In the world of contrasts, Microsoft has pulled of one of the most disparate acts of brand inconsistency in the past year.

Its corporate campaign, initially using Jerry Seinfeld and Bill Gates in a “buddy picture” approach to building warmth with the general consumer market. While the general concept of the paring seemed promising, the actual implementation failed to connect with the message to be delivered as well as with its intended audience. Not only did the concept come off half-cocked, the writing generally assumed that Jerry Seinfeld is funny in any circumstance and that standard “geek cliches” are all that are needed.

As a contrast, Microsoft’s efforts toward supporting its ad network through its “Bring The Love Back” campaign, not only carries the intended message well, but provides a strong viral appeal. It is true that this is a highly targeted message, geared toward a small audience of advertising professionals. However, in this case it is not the message as much as the success of this campaign appropriately balances the message with the delivery concept. The combined approach of the campaign, through the positioning of this as a romantic comedy, packaged within a faux movie trailer, general commercial and a “behind the scenes view” of the production gives the campaign legs, no matter which version of the advertising you see. It just works and is easily apparent when contrasting it against the Seinfeld/Gates “buddy picture” concept.

Microsoft Good Part 1:

Microsoft Good Part 2:

Microsoft Good Part 3:

Microsoft Bad Part 1:

Microsoft Bad Part 2: