Great Business Ideas- Intel’s Greatest Decision- what Peter Klinge Learned

Fortune’s latest issue highlights how Intel made one of history’s greatest business decisions. The concept and implementation of Intel Inside in the early 90’s changed technology marketing and introduced or reintroduced the notion of ingredient branding.

What few people may know less about is the fact that though Intel had been in business since about 1968, few had heard of the company until beginning in 1991.

The Intel Inside and complementary tag line The Computer Inside (see Pentium II commercial) changed and forever influences awareness and consideration of what customers think about Intel Corporation.

Even though other companies such as AMD have been making microprocessors about as long as Intel, only Intel Inside confers the premium value ingredient associated with providing computer users with power and applications for all aspects of our lives. Their processors recently began supplying Apple’s most popular products.

In the late 90’s I joined the Dahlin Smith White team (part of global firm HAVAS: Euro RSCG) to help with the Intel account. DSW was the agency behind the brand development of Intel demonstrating how with Intel Inside the user can experience huge benefits in multimedia, Internet, and other applications.

Product introduction cycles concurrent with Moore’s Law,  attributed to Intel co-founder, that processing power would double every 18 months underlay the latest processor introduction. We timed launches through the 90’s and 2000s to this cycle around the Pentium brand and subsequent Centrino (WiFi mobility) announcements.

I thing Apple’s product marketing strategy is similarly timed to offer news about the brand every year or so now to stimulate purchase of the latest i Phone, i Pod and to retain top of mind awareness and brand loyalty.

As with Apple, Intel’s marketing and communications were carefully crafted across Intel’s various customer segments ranging from developers to consumers, and IT decision makers/buyers at large corporations. The famed bunny people ( so named after the clean suits worn in the fabs) made Intel iconic. The Web  business and marketing strategies via Intel.com and online advertising helped to drive e-commerce and how people engage with the Internet.

We succeeded making something extremely technical and complicated to understand fun and accessible. See the fun we have with Homer Simpson commercial.

Intel’s business performance is rewarded handsomely for its strong execution in connecting with customers.

Peter Klinge was a partner with the Euro RSCG DSW Partners for several years and was privileged to be a leader a team for Intel’s web strategy.

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