Microsoft sheds its business-like personality and returns to the forefront of designing the future in a campaign by London design and digital studio, Koto, marking its 50th anniversary.
The campaign, Change needs makers, leads with a film that is exuberantly joyful, a montage of vibrant colours and fun graphics, paying homage to the past while it looks forward to the future. Elements of Microsoft past and the cultural moments that defined generations – early Xbox controllers, early laptops, Paint, hotmail and Minesweeper – remind viewers of their connection to Microsoft but are woven into a future-forward design and a joyous optimism, while it also applauds the “dreamers, builders, and changemakers” who built Microsoft to inspire a new generation of thinkers.
Koto’s system is constructed as three adaptable storytelling structures – Worlds, which place people and products inside vibrant, imagined landscapes that celebrate possibility; Iconic Moments, which honour defining achievements from Microsoft’s five-decade journey; and Then & Now, a juxtaposition of eras that captures the company’s constant reinvention. The campaign includes a 50th-anniversary logo, that is built from the bones of the original Windows design but with more 3D and motion that suits today’s digital spaces; and Segoe Sans Display typography, that echoes Microsoft’s heritage.
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“As a company whose mission is rooted in empowerment, Microsoft needed a campaign strategy that put people squarely at the centre of the story. The concept ‘Change needs makers’ celebrates not only five decades of human achievement, but also acts as a rallying cry for the next generation of innovators to build what’s next. The strategy comes to life through stories of pioneering products, historic breakthroughs, and human ingenuity,” Koto stated in the campaign blog.
“From a Microsoft.com takeover and placements across products including Teams and Edge, to a Times Square activation and an official 50th event live-streamed on April 4, this celebration stretched far and wide. But across physical and digital, the message remained the same: ‘Change needs makers’ is Microsoft’s call to does and dreamers, now and next. Balancing nostalgia and inspiration, it reinforces Microsoft’s enduring legacy as a brand that’s committed to continuous innovation and human achievement.”
