Last night on our way to a birthday party at the Derby Deli & Dueling Piano Bar – Lisa and I stopped in at The Shops at Mission Viejo mall to kill some time. Traffic from San Diego was a little hectic so I figured that some time spend doing some retail therapy might do some good.
As we walked into the mall I was confronted with the early signs of Christmas and while the prospect of walking the mall with “deck the halls” at my back brought a grimace to my face but the little kids running by the well lit displays made me remember what the holidays are all about.
Walking down the main corridor of the mall I saw a huge white banner that read “Microsoft Store – Now Open”. I guess I have been disconnected from the platform for quite a while because I did not even realize that Microsoft had store but I have heard so many great things about Windows 7 I just had to check it out. I half expected the store to be a bland uninspiring cheap knockoff of an Apple Store, but WOW was I in for a surprise.
From the moment you first step through the door you can feel it, something is special, something is electric in the air. So many smiling faces, so many people engaged and fully committed to the experience and NO I am not just taking about the employees the nearly sixty shoppers in the store were having a riveting experience interacting with what is clearly the future.
Words really can’t do the experience justice so here are some videos that I created on my new Kodak ZI8 in 1080p mode.
Project Natal is the next level of user interaction with a computer. I had not even heard about it, I guess like so many other things Microsoft it looks to be game and life changing.
We have all seen the previews of the interactive table but I actually had the chance to “interact” with it. The table uses 3D bar codes to determine what object has been laid down. I tried taking a picture of the bar code with my phone and displaying the picture to see if I could clone it, but no luck there.
Mid way through our visit the entire store broke out into song. Now I have seen this gimmick before at Coldstone Creamery and I know how they have been criticized in the media for it, but here it did not seem forced nor contrived, I would honestly say that this was the staff letting go, having some fun and not taking the brand all to seriously.
I was absolutely floored by this experience, Microsoft has made a bold move to capture new market share. I ordered a copy of Windows 7 Ultimate edition – I have been a hard core Mac person for the past five years, I completely bypassed the Windows Vista experience but something is telling me that I am at a precipice looking directly into the future. Oh, and I just canceled my order for the 27inch iMac quad, I need a little time to think it over.
Its easy to see that Microsoft primarily is a software company committed to changing the world through technical innovation and that Apple is a hardware company that is changing the world through design innovations. They need each other to push the limits of their own visions.
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Very interesting read. Enjoyed it.
“here it did not seem forced nor contrived, I would honestly say that this was the staff letting go, having some fun and not taking the brand all to seriously.”
I think you need to reconfigure your perception-meter. It seems to be malfunctioning.
How’s this astroturfing gig going for you?
“I have been a hard core Mac person for the past five years, I completely bypassed the Windows Vista experience but something is telling me that I am at a precipice looking directly into the future.”
Are they establishing new paradigms, thinking outside of the box, and reorienting consumer focused trend establishers?
This whole campaign is so tone deaf that it is the very embodiment of facepalm.
Wait, this is a joke right? Kind of like an onion article? I refuse to believe you’re serious.
And how embarrassing for Microsoft.
I was pretty surprised to find out there’s more than 1 post on this blog. The MS PR team did a good job here.
You are a terrible writer, sir.
“I have been a hard core Mac person for the past five years, I completely bypassed the Windows Vista experience but something is telling me that I am at a precipice looking directly into the future. Oh, and I just canceled my order for the 27inch iMac quad, I need a little time to think it over.”
Ummm, hard core Mac person? I had to dig to find any post of yours mentioning a Mac, finally finding one about having a MacBook Pro, though I do see posts about Windows Server 2008 and upgrading to Vista.
And frankly, you ought to buy that 27″ iMac and put Windows 7 on it via Bootcamp if you’re serious. Does Dell or HP have anything like the 27″ iMac as far as hardware capabilities?
Enjoy the short lived traffic burst to your site.
Since there is no information about who you are, and the one other post I read on this site opened with “Despite what some clients believe I do not work for Blackberry nor for Microsoft!” (Article: Your iPhone Sucks) I’m almost certain it is the opposite.
