The marketing of Origami

Microsoft has at last revealed details of its new PC as a result of its Origami project.

For weeks the bloggers and technology writers have been speculating about the device and whether or not it has a place in the market and whether or not it will be ultimately successful.

I’m not a technology writer or gadget reviewer, but I do find this story interesting because it illustrates well many aspects of effective marketing.

From the mysterious publicity website (http://www.origamiproject.com) created to tease people and generate buzz to all the “leaks” about the product before it was officially announced, I give kudos to Microsoft for doing a good job at both marketing the product and managing expectations at the same time.

One part of the product launch strategy that I find fascinating is a video of Origami’s Creator, Otto Berkes, as he is interviewed by a Microsoft blogger.

In the video, Berkes is seen talking about the product in behind-the-scenes fashion that is both approachable and intriguing. This was a well-crafted piece of publicity. Marketers out there should note the use of new media to help a major corporation to launch a new product. Especially take note of how a blog was used to directly distribute what is essentially a long format commercial thus integrating blogging into the Microsoft marketing mix.

In the video, Microsoft talks about pricing strategy, hardware specifications and potential “use scenarios” defining what market segments may be early adopters for this new, ultra-mobile PC.

Microsoft alludes to price skimming strategy based upon the newness of the product in the product life cycle and states that it set out to find the pricing sweet spot between price and usability based on the technical capabilities of the device along with its screen size compared to competing mobile technologies. They further go on to discuss how the price will fall once it gets beyond the early adopters and production ramps up to meet demand during the growth stage when the customer base grows rapidly and price falls accordingly.

The managing of expectations occurs when we see Berkes squirm in his chair when asked about battery life while never directly answering the question. When he talks about how some uses make more sense than others and that not all software applications will make sense for this device, he clearly is managing expectations for the device and not over promising. I find this corporate honesty refreshing.

Microsoft clearly knows that this is not a device for everyone but it does fit a niche. Maybe ultimately a large niche (if there is such a thing).

Microsoft did not develop this product in a vacuum and unleash it on the world as so many Microsoft critics would like to believe. Microsoft clearly worked with its hardware partners to develop this device and they all did their marketing research homework and believe there is a market for it.

So how is this product positioned and where does it fit?

It fits somewhere between a handheld device and a laptop computer.

A bit smaller than a tablet PC, this device is an ultra-portable PC running Windows XP and will allow the user to run many full-fledged software programs with its main interface being a 7” touch screen display.

The detractors complain that the product will flop because it is too big to fit into a pocket and that it is yet another gadget to lug around but they miss the point.

This is an evolutionary product, not a revolutionary one.

This device will deliver a larger screen size than many mobile devices while also offering much more computing power. I can easily see how it would be desirable to leave both a notebook computer and a handheld device in the office while traveling on business and take an Origami device instead… assuming there will be available software add-ons such as a virtual on-screen keyboard and quick booting times. In fact, if the price is right it might be worth it just to use on airplanes and while waiting in airports.

As for the price, the market will soon enough determine that.

Like it or hate it, I think there is a market for the device and I think Microsoft did a wonderful job from a marketing perspective in its launching of the device.

What do you think about how they managed the marketing?