Gartner: Microsoft can get rid of their uncool image by tying products together

Gartner is at it again, this time sharing its views on how Microsoft can get rid of their ‘uncool’ image in a war against competitors. According to a Gartner ‘analyst’, Microsoft can rid themselves of their current image by simply tying products together.

Microsoft, who is currently looking for a new CEO to replace Steve Ballmer, has recently undergone an organizational restructuring. Gartner, on the other hand, believes Microsoft’s new CEO needs to work on the company’s branding challenge.

“They have a strong gaming brand, and Skype, and I think we need to see more of a branding.”

“It could help if it’s a person who understands the importance of, and the execution of mobile and it should be a person who also understands devices now that Microsoft wants to compete – and rightly so – by being more of a hardware company,”  Gartner analyst Roberta Cozza stated.

“I want to stress the fact that the branding challenges remain the same. One of the biggest challenges we pointed out in our research is the perception of the brand, but I think that today there is more of an emotional link from consumers to the Windows Phone brand,” Cozza added.

Cozza believes Microsoft needs to closely identify its ecosystem by looking at its strong points. For example, Microsoft can spin its newly acquired Nokia PureView technology into the already well-established Windows Phone platform to create something entirely new for consumers. It can be something consumers don’t already have.

“There is a lot of confusion within Microsoft because they have the Xbox, Skype and other services and products that feel like they’re separate one from the other. They need to tie together all those services as more of a single entity, instead of many different planets of services,” he adds further.

Next year will especially be critical for Microsoft’s brand perception, considering they already have a strong gaming brand with the Xbox, as well as Skype and the Surface tablets. “They have a strong gaming brand, and Skype, and I think we need to see more of a branding. Tablet users use them mainly for entertainment – and Microsoft needs to work on the brand to take that into account,” he adds.

We all have our opinions about Gartner analysts, especially with their absurd ideas or predictions. But this one actually makes a bit of sense. Do you agree with Cozza and believe that Microsoft needs to work on their brand perception, or is Cozza full of it (to put it frankly)?

Thanks for the tip, Markus!