Marketing Muse

Love Bad Science

My wife got me a really good book by Dr Ben Goldacre. His website is called badscience.net. Probably the worst thing about it is the slightly cheesy photo. But the book is FANTASTIC. It puts into plain english how statistics get misused and how easy it is to get it right as well as wrong.

This should be mandatory reading for everyone before they are allowed to buy a newspaper or watch a factual television programme. Except that stuff that is mandatory is normally dry as dust and this makes statistics fascinating, as well as giving the best description of the scientific method I have read. Where was this guy when I abandoned maths and sciences?

Just buy it and read it and never be fooled again by misrepresented probabilities.

Canadian Lettuce

Iceberg lettuce seems to be the standard for every salad that i have eaten in Canada since arriving here last week. it is white or nearly so, unless of course it is brown around the edges for having sat around too long.

I think it is popular because you can almost freeze it in the fridge and it remains equally inedible at any temperature. That's popular with restaurants, but certainly not with me.

Salads in Canada also tend to be short on other ingredients, so if you don't like iceberg lettuce you don't find much else to chew on.

The real question is....are Canadian restaurant owners smart marketers or not?

Smart. They offer a salad that no one eats and therefore isn't worth spending good money on ingredients. It does mean they have room for more profitable alternatives.

Smart. Most people say they want to eat something healthy, but aren't prepared to pay for good ingredients for the salad.

Not smart. They are missing a great way to differentiate themselves from the dull offerings of their competitors. And these days good letttuce travels as far as bad lettuce, especially in winter in Canada.

You decide.

Blurb is amazing

Trips are one of the times when you take lots of photos. So when we went to Australia with a brand new SLR (see previous posts for details) it was pretty inevitable that I would take lots of pix.

This time, in addition to trolling through and selecting from over 800 pix, I decided to create a book. I went to Blurb.com, downloaded their software and then spent more hours than I care to admit playing with laying out my photos in a book.

I just received the book this evening and I think it is fantastic. The colour in the pix is great, the quality of the paper is great, and the hardbound cover with front and back pix is AMAZING. If you want to see what the content looks like, go to http://www.blurb.com/my/store/public and preview the book.

You can of course buy it if you like, but that's not the point. If you want a great way to keep and share memories, Blurb is the business. And if what you create is good enough, you could make some money by publishing it. Real books, Great quality, Great price.

Royal Academy does it again

I do really need to learn. Miró, Calder, Giacometti, Braque: Aimé Maeght and His Artists is an interesting exhibition with too much stuff crammed into the small display space at the top of the Royal Academy. It is also an interesting look at pieces that the Maeght family have bought from their favourite artists. I have some quibbles about the way that the layout works, particularly the inability to see some lovely Miro paintings through a hugh Calder piece.

But yet again, the money grubbers at the Royal Academy have sold too many tickets for the space. The result is miserable for the audience. £10 to peer around, through and over too many people competing to see the art on display. We went at 3 pm on a Friday. Heaven only knows how many people there would be on a weekend. Enough to probably break their fire regulations. New Year's Resolution - avoid the Royal Academy like the plague. Expensive and over crowded, with too much space given over to selling stuff and not enough on displaying art and managing people movement through their galleries. Shame.

A brand that is paying attention

A little while ago, I wrote two posts on my experiences flying the A380 on Singapore Airlines. What impressed the heck out of me was that the airline clearly do monitor the brand very closely in cyberspace and took the time to respond and write a comment on the blog.

http://marketingevangelist.typepad.co.uk/my_weblog/2008/12/great-customer-service-at-singapore-airlines.html has the original article and the comment.

I was impressed with Singapore Airlines before. But now I really think they get brand management in the Web 2.0 era. What are you doing to monitor your brand in cyberspace?

ProDive do what their name says!

  As part of our trip to Australia, we did our first liveaboard dive trip with Prodive of Cairns. Three days, two nights on the Great Barrier Reef. We were a little nervous because we hadn't dived much for about 12 years, although had more than 50 dives under our belts and were PADI Advanced Open Water qualified.

The good folks at ProDive were great. Zach the captain, Chris the chef, and Lindsey the divemaster for the qualified divers on board were thoroughly polished and professional.