Seriously – there is no information about who I am on the site ?
Click the linkedin.com button, the facebook icon, the twitter icon. Or just google me – http://www.google.com/search?q=brad+slavin&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&aq=t&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a
I really enjoyed this write up, I too think they are doing a great job with all these stores. People can insult others all they want but until you actually experience it for yourself you will never know.
I think it’s awesome that you had a great experience!
Interesting with all the accusations of astroturfing and you-can-in-no-way-be-serious you choose to address the easy issue of your identity. Anyway:
Can’t see your Facebook without an account of my own
Can’t glean anything from Twitter beside you are from San Deigo
Linked in says you’re in marketing. Great, let’s use that
I find it extremely hard to believe that, as a marketing major, you could be so oblivious to obvious marketing tactics. As the “VP of Engineering” and the “CsomethingO” at several small companies, I find it hard to believe that employees dancing as most shoppers ignored them would instill such child-like wonder in you that you would believe that you are “at a precipice looking directly into the future.” Microsoft has no need to make “a bold move to capture new market share,” they own over 90% of the market. What they do need is to flail furiously and try to grab back some, any, of the mindshare of informed computer buyers. And that is what I am accusing you of contributing to, under false pretense of an amazed onlooker.
Tagline for this very site is
“Marketing, Persuasion, Technology, Life – Finding Balance”
404 – Balance not Found
I like how angry all the mac boys got at this write-up regardless if it is real or not. Don’t worry, the flashy lights of the MS Stores will only give you more room to play in the playpens at the Apple stores.
> “I have been a hard core Mac person for the past five years, I completely bypassed the Windows Vista experience but something is telling me that I am at a precipice looking directly into the future.”
> “Windows Vista has been in development for roughly five years and I have been actively involved as a beta tester for the last few months.”
How did you “completely bypass the Windows Vista experience” when your other blog post says you have been “actively involved as a [Windows Vista] beta tester”?
If this is not an astroturf blog, why is this blog post in a category called “press-releases”?
http://www.bradslavin.com/category/press-releases/
Let’s clear up the Astroturfing debate. Just update your post and state that you received no compensation of any kind for writing this blog post.
I would find it quite surprising given the tone of this post. Some of your statements are so obviously fake. Is there a person on earth who would make this statement on their own? (Aside from Gates & Ballmer)
“I guess like so many other things Microsoft it looks to be game and life changing.”
I can’t imagine a “Hard core Mac person” who would not want to dual boot the 27″ iMac since they already have it on order.
Wooly – Finally a real question….to which I have no real answer.
In wordpress when I was setting it up I had press-releases as the original “slug” and category but changed it to “15-minutes” in the category name – however there were some back links point there from some articles that I had written a while back and did not want to loose the pointers. So I left the slug as press-releases.
He category was renamed 15 Minutes, the slug remained and if you look at the description “Everyone likes a little press now and then” it is exactly that – places that I have been mentioned.
I think that this Youtube posting is as good as anywhere else I have been mentioned and it most certainly has taken a few seconds out of the 15 minutes that each of us gets in our lifetime.
Hope that help.
Brad
Ed –
Not one single dime of compensation for this blog from Microsoft nor any other company from this post. You will however find some affiliate links in some older posts.
However in the efforts of full disclosure – I did get invited by Youtube to be an advertising partner for revenue share and I will most certainly blog about that a little later today. I have not been approved.
But other than that zero affiliations with Microsoft, other than about 8 years ago I owned an IT consulting company and we sold Microsoft products and I still have some clients that need viruses removed and I charge for that. But direct or indirect compensation ZERO.
Seriously I ordered my Kodak ZI8 from Amazon, it came in – we headed to a birthday party, got there early went to the store.. Nothing more.
Thanks for the update Brad.
I guess you did MS a huge favor because I think your video is getting more attention than the Gates/Seinfeld ads did. It will be interesting to read your post about the Youtube advertising.
This is the worst astroturfing effort I’ve seen in awhile. Wooly’s comment really drives the final nail in the coffin for this one, doesn’t it
This would have been okay if they the “dance” lasted less than a minute, you know how they bust out into song at jamba juice.
