• EXTRA: Seinfeld spots vs. Apple ads

Eric Lai:

• Before Seinfeld and Microsoft, other celebrity computer commercials

Seth Weintraub:

• Ten reasons why the Seinfeld-Microsoft partnership doesn't work