Microsoft uses fake research project in ad campaign

US-- Microsoft has used a fake market research project in its latest ad campaign to show customers choosing and buying Windows PCs.

Participants in the Laptop Hunters campaign were told they were being filmed for a research project looking at purchase decisions. In fact it was all part of a Microsoft campaign by Crispin Porter + Bogusky.

A post on the Microsoft Team Blog says: “The Laptop Hunters are not told they are taking part in an ad campaign by Microsoft. Instead, they think they are participating in market research.”

Each of the ten people filmed was asked go out and find a laptop to fit their own budget and requirements, and all of them, according to Microsoft, ended up choosing Windows PCs rather than Macs. Only then did the camera crews reveal who they were really working for. “The participant can of course decline to be part of the ad series if they so wish,” said the firm.

By using research as a front to film people for promotional purposes, Microsoft has employed the same tactics which drew accusations of ‘sugging' against Ford in 2007. Industry asociations Casro and CMOR both raised concerns at the time about Ford's portrayal of research, and the potential consequences for respondent cooperation.

The agency behind the new Microsoft ads is the same one responsible for last year's Whopper Virgins film for Burger King – another campaign based on a real-life product test, which was accused of insensitivity in its treatment and portrayal of remote communities.

Author: Robert Bain

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