Sep
11
Apple: Keeping Things Simple
September 11, 2006
Thousands of blogs and news sites are trying to guess what Steve Jobs will unveil at the Apple’s (AAPL) Special Press Event in San Francisco tomorrow.
A new wide screen video iPod… a movie download service to complement the new iPod… the new iPhone… whatever it is, one thing for sure, Apple will not disappoint.
Apple can’t disappoint. Since the introduction of the iMac, Apple has earned a reputation for attractive designs and powerful branding and buzz. This finely, tuned Marketing machine knows that they can’t hold an event, unless it’s an EVENT.
They’re able to create frenzy by sending out a simple invitation that has their logo and two words “It’s Showtime”. Who else could create a buzz with such a simple message?
But hasn’t that been the attraction of Apple all along; Simple products that work well.
Steve Jobs has always emphasized the importance of design, and focused on creating products that are simple to operate and have simple, aesthetic appeal. The iMac and the iPod (with iTunes), are the two products that put Apple back on the map and both fit this criteria.
Even the Apple logo, a picture of an Apple with a bite taken out of it… is simple.
When marketing the iPod, Apple went the simple route. Silhouettes of people dancing to music got the iPod message across in all languages since no words were necessary. And the print campaign didn’t need to have anything more than the silhouette, the Apple logo, and the word “iPod”.
Though Steve Job’s is the master of creating simple, beautiful products… figuring out what consumers want is not always that simple. But Jobs seems to have that figured out as well.
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1 Comment so far
Simplicity. Very easy to talk about and seemingly impossible for a lot of companies to implement. You have to continually beat down the concept and design to less and less.
It’s a lot of work for people who have often been rewarded for quantity over quality or, in this industry example, thinking like an MBA instead of an end-user.
You’re dead on about Jobs ability to consistently produce simple, beautiful products.
You see the same in his presentations. Compare his slides to those of others in his field. He often just has a word or two, or a simple image on the screen as he talks.
I’ve seen some Bill Gates presentations where the screen is jam-packed with clip art and verbiage, barely readable on a 40 foot screen, trying to describe Media Center or Vista.
It’s a lesson that few take the time to learn.