Microsoft further pushes its Windows Store along with Best Buy

"One of the aspects in which Apple beats Microsoft on the street is in its stores. Those sites that say hey I&39;m Apple and I&39;m special even before I walk into the store. They are the centers where people try and learn about their products, from where they leave convinced that this pot is the best."

"However, Microsoft, what do you have? Yes, Windows products dominate almost every computer shelf, but what products? I don&39;t know about you, but when you see the typical Windows 8 (or even Windows 7 in some cases) laptops on display the first thing you think of is not what a cool computer.It is the same thing that my colleague Juan told us a while ago: these products are not selling well to the user. The solution is the same as always: if you want to do it right, do it yourself. And that is what Microsoft is beginning to do, open its own stores. A few hours ago, it announced another move in this direction, partnering with Best Buy."

600 stores in the United States and Canada

Best Buy is a chain of electronics stores (similar to what Media Markt is in Spain) very widespread in the United States and Canada. As of now, 600 of those stores (500 in the US and 100 in Canada) will have a Windows Store, spaces between 140 and 200 square meters focused on Windows, Surface, Office, Windows Phone, and Xbox. The philosophy is the same as in Apple stores: lots of space, ready-to-try gadgets and employees who know the product inside out.

The advantage of being associated with Best Buy is that they gain visibility quickly: they partner with the number 1 electronics distributor, they will do joint campaigns and consumers will not have to go to other stores to see what it offers Microsoft.

Of course, this does not mean that those in Redmond have to start investing in their own stores and in taking them to more countries. Why? It is not because they are going to sell thousands and thousands of products in them. The reason is another: it is the halo. What I was saying before, giving the consumer the feeling that they are buying something special .

It is, in a certain sense, to counteract the image that Microsoft products have right now: ugly, boring, grey... normal. Owning stores is the best way to change this feeling and also to spread a brand feeling that Redmonders could really use.