Microsoft Vista/Windows 95 Revisited
I’ve been reading some interesting blogs in regards to the Microsoft Vista launch, and have noticed the benchmark of the Windows 95 launch often gets brought up — especially since sales of Vista have reportedly been slow.
First of all, there are no comparisons between the launch of Vista and the launch of Windows 95. Microsoft threw the kitchen sink at Windows 95. It did things such as advertise on well-known landmarks all over the world, and spent millions of dollars for the right to use The Rolling Stones’ song Start Me Up.
Marketing and PR budgets aside, I think the landscape has changed since the launch of Windows 95.
Computers are no longer a novelty; they are a necessity. People won’t upgrade to Vista as quickly, as Aiden Kenny pointed out from his blog.
I imagine that the majority of the consumer market is going to migrate to Vista by upgrading their hardware rather than purchasing the boxed OS off the shelf at PCWorld.
My take on that is, most people won’t jump before they look. Computers are so pervasive in everything we do, people can’t afford for their machines to be down and, as a result, take upgrading their computers very seriously. Because of this, people will do their research.
For this reason, perhaps instead of simply trying to hype its product, Microsoft needs to hit the trade journals and other periodicals that are read by the folks who sell the hardware. Because if you can’t get buy in from them, people won’t make the leap. In this case, the sales people responsible for selling the computer hardware have a big say, and solution providers, such as Microsoft, need to convince them there is a real reason to upgrade.
Also, solution providers have to start looking outside traditional media and start targeting influencers in the social media sphere — namely blogs. After all, not only are blogs tremendously effective at influencing consumers, but the media is also using them for research purposes.
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