The right man for the JOB: How this businessman established the reputation of one of the giants in the tech industry!

Monday: MicroBusiness and Marketing Marvels FROM THE DESK OF MILES EVERSON: The historic “1984” commercial introduced the Macintosh PC to the world. The “Get A Mac” campaign used famous TV personalities to personify computers. In these commercials and marketing campaigns, Apple seems to always be ahead in terms of attracting the attention of consumers. But all these things wouldn’t have happened if not for the creative genius of the tech giant’s founder, Steve Jobs! Jobs pushed the limits of technology from just function to beautiful form. Aside from that, he marketed and framed Apple in such a way that people would see it as one of the top brands in the world. Read on to know more about Jobs’ contributions to the business, marketing, and communications sectors, especially in terms of Apple’s branding. CEO, MBO Partners Chairman of the Advisory Board, The I Institute

The right man for the JOB: How this businessman established the reputation of one of the giants in the tech industry! Steve Jobs: Founder of Apple Inc. On several occasions, Steve Jobs stressed, “I never wanted to be a businessman, because all the businessmen I knew didn’t want to be like. As every day passes, the work 50 people are doing here is going to send a giant ripple through the universe.” These words motivated his team of developers and instilled in them the idea that they weren’t just working for any old company, but that they were part of a greater mission. Microsoft’s founder, Bill Gates, ended up as one of Jobs’ fiercest rivals… although they collaborated on some tasks for a few years. Based on Gates’ observation about Jobs, “Steve was in ultimate pied piper mode, proclaiming how the Mac will change the world and overworking people like mad, with incredible tensions and complex personal relationships.” Sending a Giant Ripple Through the Universe Jobs was persistent in his stance when it came to inventing the future through Apple. In fact, “make a dent in the universe” was one of his favorite go-to formulations. For Jobs, the high point of 1984 was the launch of the Macintosh computer, which came with a striking TV commercial. In this ad, the Macintosh was not advertised as a new, attractive product but as a heroic warrior in the battle between good (Apple and its customers) and evil (IBM). The commercial featured a young, rebellious woman on the run and throwing a sledgehammer at a big screen that broadcasts a mind-controlling speech from “Big Brother.” Here, we can see that Jobs styled his new computer and buyers as resistance warriors, standing in the way of the big evil corporation’s plan for world domination and total mind control. When Jobs returned to Apple in 1997, the company was in a dire situation. So, before he had any new, attractive products to launch in the market, his first action was to reaffirm his company’s brand image through a campaign that didn’t promote a specific product, but a philosophy. This showed how strongly Jobs believed in the power of marketing and PR. The theme of the campaign was “Think Different,” which is now Apple’s tagline, and every ad printed for the campaign featured a black and white portrait of some of the most noteworthy historical figures in the world such as: Albert Einstein Mahatma Gandhi John Lennon’ Bob Dylan Pablo Picasso The Dalai Lama Thomas Edison Charlie Chaplin Martin Luther King These people were Jobs’ role models―creative mavericks who had the courage to swim against the current. Through this campaign, Jobs referred to his brand in the same breath as these great historical figures, freedom fighters, and artists Brent Schlender, a journalist who had accompanied Jobs and Gates for many years, proposed an article about Jobs for the Fortune magazine where he said, “Throughout his life, Steve had a keen sense of the tactical value of press coverage. In fact, he was more adept at managing the press than any other businessman alive.” Personally, if there’s one thing that I admire most about Jobs, it’s when he said this: “Our customers want to know who Apple is and what it is that we stand for.” I like it when he said that statement because it showed that by turning the company’s focus inside out, he was able to define the essence of what was required to succeed in any form of communication, be it marketing, advertising, or selling. Talk about your customers, readers, and listeners. An effective way to penetrate your target market’s perception is to address their primary interests through your brand’s features and benefits. Don’t just sell a product. Sell a good philosophy about your brand! A product may be easily replaced, but your philosophy will remain the same in your target market’s minds. Now, with a market cap of almost 3 billion dollars, Apple has definitely given its customers what they want. Thanks to Jobs’ creative marketing efforts, Apple is able to address customers demands and preferences and turn its communications strategy inside out. Hope you’ve found this week’s insights interesting and helpful. Follow us on LinkedIn. Stay tuned for next Monday’s MicroBusiness Marvels! This “rebel rock broadcaster” pioneered the idea of pirate radio stations, particularly Radio Caroline in the UK during the 1960s. Learn more about Ronan O’Rahilly and how he challenged the radio station monopoly in the 1960’s on next week’s MicroBusiness and Marketing Marvels!