Prudential Center windows open on Microsoft shop

More than 1 billion people worldwide use Microsoft products, but can the software giant turn these customers into a community?

The company is trying, and the next stop on its quest is Boston, where it opens its 23rd retail outpost today at the Shops at Prudential Center.

The storefront is wide open, with no doors or windows. A series of display screens form an interactive video banner that borders the 2,400-square-foot shop, which features a community area for meetings and classes, Xbox gaming consoles, a hub for small and medium-size business outreach and a help desk.

Among 55 staffers at the store, two are designated for training ? not for the customers, but for the employees. Regional marketing manager Peter Harrington said employees at the store will have deep knowledge of all Microsoft products.

?We want to be here for the Microsoft customer,? Harrington told the Herald. ?We know the competition is out there. ... Our end goal is to make sure nobody has to wait.?

A program for part-time workers in college allows them to apply for a transfer to a corporate office. ?Careers can launch from the Microsoft store,? Harrington said.

Analyst Roger Kay of Wayland-based Endpoint Technologies Associates said much of the success of the store depends on how popular its upcoming Surface tablet becomes with consumers.

?If they?re riding a real wave, they can get up on their board,? he said. ?If not, they can fade into the background.?

It?s a particularly tricky task for Microsoft, because when the Surface debuts in the fall, it will also be selling competitors? Windows 8 tablets in the store as well.

?The first time somebody says ?I want X? and they can?t find it here, it?s harder to bring them back,? said Jonathan Adashek, general manager of strategy and communications for Microsoft?s sales, marketing and service group. ?We can?t afford to lose them.?

Among the highlights customers will find:

? Custom-made skins for your Xbox console and controller, PC and phone, with any image or picture you want for $15 to $30.

? Students with a valid school ID will get a free Xbox with any purchase of $699 or more. Celtics [team stats] star Paul Pierce [stats] is also scheduled to drop by tonight at 6 to Kinect with customers.

? A section equipped with tables, chairs and a movie-size touchscreen monitor that will allow the store to host gaming tournaments and user groups.

?We?re using our stores to build relationships with customers one customer at a time,? Adashek said. ?Putting a new public face on a company that, I think, for many years we didn?t have.?

Source: http://www.bostonherald.com/jobfind/news/technology/view.bg?articleid=1061155120&srvc=rss

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