I was thinking about Apple and how crazy the lines were last night. There is just so much to learn from a company like Apple. You can apply some key principles to your business, church and ever your personal life.
1. They constantly innovate: It’s a never ending stream of new gadgets. It seems like they push the envelope every time. How does a computer company capture the music industry? How does a computer company create an amazing cell phone? It’s amazing. Who would have thought the nano would eventually have video?
2. Simplicity: I love how they make complicated technology simple. They create products for us normal tech consumers. Apple makes me feel better, more savvy. I don’t have time or energy to learn complicated technology.
3. Price: I know some say Apple is expensive. I just don’t think so. The iPhone was $600 when it came out. My Treo 650 was $650. Maybe they are a bit more expensive, but not to the point where it’s considered extreme. My 4-5 year old iBook is still running great. It cost me $1100. The battery life sucks and I had to replace the hard-drive once. Other then that it still works great.
4. Customer Service: There is no doubt Apple is going to struggle in this area. When companies grow so quickly it’s bound to happen. My one main issue with my Apple products has been the battery life. I’ve owned Apple products for 5 years and I’ve never called customer service. But I do know plenty of people who had some lame issues. But every time these people seem very happy with Apple’s customer service. Not that it’s perfect… I think this may be Apple’s biggest issue as they continue to grow. How can they keep their loyal fan base and still expand as a company. The haters will be there for sure.
5. Risk: These cats are brave…They just don’t rest on their laurels. They seem to constantly be taking risk (iPhone & iPod). Just because something is working does not mean they won’t change and improve on that product. (think iPod mini or whatever it was called) They have no problem shelving a product and making it better.
6. Buzz: I think this is what separates Apple from it’s competitors. Everything they do is talked about. Expectations are so high and the buzz is so strong. What other company can say that? Even Apple haters would have to admit that. They create so much momentum. I think Apple does a great job of creating a shared experience. I follow blogs, live webcast and multiple websites in hopes of the next best thing. Last night I spoke to several people about Leopard. We were all excited and asking questions. I know Apple is not perfect…I know Apple haters will do their best to try and combat these points. But the reality is somewhat in the facts. We all have a lot to learn from this great company.
Now I will give props to Nussbaum and Ashdown for convincing me to switch…Good friends for sure.
Amen and amen!
I have been thinking about writing a blog post called Apple Church or iChurch or something like that, because there are a lot of lessons that we could take away from Apple. I think the number one thing is this: SIMPLICITY.
Good post.