JWT's $100M Campaign for Microsoft's Bing Is Failing

(MoneyWatch)  JWT's $100 million traditional media campaign for Microsoft search engine Bing is failing, Adweek reports. BNET predicted in April that the campaign would be a waste of money.

It appears that users are happy with Google, despite the Bing ads' claim that the current search experience delivers a cacaphony of irrelevant results. 25 percent of users tried Bing, but most did not stick with it.

We re-learn several old lessons about marketing from this:

• Consumer loyalty in the tech sector is heavily tied to high switching costs: the superior functionality and habituation add-ons that make it difficult for consumers to switch brands. (Google wins this race.)

• A campaign of that size will, by sheer logistics, waste most of its money in traditional media.

• Traditional media is a bad way to introduce an online product, where word-of-mouth is the dominant ad media.

Separately: All is not lost at Microsoft! Apple has lowered prices of its computers in response to the recession and to a Microsoft campaign highlighting the fact that you can't buy a decent Apple product for under $1,000. Microsoft CFO Kevin Turner had a full-body orgasm upon hearing this news, CNET reports.

• Previously:
• Why Microsoft's $100 Million JWT Search Campaign May Be a Waste of Money