Otherwise MS should just stick to copying exactly what Apple does at retail since Apple pulls in more money than most (including Tiffany’s) per square foot.
Not sure about revenue per square foot but we were there for about an hour and I think there were about 9 computers that got sold during that time.
You know its happening because the whole store starts clapping, you can hear this in the Project Natal video.
My position is good for them, emulate what works, put your own touch on it – take feedback from people and apply what you learn.
“I guess like so many other things Microsoft it looks to be game and life changing.”
Haha, oh wow.
Truly funny, thanks for the good laugh!
Still waiting for your explanation of these completely contrary statements:
1/2/2007: “Windows Vista has been in development for roughly five years and I have been actively involved as a beta tester for the last few months.”
Today: “I have been a hard core Mac person for the past five years, I completely bypassed the Windows Vista experience.”
I hope Microsoft isn’t paying you too much for this, because you’re terrible at astroturfing.
Yes. This is the face of sheer enthusiasm and “letting your hair down:”
http://homepage.mac.com/theoptimist/pics/microsoft-dancing-enthusiasm.png
I could care less about the Mac-vs-PC stuff. It’s not about that. Look at those two guys. They’re one minute into a nearly-five-minute, choreographed (read: contrived) dance number, and I can practically _hear_ them thinking “f*** my life, f*** my life, f*** my life, f*** my life.”
Not only that, but cast your mind to the other half of the shopping pubic — the ones thinking to themselves “Seriously? They’ve got like 30 salespeople on the floor and I can’t get a question answered because they’re effing LINE DANCING?” I don’t know what’s worse, the fact that not a single one of them broke out of the dance to go help a customer, or that no customer seemed to want to talk to them for a five-minute span of time. I’m all for building enthusiasm, but this in particular feels contrived and counter-productive.
well done, troll, well done.
Question. What does dancing around for 5 minutes have to do with selling computers? And who was helping the customers during the “choreographed” routine? All a bit silly.
Jeremy: “I like how angry all the mac boys got at this write-up regardless if it is real or not. Don’t worry, the flashy lights of the MS Stores will only give you more room to play in the playpens at the Apple stores.”
Oh please. I haven’t used a mac in 5 years. It’s more embarrassing BECAUSE I use a PC.
Er. At 2:14 while the whole store staff has their backs turned, dancing for the other customers, why is that woman in the white shirt taking something off the display and stuffing it in her satchel?
well that was sad forced and misdirected, LOOK Employees “asked” by a company to do a viral AD? WOW.. Do us a favor, MS, fire your marketing.
I’m sorry…. do real people actually casually just write about this stuff? EPIC FAIL, MICROSOFT.
I don’t care if someone uses a Mac or a PC or a cardboard box with scribbling on it–you were at The Shops at Mission Viejo and WEREN’T going to the newly opened Farrell’s Ice Cream Parlour?
FAIL!
so your name really is Brad Slavin? Like “Slave”? Why am I not surprised?
Of course this site is fake.. And look at the description of the video, it’s obvious from it.
“Mid way through our visit the entire store broke out into song. Now I have seen this gimmick before at Coldstone Creamery and I know how they have been criticized in the media for it, but here it did not seem forced nor contrived, I would honestly say that this was the staff letting go, having some fun and not taking the brand all to seriously.”
Sir I think you are NUTS if you think that.
‘Sfunny, you’ve got me thinking along similar lines. I’ve been a Linux user since the early days of Fedora, and use it for my server, my desktop and my laptop. Up to now I’ve been very satisfied with it: it’s secure, it’s open-source, it’s easy to set up and use, and of course it’s free: both in terms of money, and in terms of what you’re allowed to do with it.
But viewing this video has really opened my eyes. No longer am I quite satisfied with not paying a corporation for my software; I’m not quite sure that having a secure locked-down system fulfils my needs; most of all, perhaps I really should consider a proprietary and closed licensing system.
