AMD decided to drop its ???Smarter Choice??? tagline in exchange for ???The future is fusion??? in an effort to highlight the combination of its microprocessor and graphics technologies. Fusion? Isn??™t that the code-name for a future AMD micro-processor? Yup, but AMD believes that the word ???fusion??? describes the company??™s overall focus as well and was therefore chosen as the keyword for its new marketing campaign. But AMD, of course, knows that this tagline could imply that the Fusion processor is AMD??™s future and the company does not mind if you interpret it this way.
The ability to transport images, carry emotions and transport messages is critical for any brand and from time to time we see IT company??™s either adjust or completely drop their marketing presence in favor of new images, emotions and messages. Intel did this some time ago, using tools such as the 2007 ???Multiply??? campaign to inject dynamics and emotions into what has been perceived as a dry and boring bland ??“ and appears to be shifting its message again with the introduction of the Core i7 processors.
AMD got tired of its general ???Smarter Choice??? tagline as well and felt it was time to support its brand with something new. Starting Thursday, AMD will be using the new tagline ???The future is fusion???, which, according to the company has been created from the thought of AMD??™s collaboration with partners, its impact on the industry and the balance (or ???fusion???) of its technology. There is no other product that exemplifies this term as much as the Fusion processor, which ???fuses??? AMD??™s microprocessor with the graphics engine of the ATI graphics unit. In fact, it is a tagline that also refers to the merger of AMD and ATI.
AMD??™s chief marketing officer Nigel Dessau said that Fusion is ???the most focused articulation yet of how AMD marries innovation with collaboration in ways that can yield benefits to the marketplace greater than the sum of its parts.??? In effect, the new campaign will once again aim to convince consumers that individual technologies are less important than the combination of technologies, a balance of technologies, that create an experience at ???work, home and play???. It is a clear shot at Intel, reiterating that a balanced platform consisting out of a decent microprocessor and a capable graphics engine will provide a better user experience than the experience a great CPU and not so capable graphics part can deliver.
???At work, Fusion means delivering leading server performance against real-world workloads with best-in-class performance-per-Watt and powerful virtualization capabilities,??? Dessau said. ???At home, Fusion means enabling people to share the full range of digital content on any screen they choose. At play, Fusion builds on the AMD and ATI record of leadership in providing the first 3-D graphics processing unit and driving the graphics for both the Microsoft Xbox?„? 360 and Nintendo Wii game systems.???
The campaign will go into two directions with the promotion value aimed 1/3 at print and 2/3 online. It will promote a more factual presentation for the server clientele and an emotional and experience-focused campaign for consumers. Dessau told TG Daily that the campaign will include a ???See for yourself??? component, which will allow consumers to compare the experiences of AMD and Intel machines side-by-side in retail stores. Following an initial launch ad (see below), AMD will transition to specific messages and run the Fusion campaign until the end of the year.
Source: TG Daily