Is Internet Explorer making a comeback?

There was a time when Internet Explorer was the browser of choice (or, of "no choice" if you take into consideration the anti-competition lawsuits Microsoft faced).

Either way, Internet Explorer's market share has been consistently dropping in the past 4 years. From where it was the #1 browser of choice in 2009, to this current state of affairs in 2013:

Internet Explorer's Comeback

That doesn't mean IE have given up on catching up with Google Chrome or Firefox. In fact, they've been on a serious marketing campaign to gain public support, by trying to rejuvenate their brand image, depicting IE as an "alternative" to the monopoly of Google.

Where Apple and Google have created an air of sophistication and intrigue around their products (think Google Glass or the latest generation of iPad/iPhones), it seems Microsoft is targeting a younger and more "vibrant" audience.

Perhaps this is resignation that they have lost the current user-market, and are now focusing on the up-and-coming generation of browser users.

For example, here's a fun little character called "Eddie the Inventor" that Internet Explorer UK enlisted social agency Jam to create:

And more recently, IE have launched an awesome looking anime clip depicting a Japanese-style female mascot battling evil robots.

I expect something like this to perform really well on the social web, and further raise awareness of how funky IE can actually be.

Will Internet Explorer's marketing strategy work?

Quite possibly. 

As a lover of anime and quirky viral vids, I like what Internet Explorer is trying to do.

But I do wonder whether they are getting ahead of themselves by launching these viral marketing campaigns now.

I believe that marketing a product will always fall flat if you don't back up all your claims with an amazing and exciting user experience.

Is the current IE offering as dazzling and trendy as the aforementioned campaigns? Nope.

And also, I think focusing on the marketing of IE glosses over or ignores the people who really have a problem with the browser: Developers.

Rather than beginning with a big, fancy viral strategy - I think it would have made more sense to focus on the fundamentals, and build upwards from there.

Yes, disgruntled developers don't have the same clout and YouTube views as a social media agency. But if their apps and websites don't run in your browser, then that makes winning over the mass market pretty tricky.

Maybe Internet Explorer is working on creating an awesome product that will blow Chrome out of the water, but I haven't heard anything about it.

So rather than intergalactic robots shooting lasers across a Tokyo skyline, perhaps the focus should be on videos like this: