Technology giant aims to act just like a local

A gaming bustook the Xbox 360 on tour nationally, attracting about 20,000 gamers (right).

Brent Colbert, marketing director for Microsoft New Zealand, is just back from a global strategy session at the firm's Redmond, Washington, headquarters.

The highlight of the trip? A 50-hour, 660-slide PowerPoint presentation on the Microsoft's business and marketing plans for what will be a busy year of product launches.

Anyone who managed to duck the promotional hype around the launch of Microsoft's Xbox 360 gaming console did well. Expect a harder time avoiding the Vista marketing machine when the company releases the much-delayed latest version of its operating system early next year.

Colbert says the marathon presentation he sat through this month - aimed primarily at an audience of Microsoft country managers and marketing directors - would help focus the New Zealand business's "glocal" marketing efforts around Vista and a host of other up-coming products.

"Because Microsoft is represented in 86 countries around the world, it's a great vehicle for sharing the corporation's plans [for the coming year]," he said.

"It still comes back to what's right for your local market, where are the market opportunities, and do we have something in the kit bag to help meet that demand?"

Colbert said the strategy session was also an opportunity to talk through marketing initiatives with his counterparts in two markets similar to New Zealand - Ireland and Portugal.

"The country itself is quite different from New Zealand and it's quite different in terms of where they're strong and where we're strong," he says of Portugal.

"But, some times, looking at a country that's slightly different to yourselves allows you to step back and see the forest from the trees."

Microsoft's New Zealand marketing tactics include everything from traditional advertising to dabbling with viral email.

A viral campaign last year called "Sprung" featured video clips of office workers caught in embarrassing situations.

As a marketing exercise for Microsoft, it backfired because some recipients took offence to the content of the clips. But Colbert says the company learnt from the campaign and has not ruled out future viral activity.

Microsoft puts a large marketing emphasis on running events linked to its business and consumer products.

Colbert said the event approach provided customers with hands-on experience of new products in the presence of Microsoft staff who could talk them through any technical issues.

It was also a useful way for the company to get accurate feedback on how a product was perceived by users.

A recent example was when Microsoft launched its Xbox 360 gaming console last month with a nationwide "road trip".

About 20,000 gamers tried out the 360 console on a gaming bus that toured the country.

The event concept is also used to push the company's business products through events such as the annual Tech Ed training conference for developers and IT professionals. The company co-ordinates the timing of the show with similar events run by Microsoft Australia so international speakers can be brought down to appear in both countries.

Colbert, who oversees a marketing and communications staff of 18, says he is always open to new marketing initiatives, but a key requirement is that the results of a campaign can be measured.