Microsoft"s Scroogled campaign seems to actually be having a decent effect on the public"s perception and trust in the Google brand. In fact, it"s even pushing some to make the switch from Google services like search and Gmail over to Microsoft"s Bing and Outlook email.
According to research by (GfK Roper) Answers Research, once people visit scroogled.com, Google"s favorability gap over Bing shrinks to just 5 percent compared to 45 percent before visiting the website. While Google does still have the slight edge here, there"s definitely noticeable gains in Microsoft"s favor. After watching the Scroogled video, the likelihood of someone recommending Google drops by 10 percent, while the likelihood of someone recommending Bing rises by 7 percent, as discovered by Microsoft"s own data.
"The "Scroogled" campaign is having a huge impact as consumers learn the stark difference between what Google says and what Google does," said a Microsoft spokesman. Meanwhile a Google spokesman humorously stated, "Don"t think we have a comment on this one."
The campaign aims to convince people that they"re getting screwed by Google for its advertisements and invasions of privacy. The website has sections targeting email, schools, spam, the app store, and shopping. Microsoft uses the offensive tactic to get users to switch over to Outlook email or Bing, which essentially promises to stay true to its users.
Update: A Microsoft spokesperson reached out with the following statement to address an inaccuracy in the research source: "Microsoft clarified that this was research conducted by Answers Research, not gfk Roper."
Source: Ad Age