How Edge Is Pitched By Microsoft

Browser wars. From Netscape through IE to today’s more varied than ever marketplace. How do the makers of web browsers set themselves apart?

I’ve touched on this before, with its parallels to when we sell our solution offering in a crowded field.

I wonder how relevant today a one-time killer interview question regarding personal choice remains? Hopefully the central theme still stands.

I recently witnessed a new computer setup. A machine running Windows. It became apparent that Microsoft try all sorts of tricks to keep you from ditching its tired old, never-properly working wares.

Here’s what their current incarnation, “Edge”, presents upon first searching, defaulting to their engine, “Bing”,  for Google’s Chrome download;

Do they try cram too many reasons to buy in there top-returned ad-result here? Or does the fourway benefit list work great on this slide-style pitch?

Despite no intention to reward the creators of “Windoze Internet Exploder”, I couldn’t help but clickthrough;

They clearly claim to be fastest. Who can’t but help lovin’ the old-school speedo dash display too.

Which is interesting, as back in 2010, that’s exactly what Google went big on. And as of this post’s blogging day in 2018, still did;

As if this isn’t enough, when you stop the MS product being the default option, look what they plead;

Bye bye, Billy.

For comparison, let’s see what similarly greets us on the Firefox download page;

A trio of winners? Twice as fast. Not beyond the rest, mind you. Merely beating their own previous releases.

What do you do when everyone seems to major on the same benefit? Not all suppliers can truly be ‘fastest’? Yet all can be fast-enough. To the extent that speed ceases to be the top issue, allowing other traits to blossom in importance.

Is this happening in your realm? Are you all past a particular threshold on one count, so that you can push another upon which you reign supreme? Or are you destined to be sunk like Microsoft, where they touting ‘fastest’ gives them current market share languishing for the past year at around 4% ..?