After the first orientation dive, we were left to our own devices, something which was a little nerve wracking for a couple of oldies who had not dived much. But their confidence in us, and the back up safety measures they took, gave us the confidence to dive on our own and manage our own dive plans.

The reef itself is definitely suffering in patches. Some magnificent coral and some that is in deep trouble. We didn't see too much that was special in terms of marine life, but definitely enjoyed the ability to cruise around the reef, secure in the knowledge that we couldn't go far from the boat.

The onboard team also managed the process of getting 32 divers in and out of the water very well, getting the novices away first to do their training, then getting the more experienced divers into the water. As a result, we want to do more diving, and will definitely do a liveaboard again. Thanks ProDive!

Tips for flying the A380

I flew to Australia and on three of the four legs was lucky enough to fly the A380. It is mostly great, but there are definitely some issues that you need to be aware of before you decide to fly the beast.

If you get to fly First, there probably is nothing better in the skies. Even Business class looked magnificent, with the seats just four abreast. They are really WIDE. Watch your head on the overhead lockers walking through. If they are open they are very dangerous to moderately tall people.

Sadly I was flying economy. Sadly, only because the A380 flies long routes, and because I don't have enough cash to pay for an upgrade myself. London to Singapore is about 13 hours, and Singapore to Sydney is about 7.  First tip - fly the upper deck if you can. The economy seating is 2-4-2 not 3-4-3 as it is downstairs. Second tip, get seats in row 81. That is the emergency exit row on the upper deck. Lots of leg room, and worth paying extra for. Only downside is that the tray tables are crap, so you feel like your lunch will slide off the table, and there is no stowage nearby so you have to get on board early to make sure you can put your luggage away. Avoid the seats behind this row. The last two rows in the centre are two seats but all of the last row is way too close to the toilets. You will never get any rest.

I really like the fact that the floor is solid, so people walking don't disturb you. Other aircraft flex so much that it is like listening to a herd of elephants every time the staff move around. The entertainment system is great when it works. On all three flights we had to have one of the units reset. Fortunately they can reset each seat individually so you don't disturb other viewers. Selection of films, tv, music is excellent. We used our own noise cancelling headsets - surely it is time that the airlines provided these as standard in all classes?

Seat pitch is pretty poor for long flights. But seat comfort and width is better than anything else I have flown. The firm seat feels hard at first, but is really good once you have been in the air a while. Noise in the aircraft is low, much better than other planes. At the rear of the aircraft you definitely feel the turbulence more, and there is a definite waggle from side to side and up and down. Queasy stomachs should aim for the middle of the plane.

Food on Singapore Airlines is good, and a variety of special meals arrived promptly and were pretty good according to my partner. I managed to get my choice of meal on each flight, so clearly they manage the choices well. Portions are not overly generous, but the timing is good. On the 132 hour trip, I did get hungry and raided the galley where the staff leave a small selection of snacks, even in economy. Ice cream made a nice dessert on two of the trips.

Staff are very tolerant of people standing and moving about the aircraft. There are stairs in economy at the rear so you can go up and downstairs. Downstairs has a little more room to stand near the toilets without disturbing other passengers.

The biggest downside is waiting for luggage. We checked in early for all flights and suffered getting our bags off last. Why can't the airlines use FIFO rather than LIFO for bags???? There are a lot of bags to move on an A380. Travel with hand luggage if you can, although fur us it was impossible on this trip.

The last thing is that we ended up on a 777-400 for one leg. That was a real let down after the A380. If you have to use a mix of planes, try and make sure that the A380 is used on the long legs - otherwise you will be really disappointed by the other aircraft!

Great customer service at Singapore Airlines

Recently I flew to Australia and back with Singapore Airlines on their new A380 for three of the four legs. Their reputation for service was upheld by all the staff we encountered, but was tested on our return from Singapore to London. This is a 13 hour flight to start with, so pretty testing for us economy fliers. But when we encountered a delay, their true qualities came through.

Singapore had maintenance issues on the first A380 so they then moved us over to the second airplane. We loaded late, and then heard from the pilot. "We have a problem with the water pressure on the aircraft and it is causing a leak in the galley that we have to fix. Parts are ordered, and it should take 30-45 minutes". About an hour later, the pilot again. "We thought we were good to go, but the seal didn't hold and we have to get another part delivered and installed." In the end we sat for over 3 hours in the airplane. What was great was the way the staff handled it. The pilot was clearly frustrated with the issue, genuinely concerned about the problem, and it came across in the way he spoke.

