Marketing experts claim it’s easier than ever to market your business. So, why is it so confusing? I address that question and discuss the best marketing solutions to grow your business now and in the months to come.
Back in November, our own personal Aleister Crowley of Cult of Mac, Leander, sat down and interviewed Ken Segall, the originator of the iMac name. According to Segall, Steve Jobs recognized he was “betting the company on the machine and so it needed a great name.” The only problem: the name Jobs had his heart set on was so bad it would “curdle your blood.” The original product name? MacMan, says Gizmodo.
Luckily, at the end of the day, iMac won out… but it wasn’t because Jobs let himself be swayed, according to Gizmodo’s sources, but rather because the name was already trademarked by a company called MidiMan, who had released a serial-to-MIDI adapter under that brand name. Apple made an offer; Midiman declined; Steve Jobs fumed and Segall got his way.
MacMan is, indeed, a blood-curdling name for a computer, but you can see the method in Jobs’ madness: bulbous and colorful, there is something about the original iMac’s design that channels the bouncing fruits of the famous 8-bit ghost gobbler… but it’s a name that would need to be abandoned as soon as the design was changed.
It’s interesting how different the entire Mac brand could be now if not for the serendipity of Jobs’ initial whim being thwarted. The lower case ‘i’ has transcendeded its initial meaning — Internet — and become a brand in its own right: an elegant prefix synonymous with iconic Apple product design.
– John Brownlee (Jan. 14, 2010)
Great copy. Great product. Great ad for iPad2.
I recently met Nick Nanton at a conference. He makes some great points.
This revealing video will have you on your ass.
(from Mashable)
Not only did Apple surpass Microsoft in market capitalization to become the second most valuable U.S. company in 2010, it also superseded Google to become the most valuable consumer-facing brand in the world, according to a study published by global research agency Millward Brown.
Apple’s brand value jumped 84% to $153.3 billion, driven largely by the company’s success with the iPad and iPhone 4, the study found. Google’s brand declined 2% to $111.5 billion. IBM, McDonald’s and Microsoft rounded out the top five.
With a 246% increase in brand value to $19.1 billion — the greatest leap of any company in the survey — Facebook made its debut on the top 100 chart at number 35. Baidu, the leading search engine in China, was the second-fastest climber at 141%, placing it at number 29.
Other notable findings: Amazon (14) overtook Walmart (15) to become the most valuable retail brand in the world at $37.6 billion; Toyota once again became the most valuable car brand; and 12 of the top 100 brands in 2010 came from China.
Brands’ values were determined by a mix of factors, including future earnings (discounted to their present-day values) and in-depth consumer surveys, Millward Brown says. For further information, see the full report.
Donald Trump had hardly finished his self-congratulation on the Obama birth issue when his own credibility was suddenly, and forcefully, attacked.
It began at the White House Dinner when Obama roasted Trump with surprising and well-delivered wit. The verbal smackdown then went viral on YouTube, national talk shows, and news broadcasts. The president concluded his comic lashing with a pointed comment about there being “more serious issues” to focus on. 24-hours later that would prove to be the understatement of the year. With poetic irony, Obama’s dramatic announcement preempted the final minutes of Trump’s Celebrity Apprentice.
Since then, Trump has become the butt of Facebook and Twitter jabs, and late night jokes including one from David Letterman which prompted Trump to cancel his May 18th appearance. When The Donald cancels an appearance on a national talk show like Letterman, you know he’s in retreat mode.
In trying to raise his political profile via public attacks on Obama, Trump seems to have grabbed the baton from a quickly fading Sarah Palin. Like Palin, Trump is no stranger to public criticism and comedic jabs. Some may even argue that he thrives on it. However, the multiple hits that the Trump brand suffered this weekend will definitely cause some re-consideration of his presidential bid. And, at least in the short term, it may even get him to shut up.
Humor is one of the best ways to sell a product. Obama just proved it’s also one of the best ways to elevate oneself over an opponent (watch this video from the White House Correspondents’ Dinner).
Note: Based on Trump’s hijinks, I think the king of personal branding has just branded himself as the new Sarah Palin.
Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.
