schneiderism

Digital Arts had a great post yesterday that speculates, and probably very accurately, on the secrets to the sustained success of Apple in the fiercely competitive consumer electronics category. There is no denying that Apple has honed an approach to engaging the consumer that no other company can claim. Beyond creating loyal customers, Apple creates passionate adherents. Why? How? The article breaks it down into eight secrets:

Secret 1 - Engineering supports design — no exceptions

Typically, design enters the strategic momentum behind an idea at precisely the wrong time, and that is once the idea has been defined by real world constraints in the wrong direction… from the concept to the audience. Success comes out of designing from the audience to the concept. Apple understands that the interaction is the design, and that designers need to drive the strategy for an idea.

Secret 2 - Fewer is better

Apple clearly understands the dangers of product oversegmentation. They work to create the fewest number of products with the broadest possible appeal. This works incredibly well.

Secret 3 - The experience is the product

See Secret 1. But even beyond crafting the experience of using their products, Apple has integrated the experience of interacting with their packaging, and added drama to the unboxing of a new product. Websites are dedicated to this phenomenon alone, and it takes product fetishism to an entirely new level. While competitors look at packaging as necessary, Apple sees it as another incredible opportunity to connect with their audience. This extends to the physical environment of the Apple Stores, and to the Apple website. The experience is consistent.

Secret 4 - The product is the product

As companies become successful, they generally become bigger. At some point, feeding the machine becomes the product that the executives are selling. Look at Microsoft as an example. Apple maintains a relentless focus on their products, on what they do, and everything else is secondary and useless to their audience.

Secret 5 - You can’t please everyone, so please people with good taste

I cannot say this any better… from the post:

“Targeting the low end cheapens the brand. Going after the ‘average’ consumer shrinks margins. Only the high end creates the pixie-dust intangible quality of buzz, brand affinity and, ultimately, brand loyalty, which can be converted into higher margins and higher sales.”

Secret 6 - Leave the past behind

You are either a company focused on innovation and invention, or on supporting legacy ideas, systems and technologies. You cannot do both and keep your customers.

Secret 7 - Product names are important. Really important

A name supports the identity, which supports the overall brand. It gives people something immediate to identify with, something to reference. It is recognizable. A series of letters and numbers is confusing, not memorable, and not user friendly.

Secret 8 - Group affiliation is the driver

This is the biggest, baddest secret of the eight. Basically, people want to belong and they want to identify with things that make them feel secure, or in some cases superior. Apple has created this by maintaining a cohesive “fan-base” around their products and technologies. I pointed this out in my post on Steve Jobs… but how many company CEO’s launch their products to the world? How many do it 2-3 times per year? How many CEO’s command standing-room-only attendance at every event announcing these new products?

The answer is easy… One company. One CEO.

The really compelling thing is how many of these concepts, these secrets, translate directly to just about any creative enterprise, and how concrete an example and reminder this is for all of us. I especially take to heart Secret 5, about pleasing people with good taste. I take this to mean choose your customers, the audience for what you do, and choose them very carefully. Say no to the business that does not move your company forward that you are not passionate about doing. It is better to restructure your company around a solid vision, and around the customers you want to serve than to compromise. This helps you to break the commodification cycle that currently plagues so many professional services creative companies.