Product and marketing lessons from Apple
The Boston Globe’s Scott Kirsner recently asked marketers, techies and product developers what they’ve learned over the years from Apple and Steve Jobs.
These were my answers.
Never underestimate the power of beautiful design
We all buy Apple products as much for how they look as for what they do. Apple has taught us all that aesthetics can actually define a brand and inspire pure, raw desire.
What you leave out is as important as what you put in
Too many products overwhelm customers with feature overload simply because it’s technically feasible. Apple’s restraint is part of what make its products so user friendly. Lots of products, from cameras, to video cameras, to wrist watches could learn this lesson.
Vision has to come from the top
Apple’s advertising and messages are clear, consistent and reinforce a vision because they start with Steve Jobs. Too many publicly held companies run by finance types have no marketing vision whatsoever. Mid-level management and advertising agencies try to fill the gap and usually fail, depending too much on market research and falling victim to either group think or compromise.
The product is the marketing
With Apple,you don’t have to make up stories that give meaning to the product. You simply have to tell the story of the product. Think the most recent iPhone ads. More brands should learn that a great story can’t make up for a mediocre product.
The art of anticipation
Is there a company or marketer any better at building buzz, speculation and even demand in advance of a product ever appearing? That is the result of a track record, category-defining products, customers who themselves become evangelists and Apple’s own restraint. And when they leak information to friendly reporters, they don’t use email; phone call only so there’s never a trail.
The science of retailing
There’s not an analyst in the country who thought Apple would succeed at retail. Yet by turning the store into a mecca of design, a celebration of beauty, a gathering spot for the believers and a center of learning and service, Apple has re-written the rules of retail. From an outsider’s perspective it was a risky endeavor. From Apple’s viewpoint it was anything but.
You need to know your tribe
Apple knows exactly for whom it makes products — creators, learners, mavericks, free-thinkers, the crazy ones — and it has never strayed from focusing on that audience. They celebrate their community by how they speak to them (intelligently and with respect), portray them (I’m a Mac, you’re a PC), and inspire them (Think Different). As a result they have created the single most value asset you can ever have on your balance sheet: true customer loyalty.
Be a role model
There is not a marketer or ad agency in the world that doesn’t regularly refer to Apple when talking about the value of consistency, creativity, functionality, design, effectiveness, service, and, of course, advertising. They are the role model. Yet so few brands or marketers can actually replicate any of those qualities even once, never mind consistently. A reminder that a brand is every single aspect of the company: culture, people, product, design, marketing and even its community of customers.
The wisdom of one
In an age of crowdsourcing and the ease of soliciting opinions from everyone on Twitter and from a brand’s community, Apple reminds us that the wisdom of the crowd is no match for a single genius with a vision. There is no crowd, community or focus group that could design the iPhone. Find yourself a Steve Jobs, or even half of a Steve Jobs and you’re better off.
That’s what I’ve learned from Apple. What about you?
Comments
As you point out Edward, Apple is the benchmark for pretty much anything when it comes to delivering a consistent vision and brand experience. The fact that at no where along the in-store engagement and interaction with staff or customer support, as well as product satisfaction is there a breakdown. It's a pretty remarkable accomplishment for a global company of its size and with so many external employees representing your brand. (External meaning the retail end, as opposed to being within a corporate controlled environment.)
When you walk into an Apple store, you are immediately transported into this magical environment. (Niketown to some level I think does this extremely well also.) But when you really look around at each and every brand touchpoint either online or offline, the attention to detail is what I personally try to learn from and apply to my own solutions. Even if you look at how the packaging is designed to conform and hold each element, careful consideration and design was factored in.
When you have a leader who inspires from the top down and expects the unexpected. Translating that vision through every aspect of a brand, it demonstrates why they are at top of mind with everyone in every industry. That's something we can all learn from.
Yes, "The product is the marketing" - and Apple's "advertisements" are really simple product demonstrations. Without any wild claims, Apple makes respectful and relevant messaging to the same audience they know they've had for a long time. Others have joined in (like me) because the "genius" is nothing more than marketing the product based on the product's simple originality and problem-solving superiority.
Apple's products are so desirable, it's easy to overlook that they also compete on a service and operations basis. When Apple lost their way in the early 90s, you could argue that it wasn't the products that were bad, but marketing and service letting them down.
Other posters have mentioned the stores and the Genius Bars. Their army of evangelists provide similar amounts of service support through fan sites and forums. Pretty much any Apple issue other than a hardware breakdown can be solved with the search box and modicum of product understanding.
For those of us lucky enough to have worked on Apple launches, it also helps to remember that Steve Job's vision for any product comes with both a price point and a release date. Since most Apple employees and suppliers would rather not incur his wrath, that provides considerable operational focus.
