Marketing Apple: Secrets of the World's Best Marketing Machine

iPocalypse: The Aftermath!

So much has been written already about the devastating blow to Apple's PR machine following the huge nightmare of the iPhone 3G launch.  One reader pointed out Seth Godin's great perspective on this and I've had many people contact me to discuss what marketers can learn from it.  I've decided to do a free, live webinar next week to talk about Apple's marketing, the 5 secrets they have used to become the world's best marketing machine and their recent missteps. 

 

To join this session, simply click here at 11 am EDT next Tuesday, July 22nd.  Through the magic of Dimdim Web Meeting you will be able to see, hear and chat with me and others right in your web browser - no install required.  I'll walk through some Keynote slides I've prepared related to my eBook and then we can have a frank and open discussion about Apple's marketing prowess.  I hope this new medium will afford us a chance to discuss - together - some of the issues that impact all of us and how we can learn from it.  See you (literally) there!

P.S. If any Apple marketers want to join, please let me know and we'll be sure to give you a chance to respond - LIVE!

 

iPhone Fever? (or iBola Virus is spreading!)

Remember when having a fever was a bad thing?  Today, though, its all about how quickly someone can get pictures of their new iPhone 3G on Engadget or do a fast unboxing to share their enthusiasm or excitement with the world. 

One of my "5 Secrets" is this: Empower Early Adopters.  Apple used to do this by providing stickers in their product boxes (they still do!) and so their most loyal evangelists would slap them on the side of everything they own (they still do!).  Some even tattoo themselves with the Apple logo (they still do!)  What is amazing to me is how Apple benefits even more from our web 2.0 world where in an instant a fan can post a photo, image, or link to something they are truly excited about.  That then generates even more interest and excitement as it widens dramatically Apple's reach and appeal.  This "second ring" of enthusiasm draws in less technically savvy people who purchase - not on speeds and feeds - but on being part of something bigger and more relevant.  Many people who now own an iPhone didn't "need" an iPhone.  They wanted to be part of the iPhone community.  Same lesson learned from the iPod phenomenon.

Any marketer can learn from the amazing story that is unfolding around Apple.  Empower your early adopters and they will help you change the world.

UPDATE: Witness in real time what happens when you mess up - your early adopters can turn on you.  Today is NOT a good day for Apple - iPhone activations AND upgrades to 2.0 are bricking people's phones (mine included)  Let's see how Apple's spin control spins up.

UPDATE: 5:20 PM.  My iphone finally started working.  But don't get me started about MobileMe...

Apple's Successor

So I've been asked about 50 times since Steve took the stage at the Developer's Conference - is Steve Jobs sick?  This has become a big deal - if he's not well, who will carry the flame at Apple?  I think Steve is fine, BTW, and I asked this question before on my April fools blog post, and now Fortune Magazine has done a pretty good review of the possible insiders in line for such a post.  From a marketing standpoint, Apple knows it has impossible shoes to fill and silence on that front is the best response. 

I want to give credit to Steve for personally saving Apple in 1997 (by firing most of the Apple Board, focusing on better marketing, demanding people's best efforts, and creating better products) Recognize though that those efforts (and others) have now built Apple into an incredibly healthy company that can weather a transition to a new CEO.   The now 11 year-old culture that Steve built is ready to thrive with or without him.  That said, I think the next CEO should share the same first name as Jobs and Wozniak and so I throw my hat in the ring.

UPDATE: June 26th.  Investor's Business Daily had another take on the above story today.  I agree with them that a team is needed to replace Steve.  It's rare to find someone who is visionary, a true leader and can execute.

Secrets of iPhone 2, MacBook Touch and Air.

I know I promised my readers some Apple secrets in my May blogs. Trust me, I have a ton about Apple marketing that I will get around to. (I promise!) But first I wanted to finish my discussion on what I believe is the real goal (and the secret) of the MacBook Air and the iPhone.

First consider this: the iPhone has more in common with a computer than a cell phone. It has a full OS, a modern touchscreen interface with soft keypad, it docks with other computers and it is software upgradeable. When was the last time you upgraded your other cell phone?

Now consider the current MacBook Air. Sure it's the thinnest laptop in the world. But it has limited network connectivity - if you aren't near an open WiFi, it's an island. And don't get me started on DVD playback.

So what do you get when you cross an always connected communication device (like an iPhone 3G) with a super thin computer like a MacBook Air? Simple. You get the MacBook Touch (or here's a longshot - the iMac Air). A real computer connected to the web 24x7 with a touch interface sans keyboard. Throw in the new MobileMe (.Mac replacement) and you can get your tunes, photos, movies over the air wherever you are. (The iMac killed the floppy drive - perhaps this new tablet will kill the DVD.) And we're going to see this sooner than most people think. But what does this prediction have to do with Apple marketing?

Well it seems to me that the MacBook Air was a dress rehearsal for building and field testing a superthin computer and learning on the backs of early adopters. The iPhone was the field test for a light, touch mobile device (actually the first phone beta test was the original Motorola/iTunes RoKR) where programmability was bolted on a year later. Together they gave Apple's designers and product managers a real understanding of what makes a hit product.

This is Apple's new way of product development, which they learned watching Microsoft push out flawed products then doggedly continuing to improve them until they were finally good enough to nearly kill Apple.
Today, pay careful attention to how Apple continues to learn, tweak, improve and then repeat until we get Apple products that seem like they were always intended that way from the start. It's a very clever corollary to Steve's insistence that most people could never have dreamt up the iPod or the iPhone or the Mac UI.

