I must say, it’s not something I’ve heard other software companies do in the past, but then again Microsoft is always up for trying out new and unusual methods for promoting itself (remember those Windows 7 Parties?). So this time they’ve decided to pack their packs and hit the road to promote their latest OS, Windows 7. Of course they will be throwing in plenty of Office 2010 propaganda along the way.

The Get On The Bus Tour is a 10-city excursion that runs from May 21 to June 4. It kicks off in Montreal and will then work its way down the East Coast until it reaches Microsoft’s Tech-Ed 2010 show which takes place on June 7th in New Orleans. The event of course will preach all things Microsoft, in particular Windows 7 and Office 2010 which is understandable. The Get On The Bus Tour is also conveniently timed to coincide with the release of Office 2010 in June.

The Bus Tour sessions will focus on the numerous upgrades in security, performance, and end-user training that come with Windows 7 and Office 2010. We already know about the success Windows 7 is having, but Microsoft’s biggest challenge will probably be trying to convince Enterprise Users that Office 2010 is worth the upgrade.

Why will Office 2010 be such a tough sell for Microsoft? Well it’s not the fact that it’s no good, it’s actually quite good in fact and I like it a lot. The main challenge is the fact that these productivity suites are more of a mature market. Office’s core apps–Word, Excel, and PowerPoint–may learn a few new tricks with each upgrade, but there’s never really any new ground breaking features that make enterprises jump to it as soon as they can.

What’s more, Google Docs is posing a bigger threat by the day and Google are constantly adding new features to it and it’s beginning to have almost as much functionality as Office does.

And just as a bonus for Microsoft’s bus tour, they are giving away 50 copies of Windows 7 Ultimate to the first 50 attendees at each stop along the way. So if your looking to nag a free copy of Windows 7, check when the next Microsoft Bus is rolling into your town

Source:

PCWorld