There are still dud Apple products released even today (Apple TV, some of the software releases). Apple is simply better set up to recognize what will be successful and put their resources behind that. That's operations focus.
Edward, brilliant! Especially love the last point. As we put it here - consumers have power, companies (better) have genius. Love them or hate them Apple is the epitome of this philosophy.
.-= Jeremy Morrisu00c2u00b4s last blog ..Social Is Useless If You Have Nothing To Say =-.
Edward,
Loved this post. Here's what I've learned from Apple:
Ask yourself if what you are doing is insanely great. Supposedly, Steve Jobs always asks this about his stuff and you can see the results in everything Apple creates. Simple, but not easy to put into practice, because the answer is so subjective. Still, a good lesson, I think.
Jeff
.-= Jeff Shattucku00c2u00b4s last blog ..Ah spring, a perfect time of year to tell the Demon of Why Bother to go f--k himself. =-.
Jeff:
Good reminder: insanely great. Most people probably don't ask that of themselves because they can't achieve it, believe they can't achieve it, or simply aren't willing to work hard enough to achieve it. What's amazing about Steve Jobs is he both demands it and achieves it. Takes talent, commitment, sacrifice.
I partly disagree, typing this on a Mac, and I'll tell you why. There are three ways to compete -- by product focus, by customer focus, or by operations focus. Apple's strategy works superbly if your modus operandi is to be a product leader (in which case, I do agree that Apple is your role model). But many companies can choose to compete on operational efficiency (lowest cost) or customer service (doing anything the customer wants).
Here's an example: I'll bet you a steak dinner, Edward, that your agency Mullen has a customer-focused service vs. a product focus. Instead of just selling magazine print ads (a product), you develop any communication solution a client wants. If the client asks for something you don't quite do (say, oh, pricing strategy), you may stretch to build that solution and bundle it in with the communications platform. You don't design one solution, hone it, make it beautiful, and tell customers this is what they get. Why? You're competing in a different but logical manner.
So bless Apple for what they do. They've nailed one of the three ways to compete. Just don't believe that's the only one.
.-= Ben Kunzu00c2u00b4s last blog ..Why you blather about curation =-.
Ben,
I dunno, I think Apple does all three, as any successful company must do. Product, as you point out, is nailed in Apple's world, but so is customer service (Genius bar, overall experience of the store and packaging, etc) and operational excellence (yes, Apple's products cost more, but it is because they create more value, not because Apple is only average at operations).
Jeff
Of course you can compete on service and customer focus. Wasn't attempting to be exclusive; simple relating the relevant lessons we can all learn from Apple. My agency is fortunate to have Zappos as a client. Their "design" is their service. They sell other people's products. But in some regards, the service is the product, the story that you would tell, and the reason to become passionate and loyal.Though I'd be willing to guess that vision, role model, wisdom of one and some of the other attributes that define Apple would apply to them as well.
ITA "The product is the marketing." As a lifetime MAC owner, Apple makes the stuff I want to buy. Simple as that.
Apple is certainly a business and marketing role model, one often followed and copied but as you say, rarely duplicated with such success. Leadership (wisdom of one) has a lot to do with it, as does culture: the willingness to take chances, do things their own ways in spite of experts. You and Mike mentioned the retail store success, great example.
Like you I've watched them over the years, always learning from watching them do things the Apple way. FWIW.
.-= Davina K. Breweru00c2u00b4s last blog ..Confessions of a Timeshifter: Making It Work =-.
As you point out Edward, Apple is the benchmark for pretty much anything when it comes to delivering a consistent vision and brand experience. The fact that at no where along the in-store engagement and interaction with staff or customer support, as well as product satisfaction is there a breakdown. It's a pretty remarkable accomplishment for a global company of its size and with so many external employees representing your brand. (External meaning the retail end, as opposed to being within a corporate controlled environment.)
When you walk into an Apple store, you are immediately transported into this magical environment. (Niketown to some level I think does this extremely well also.) But when you really look around at each and every brand touchpoint either online or offline, the attention to detail is what I personally try to learn from and apply to my own solutions. Even if you look at how the packaging is designed to conform and hold each element, careful consideration and design was factored in.
When you have a leader who inspires from the top down and expects the unexpected. Translating that vision through every aspect of a brand, it demonstrates why they are at top of mind with everyone in every industry. That's something we can all learn from.
Yes, "The product is the marketing" - and Apple's "advertisements" are really simple product demonstrations. Without any wild claims, Apple makes respectful and relevant messaging to the same audience they know they've had for a long time. Others have joined in (like me) because the "genius" is nothing more than marketing the product based on the product's simple originality and problem-solving superiority.
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