Kumo out, Bing in as Microsoft readies advertising onslaught

by Dan Leahul, revolutionmagazine.com 26-May-09, 14:05

LONDON - Microsoft is planning a large-scale advertising push for its new search engine, formerly known as Kumo, now rumoured to be called Bing, in an attempt to draw web users' adoring gaze away from Google.

According to AdAge, Microsoft has developed a $100m advertising campaign for Bing, created by JWT, which will canvas the web, TV, print and radio following the search engine's public debut at D: All Things Digital conference in California this week.

The WPP-owned JWT won Microsoft's global B2B account last summer, beating out a number of agencies, including incumbent McCann Erickson.

The campaign will not target rivals Google or Yahoo! specifically, but will appeal to web users to rethink the way they search, asking whether the "other" search engines really solve their problems.

The campaign is based on Microsoft's research that showed 42% of consumer searches required refinement and that 25% of clicks are the back button. The same data also revealed that 65% of web users are satisfied with their current search engine.

Bing, which had been operating under the name Kumo during in-house trials, uses a unique interface which Microsoft hopes allows users to find what they are looking for on the first try.

The named Bing is still unofficial, however two trademark filings by Microsoft in April, which now owns Bing.com and Bing.net, suggest it has settled on the name.

When searching Bing, say for an Audi S8, a set of separate tabs on the left hand side of the page will offer related categories, such as for parts, used cars, accessories and sales, while a search for musicians, such as Taylor Swift, brings tags such as songs, lyrics, biography and albums.

Microsoft currently sits third in the search market with an 8% share, following Yahoo! (20%) and Google (64%).

Whether Microsoft's product is better than Google's or Yahoo!'s is irrelevant, say analysts, and the company's biggest hurdle will be to detract users away from the Google brand.

According to Ad Age, Google conducted an internal survey which revealed that users preferred search engines with the Google logo plastered on top, regardless of the search results shown.

Microsoft is gambling $100m in hopes of changing attitudes towards search and reminding web users that 'to Google' is not a verb.

It has seen success slagging off Apple in a seperate campaign, giving the company some much needed impetus.

Crispin Porter + Bogusky's 'Laptop Hunters' campaign for Microsoft's PC business, which brands the company as an affordable choice, has resulted in a negative effect on Apple's value perception among 18 to 34 year olds, according to reports.