This campaign targets an audience we refer to as digital moderns. They are young, tech-savvy consumers who greatly influence the technology opinions of those around them. They are frequently, but no always, in their 20s.



Any marketing pitch from Microsoft to this group is frequently greeted with a great deal of skepticism. Microsoft is often seen as an older company with little relevance. With the launch of Vista, Microsoftís newest operating system, it was critical that we connect with digital moderns in a way we never have.



As mainstream marketing is frequently rejected by this group, we set upon making something that would have a decidedly low-tech and indie feel.



The campaign was built around the simple notion of ìclarityî -- as Vista is a tool for removing the clutter from your digital life allowing you to get to more of the good stuff.



For digital moderns we created a campaign that they could truly discover and own themselves. To this end we produced a series of films that were shared virally. Each episode is a new chapter in the life of a man who is being cured of an ailment known as HANDTOSS ñ hyper achiever with no direction with a tendency to overcomplicate stuff syndrome. He is cured with the help of the Institute of Advanced Personhood ñ a large-scale metaphor for the Vista operating system.



With no traditional advertising budget we launched this campaign through a seeding program on the web. The content draws you into a site called clearification.com where you not only get the films, but a daily puppet blog hosted by comic Demetri Martin. This effort also tied into Demetriís stand-up comedy tour on 20 U.S. college campuses.



The program culminates in a one-hour Comedy Central special featuring Demetri Martin with all the commercial breaks brought to you by the Institute for Advance Personhood and clearification.com