Nissan is among 25 leading brands partnering with Microsoft for the Windows 8 Ads in Apps (AiA) roll out as it looks to remodel its marketing strategy and clarify its brand identity.
The car manufacturer is rolling out a series of executions across Microsoft’s suite of products – including Xbox, Bing, Windows Phone and MSN – using the newly-launched AiA platform, part of the Windows 8 launch, from this month and is set to continue to 2013.
Nissan joins 25 brands - others include 20th Century Fox, Lloyds TSB, Sky and Vodafone - in the Windows 8 tie-up with its activity set to run across five European markets with space booked by its media agency OMD.
Gareth Dunsmore, Nissan’s general manager for marketing communications, discussed the upcoming activity at Microsoft Advertising’s Imagine event hosted yesterday in London where he also explained that it was part of its ongoing effort to remodel its marketing from product-led to brand-led advertising.
“It’s not about just running a campaign… it’s about showing how the brand is evolving… it’s about telling the story of change,” he told new media age.
“Our brand is going through a process of change [its market share has doubled in the past four years] but I think we have lacked clarity on what we are,” added Dunsmore explaining that its Usain Bolt tie-up is part of that change.
“We want to show that Nissan stands for innovation and excitement that is accessible to everyone,” he said. “With this we hope to provide brand clarity.”
Nissan was one of the early launch partners of Apple’s iAd in the US and Dunsmore explained how its Windows 8 activity was a further demonstration of its willingness to experiment with ad formats on new platforms.
“This is right at the beginning of what we can do with it [Windows 8],” said Dunsmore.
Also at yesterday’s event was Andy Hart, Microsoft Advertising UK’s advertising and online general manager, pictured right, who further explained how the roll out of Windows 8 Ads in Apps campaigns over the next several months adding that it heralded an era of “big beautiful advertising.”
The Windows 8 platform lets brands and third parties build apps for Microsoft products including Bing, Xbox, Skype by partnering with publishers with 20thCentury Fox joining Microsoft as one of the global launch partners to promote the motion picture Life of Pi, see image left and below.
“As the weeks go on we’ll launch higher levels of creativity,” said Hart speaking with new media age, adding that ads within these apps will be first party served but also adding that Microsoft is also selling Windows 8 inventory for Sky and The Telegraph’s apps.
He also said that Microsoft had not cut its ad rates for the launch of Windows 8 adding that it was wary of how other OS providers had priced themselves out of the market when they launched similar advertising propositons.
“It’s not cheap, we don’t believe it should be. But it is failry priced,” added Hart.
