Presentation-Secrets-Of-Steve-Jobs
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122 DELIVER THE EXPERIENCE<br />
Some people will look at the language in this table and say<br />
<strong>Jobs</strong> is a master of hype. Well, hype is hype only if there’s no<br />
“there” there. It would be hard to argue with <strong>Jobs</strong> that the<br />
Macintosh (the first easy-to-use computer with a graphical interface<br />
and mouse) wasn’t “insanely great” or that products like<br />
the MacBook Air aren’t “stunningly” thin.<br />
<strong>Jobs</strong> isn’t a hype-master as much as he’s the master of the<br />
catchphrase. The folks at Apple think long and hard about the<br />
words used to describe a product. Language is intended to stir up<br />
excitement and create a “must-have” experience for Apple’s customers.<br />
There’s nothing wrong with that. Keep in mind that the<br />
majority of business language is gobbledygook—dull, abstract,<br />
and meaningless. <strong>Steve</strong> <strong>Jobs</strong> is anything but dull. Inject some<br />
zip into your words.<br />
It’s Like This . . .<br />
Another way to add zip to your language is to create analogies,<br />
comparing an idea or a product to a concept or product familiar to<br />
your audience. When <strong>Steve</strong> <strong>Jobs</strong> shakes up a market category with<br />
the introduction of an entirely new product, he goes out of his way<br />
to compare the product to something that is widely understood,<br />
commonly used, and well known. Here are some examples:<br />
» ”Apple TV is like a DVD player for the twenty-first century”<br />
(Introduction of Apple TV, January 9, 2007)<br />
» ”iPod Shuffle is smaller and lighter than a pack of gum”<br />
(Introduction of iPod Shuffle, January 2005)<br />
» ”iPod is the size of a deck of cards” (Introduction of iPod,<br />
October 2001)<br />
When you find an analogy that works, stick with it. The more<br />
you repeat it, the more likely your customers are to remember it.<br />
If you do a Google search for articles about the products just<br />
mentioned, you will find thousands of links with the exact<br />
comparisons that <strong>Jobs</strong> himself used. Following are the three