We’ve all seen the latest Microsoft tablet commercials in recent months. They all follow the same plot: An individual starts complaining about various issues they have with the market’s current pcs/tablets, then, as if written by the angels-themselves, a beautiful tune starts up, and the individual in-question changes their own metaphoric tune completely as they inform us how all of those complaints washed away the moment they discovered their Windows 8 tablet.
Why, between having Windows Media Player and Office, they’re able to have a good time while getting work done! Who wouldn’t want this incredible bargain in this day and age? Quick answer – no one.
Microsoft Office, first released in 1990 was miles ahead of its competition upon release. With a word processor, spread-sheet device, and presentation creator, all rolled into one suite, it was a necessity for anyone and everyone who used a PC, from the kids who needed word to do their homework, to the office manager who used excell to calculate revenue costs in the last quarter.
However, 1990 was a long time ago, it’s now 2014, so should Microsoft still be pushing the same, old software in an attempt to sell a struggling operating system in Windows 8 to the general public? I don’t think so, and here’s a simple reason as to why.
The general public, especially those who use computers, aren’t stupid. Nearly everyone and their dog’s aware of the various office clones roaming around the Internet that can perform each and every feature found in Window’s release, all while being completely and utterly free. From Libre Office on Linux, to Apache Openoffice for Windows, to Google Drive for everything imaginable, Office is no longer a selling point. It’s a free luxury for anyone who owns a computer to use in order to get work done, Windows 8 or not.
So, with that being said, why is Microsoft trying to push Windows 8 onto the public by emphasizing in every commercial how their tablets come with Microsoft Office pre-installed? Couldn’t they address more telling features, such as the enhanced speed, virus defender that’s much-improved from previous versions of Windows, or the system recovery that can take the most damaged of computers and bring them back from the brink of destruction?
I’m not a professional marketer, by I fail to understand why features available on basic cell phones are now selling points for struggling operating systems and the tablets they come pre-installed on. Microsoft could just as easily say, “Buy Windows 8, it has a calculator.”
It’s no secret that Windows 8 has been struggling since its release, managing only to capture 10% of the operating system market share since its arrival in October of 2012. However, with marketing such as this, it’s no surprise as to why. Here’s hoping Microsoft is able to get it together before their new operating system and all of its innovative features are lost on deaf ears forever due to apathy about such dated features as a word processor and spread-sheet designer.
What do you think? How do you feel Microsoft should be marketing its Windows 8 tablets? Let us know in the comments section below, or by starting a discussion in our new forums! Windows 8 isn’t going anywhere, let’s hear what you have to say on the matter.