You're cool enough Lauren; you're just not rich enough (though one does wonder where she got the expensive-looking leather boots and giant handbag, not to mention the Volkswagen).
The message Microsoft is pushing here is clear: Consumers feel priced out by Apple and are rebelling against its carefully crafted cool factor. Microsoft's use of the term "not cool enough" is interesting. Some have interpreted it as Microsoft saying that PC customers are losers. But I think it's more tongue in cheek than that, and having Lauren say she's not "cool" enough for Apple is a sly mockery of people whose self-image is defined by a brand.
These days, computer "coolness" is losing the race to price. People just want a good computer with lots of RAM and storage at a fair price. Apple delivers really, really well on the first part. Not so well on the second part.
Lauren regains her mojo when she arrives back at Best Buy. She's on a mission now because she's suddenly surrounded by big-screen laptops under $1000. Smiling, she calls out the specs: "250 gigabyte hard drive! Four gigabytes of memory!" It's as if getting out of that sterile Apple store has liberated her.
Lauren eventually decides on an HP Pavilion laptop that has all her qualifications. Somebody off camera hands her the cash she was promised and boom, she now owns a $699.99 big-screen laptop. You're kind of happy for her because, despite being a clumsy collection of clichés, Lauren is likeable.
The spot ends with the "I'm a PC" line that is now the signature of the whole "Windows. Life Without Walls" campaign. Lauren wraps her arms around the box containing her new laptop and declares: "I'm a PC, and I got just what I wanted."
All in all, this is timely and effective advertising from Microsoft. It's a stone-cold fact that consumers are not spending as the economy worsens. Price trumps all right now, and the message of this ad — that you can buy a laptop with great specs and everything you need for well under $1000 — will resonate with consumers on a budget, also known as Everybody.
I eagerly await Apple's response.
Join the CIO Australia group on LinkedIn. The group is open to CIOs, IT Directors, COOs, CTOs and senior IT managers.