Apple and loving customers

This is a great post today from Inside CRM discussing how Apple has built an ongoing relationship with its customers. One thing easy to overlook, and a key but relatively hidden fact of Apple's ongoing and dramatic resurgence, is how well they relate to their customers and vice versa.

Case in point. For years Apple has been trying to sell Macs alongside PCs at Best Buys and CompUSAs (RIP) These efforts have largely failed because they were indirectly reaching their customers. The salesperson had to learn about selling both Macs and PCs and were often motivated by spiffs to move non-Apple products. Consequently, the sales rep could not demonstrate the same level of enthusiasm for Apple's products as Apple could.

It wasn't until Apple really focused on its online properties that direct sales to consumers took off. After learning how to present a clear, consistent message they opened their own stores and essentially copied this museum-like experience into a hands-on retail presence. Hiring their own sales ambassadors and controlling the entire shopping experience has really paid off, and Apple Stores are now a model that other consumer goods manufacturers are just beginning to copy. Add their mastery of word of mouth and traditional marketing, a keen focus on surprising and delighting customers, and you have Apple-style success.

The bottom line: Apple doesn't just reach its customers. Apple embraces them. And their loving customers hug right back.

Are iPod ads now part of pop culture?

As I mentioned before, I'm presently in LA and will be driving back up to San Francisco this weekend before going home on Monday. (sorry family) It made me think of the 5 hour drive and how many billboards I've seen so far in California of iPod ads.

Apple's marketing for iPods has been remarkably consistent. A single figure, in silhouette against a vibrant background with those iconic white headphones easily recognizable (more so, than say the model of iPod the figure is using.) In the talks I've given around the world, I've shared Flickr and other photographs taken by fans of Apple's outdoor advertising. I'm amazed how many photographs people take of the ads used in Shanghai to London to Berlin to Boston and how they are identical.

For more than 3 years now, Apple has stuck with this campaign and has - in effect - created an emotional response in the viewer on par with say the Coke or Starbucks logo. You see those iPod ads, and if you are a customer, you take some small sense of ownership knowing you are one of those hip, energetic individuals in that billboard. That shadow is you.

Product placement, iTunes and American Idol

Did you see American Idol last night? I was watching with my sons and I couldn't believe the 5 minute "commercial" for iTunes, iPods and iPhones that Apple pulled off about 10 minutes into the show.

If you saw it, please post your comments here. Is this borderline pandering? Or is this just super-good marketing that is making me (and other marketers) jealous of how far Apple can go to spread its gospel.

A Black Eye for Apple

On first blush, this blog post looks like bad PR for our Cupertino friends.  But in case you missed this story, TV personality Charlie Rose ended up with a real black eye while saving his new MacBook Air instead of protecting his body.  Now that's great PR!

I only have one thing to say.  I don't think we'll ever see a story about someone saving their Dell.

Apple's wicked good product placement

Apple is the master of free product placement.  How many shows or movies have you seen with an Apple product onscreen?  When I used to work at Apple we had a full-time person (Hollywood@apple.com) whose sole job was to get Apple product placed on primetime and Hollywood productions.  For free. The only stipulation was that Apple product could not be used for negative gains - if you notice, the Mac is often used by the hero.

Imagine how much such exposure would cost, even if you could pay for it (remember, most DVR users don't ever see the commercials.)  Today, marketers should investigate free product placement to showcase their products if possible, and yes, I recently asked Dimdim's PR firm to explore this option for our free web meeting product.  [Warning - blatant plug coming: If any TV or film exec is reading this, we'd be happy to provide our software which lets people chat, share webcams, and do VoIP calls from any browser with no software to install for your show - for free.  Just contact me.]

With the recent American Idol deal, now many of the pre-song clips show those young people using iPods and iPhones - implicitly slipping a message to millions of viewers. More good marketing mojo.

Remember what computer Jeff Goldblum used to save the world in Independence Day?    

Remember what computer Tom Cruise used in Mission Impossible?

I'm interested in hearing from you on recent Apple sightings on TV or film.  Seen any good Apples lately?

Another Apple uPod

I spoke before about Apple's tendency to under promise and over deliver, or "uPod" regarding its business outlook.  Well I had just had an experience with an overlooked, but amazingly powerful feature that, to the best of my knowledge, Apple has never hyped or even marketed at all.

That feature is the "Migration Assistant."  Here was my dilemma.  I was having lots of issues with my personal MacBook Pro and it was slowing down my productivity big time.   So my company ordered me a new one last week and it was delivered this Monday.  But I've been so busy I could not find the time to switch over, so I stuck with my unreliable MacBook simply because it had all my stuff in it.

During one of my frequent reboots I remembered the Migration Assistant.  (I've never used it before because I'm one of those old-school techies who likes to build his hard drive one install at a time)  Basically, all I had to do was reboot my old Mac into Firewire disk mode (try that MacBook Air!) and connect a Firewire cable to my new Mac.  A few clicks (and a few hours) later, and my new MacBook was a carbon copy of my old one.

I was amazed!  Every file, document, email, iPhoto, iTune, even the arrangement of icons on my dock and my desktop was preserved.  It is the most amazing feeling to pick up a brand new computer and hit the ground running with everything where it should be in just a few hours.  Such a feat usually takes about a week.

Clearly this isn't the coolest feature around, but perhaps the most practical when trying to get people to buy a new Mac.  I think Apple should invest in a PC vs Mac commercial where Justin speaks to this feature since there are lots of people like me who stick with their old computers for fear of the hard work of migrating.  Have you ever used the Migration Assistant?

2/8/08 Update: AppleInsider describes the challenge for MacBook Air and Migration Assistant, as does MacNN.