Steve Jobs has been quoted many times on many topics. One of his most interesting analyses was regarding Microsoft
He said Microsoft (which at the time was many multiples the scale and value of Apple) might be very successful, but it had no taste. He went on to say what he meant by that was in a big way, it lacked the understanding of how the product was going to be used and how it would be landing in the culture of the day. Ultimately, he concluded, they will lose because they are producing product that is not admirable.
For a long while, his theory played out. Microsoft lost while Apple gained – in scale and market capitalisation. Year after year, Microsoft missed what Android became, leaving a $400bn product opportunity to Google. Indeed, it is only by finding cultural relevance and investing in a whole new area, in this case Artificial Intelligence (AI), that Microsoft regained its former position as one of the most valuable corporations.
So, for Steve Jobs, cultural relevance was not just a marketing idea, it was a product necessity. Yet for so many others out there, cultural relevance seems to be seen as an ‘opt in’ notion. You know the thing, ”once we have the product, distribution, pricing, and the company structure right, we can see if we have time to get the marketing” to be a bit more culturally on song. I have even had conversations with those who help companies find agencies through search exercises and pitches, who will say that many of their clients are not really sure why cultural relevance is important to their category anyway.
Let’s take a look at that for a moment.
Putting aside that Steve was not wrong about much, I often think that when you are arguing for something, the smartest way to look at it is to consider how things would look in its absence. Meaning that you have a product that you are very proud of, but your kids don’t even understand why they would need it, nor what it is for. Culturally they simply don’t get it. A problem, I think you would agree.
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