If ever I needed strong evidence of the innate technical, philosophical and aesthetic superiority of Microsoft products over Linux or Apple (and I’m sure even you would agree that over the last few years the issue has been in some doubt), these dancing drones and their shills have provided it. Thank you, sir: I’ve cancelled my download of the latest updates, I’ve reformatted the OS disk in my server, and I’ve bought three licenses of Windows 7: I only hope I can trust your judgement and your honesty!
Yeah, what Korla said.
If this is a sham site, MS need to hire better viral marketers. If it’s not, then Brad, you need a good injection of cynicism. I mean, dude, look at how choreographed *all* the employees are. D’ya honestly think that many people could just _spontaneously_ break out into a chorie’d dance?
No, I’m not a mac fanboy, I’m a microsoft whore to the core. But stupid marketing bollocks like this annoy the bejesus out of me. Not sure if it’s coz they insult each and every viewer, or if it’s coz most of society in general is gullible enough to fall for it.
Utterly ridiculous. Brad, I applaud you for doing your best to fulfil the contract, but listen, this sort of viral marketing has got to be subtle. No-one on Earth would ever coluntarily describe MS store customers as being riveted by interacting with the future, and it’s so painfully choreographed that even gibbons will be able to tell it’s not spontaneous.
Microsoft are sick and desperate, and I have no idea why. I can only assume that it’s because they can’t find anything positive to say about Windows 7: “Oh, forget the OS, look at our Dancing Bears!” It’s a shame, because I like XP, and I was hoping that 7 might have done something right.
So I guess you’ve done one positive thing for me — you’ve tipped Windows 7 into the ‘Vista abomination’ box for me, and I’ll avoid it like the plague unless trusted tech sources say otherwise. XP it remains.
Thanks!
Why does such a trivial blog post about a MS store visit anger Mac fans so much? Microsoft and Apple are both just massive faceless companies that will do whatever they can get away with for a buck. It’s like watching Baptist vs Catholics or something…
I can understand Linux fans to an extent. They have the whole freedom philosophy bit going for them.
Anyway, thanks for posting the videos. Hopefully all the zealots won’t get you down.
ASTROTURF!
Holy awful. This made me cringe.
You’re so transparent it makes me die inside. If I had your job I would have killed myself the moment I had to utter the words ‘game and life changing’ because I would have realised what a vapid excuse for a human being I had become. You embody everything that is wrong with our species and the only thing nice I have to say about you is that it’s impressive you can take all of Microsoft’s throbbing e-cock without gagging.
This is possibly the most transparent, ridiculously obvious failure of an attempt at viral marketing in the world. I will masturbate furiously to the fantasy of bashing your head in with a laptop running a Linux OS.
facepalm.jpg
I too would like to know the answer to V-Train’s question.
I’ve been using Debian GNU/Linux for about 5 years.
I’ve tried W7RC and for the first time since I left W2K for Linux, I dare to recommend Windows to “simply users/players”.
However, I’ll keep using my penguin (of course).
*This* sounds (and is) true, *this* makes think that effectively, with W7, MS seems up to date and worth using.
Windows7 is fast and seems reliable, about security, I can’t say anything, but I do think Linux (unix/whatever) have been great help for MS, even autocompletion now empowers (just laughing, but that’s good anyways) MS-DOS!
In french you’d be called “un lèche-cul” (ass-licker). Is it the same (or is there equivalent expressions) in english?
Wow, Brad. I’m impressed! I never knew Microsoft hired mentally retarded chimps to do astroturfing for them.
I hope you get a nice bootmark implanted in your skull for your bullshit.
“Not one single dime of compensation for this blog from Microsoft nor any other company from this post.” Yeah right, and I’m the queen of fucking England.
Lets see. Your probably being too hip and happening with the now generation for us to get it. But, all you want for Christmas is a PSP.
We get it, Microsoft stuffed a dump truck full of cash in to your pocket. Seriously we do. We know they did it. Because only some paid a HUGE amount of money would think THAT was spontaneous.
Bravo. This is so ridiculous you made it a buzz and we even can read about this failure in France :
http://sebsauvage.net/rhaa/index.php?2009/11/18/13/43/45-viral-marketing-fail
I come on, write again, I need to laugh.
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