Microsoft's anti-virus software OneCare was entering a
marketplace already populated by "category-killer" brands. In order
to establish itself as a viable alternative against such fierce
competition, OneCare needed to demonstrate its excellence and
reliability from moment one.
Rather than use search engine optimization to highlight OneCare
ads and drive traffic to OneCare's web site, the Microsoft team
decided to use that media placement to drive eyeballs to positive
unbiased reviews of the product. Through a first-of-its-kind
initiative with Google, OneCare linked as many pertinent key search
terms as possible to direct links of favorable independent
editorial content on the product, effectively guiding conversation
and early buzz about the software at the consumer research stage.
Favourable press was identified in a series of national and trade
publications and these were linked through via the Google search
scheme. Ten separate Google campaigns were designed for each search
term, each linking the user to a separate independent editorial
page with positive commentary on the product. So the word "OneCare"
would not only provide access to Microsoft.com, but also connected
the user to a feature about the software in PC World. The team's
approach blocked competitors from top search engine results on the
select keywords.
As a result, Microsoft received over 12 million "ad"
impressions, leading 66,347 clicks to positive articles on Windows
Live OneCare for a total cost of $4.27 per positive editorial
view.