Against a backdrop of global economic uncertainty, the fabled “green shoots of recovery” are finally starting to emerge in our internet searches. According to a study published last week, searches for the luxury car brands Aston Martin and Mercedes Benz have increased by a third since the same time last year with Gucci also up by 8 percent. While these searches may be purely aspirational, could they be an indication of increased consumer confidence?

Google Trends Analysis – Luxury Brands

The recent Millward Brown 2009 Brandz survey also has good news for luxury brands. The survey identifies the world’s most valuable brands measured by their dollar value and their luxury category shows a 10 percent increase in brand value, driven by demand in China and other developing markets.

Leading the category is Louis Vuitton with a brand value of $19.4 billion followed by Hermes, Gucci, Chanel and Rolex. Rolex is the highest riser in the top ten with a 35 percent increase in brand value. Cartier and Moet & Chandon have dropped 12 percent and 2 percent respectively but still hang on to a top ten ranking.

So how are these brands growing when the world is going through a recession? For a number of them (including Moet & Chandon, Gucci, and Louis Vuitton), an advertising strategy emphasizing their brand’s heritage has really paid off, appealing to a more reflective consumer. Furthermore some discreet sales have shifted stock without tarnishing the luxury brand.

Against a tough economic backdrop, it would seem that luxury brands are not only surviving, they are positively thriving.

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Apple and Microsoft are constantly throwing adverts at their users not showing cool product features but promoting their company image. While Apple’s “Get a Mac” campaign tries to present the mac as progressive and cool, the PC as conservative and boring, Microsoft is using various types of spots to answer Apple’s commercials.

Apple relies on proven structures and employs the same actors time and again. Microsoft attempts different things in their 300 million dollar campaign: Jerry Seinfeld and Bill Gates in two TV-Spots, a hysteric Steve Ballmer freaking out and real users doing excentric stuff in front of the camera. In another short video Microsoft turned 180 degrees and directly attacked Apple.

Apple fans have planted the seeds for viral video growth

Meanwhile Microsoft has an even more aggressive approach. The company put a booth in front of Apple stores where people can record their own “I’m a PC” spot. A handful of those clips are also aired on TV.

Next to TV spots the companies are mostly embracing viral marketing. Visible measures analysed how effective the videos of both companies are on the web. A comparison of the first seven days of the campaigns revealed Apple achieving 70 % of Microsoft’s views. However Apple videos were linked twice as much from hard working fans on their or other websites.

Apple’s three new spots scored 70% of the viral video views that the much-discussed “I’m a PC” initially generated

More interestingly is that the Seinfeld-Gates campaign significantly outperformed the new “I’m a PC” and “Get a mac” clips. While the Gates-Seinfeld campaign brought 3,2 million views in the first 1 1/2 weeks, “I’m a PC” only performed half of that. I wonder why Microsoft has kicked the series after only two episodes!?

What will the marketing strategy for Windows 7 be?

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