But it was the cabin staff who made the whole business bearable. They responded to call buttons and delivered drinks to people who requested them. Once it was clear there would be a second delay they asked and received permission to dole out the mid flight snack to people so that we had something to quiet the rumbling tummies. And they cracked open the inflight bar and gave alcoholic as well as soft drinks to passengers. They were unfailingly polite, helpful and solicitous. What a difference to the experiences I have had on other airlines. BA recently brought out a new slogan - upgrade to BA. Well I would upgrade to Singapore Airlines any time. They are worth a premium, especially when things go bad. 

Sensationalism and Responsibility

The BBC headlines and story about the recent car crash where 3 people died and one remains in critical condition makes me sad. I wouldn't normally be a big defender of the police. But we seem to be heading towards more sensationalism, more twisting of the story. Why isn't the story titled "Three die in escape attempt from police"?

Sadly it seems that our news media have learned too much from advertising copywriters. The more sensational the better. The body of the story tells us that the police pulled over a vehicle, the vehicle stopped, then it took off again. From the reported facts so far, the people in the car have no one to blame but themselves for the tragic outcome. But somehow the focus of the headline is on the Police, not the actions of the people in the car?

I'm sad about the loss of life. I'm more sad that somehow the culture is heading towards wanting to blame anyone but themselves for the messes that people get into. It's not the fault of the people who sped away, it's the fault of the police chasing them. It's not the fault of the Northern Rock business model, it's the nasty bankers who wouldn't lend to them any more. It's not the government economic policies, its the nasty short selling investors that cause a run on the pound.

Chocolate Messenger gives the wrong message

I thought it would be nice to send my Dad some chocolates for Christmas. After all, what do you get a man of 89 who gets most everything he needs in his very nice retirement residence? So I placed an order on the CHRISTMAS page of Chocolate Messenger. Even added a nice Christmas message as the site suggested.

By the time the tax and delivery charges were added, they were pretty expensive chocolates. So I was really upset to discover that my CHRISTMAS gift had been delivered on the 5th November. Do they not know when the holidays are?

Worse still, they haven't bothered to answer any of my emails. If you are going to have an online presence you better do it right. And all I wanted was for them to say OOPS! We're sorry. We have changed our procedures so we won't do that again. Perhaps the offer of delivering another box to my dad on the right day at a discount, or even free of charge?

Good thing he really liked them. Shame that Chocolate Messenger has NO chance of a repeat order.

Some things change, but the emotional resonance of photography is still powerful

  Today I have been going through some of the pictures that I have taken since getting my new digital SLR. I count as a very occasional photographer. I like the idea, and sometimes the muse strikes. And photos do make the strangest connections sometimes.

In reviewing this photo of a park bench, for example, I was taken back to my high school days and my role as team member, sub editor and then editor of the yearbook. Its something I haven't thought about for years, yet really was a formative experience.

Digital photography has changed the picture experience. First, the possibility to edit and post process the image really changes and makes plastic the experience. Second, the way that the internet has changed the publishing environment makes some really great photos and photographers available. I want searching for a couple of extra photos for a website recently and came across a real treasure trove of photos that had been taken by really talented people and made available. Third, it has changed the way people can make use of content and repackage photos for their own purposes. If you are trying to make a living out of photography, all these amateurs publishing their stuff makes it more difficult. But it also shows how much talent there is out there.

But what hasn't changed is the power of pictures to really create an emotional context for both memory of events, but also evoking something to people who weren't there. And now the publishing platforms mean that you can see all the talent out there. Some great photographers, some great emotions. I aspire to be a fraction as good some day.

Ripoff at the Royal Academy - Byzantium

  Its not often that I rant, but my experience at the Royal Academy today was a real disaster. Avoid the new show Byzantium and keep your money in your pocket.

First, the show costs £10 to get in and was grossly overcrowded on a thursday morning. There were so many people that you had to barge your way in to see many of the exhibits. It didn't help that a high proportion of people were using the obnoxious headphones, the ones where you have to have the volume up high enough to be an irritation, but not high enough that you can actually benefit from hearing what is being said. I think having the audio commentary slows down the viewing process and distracts people.

Second, the show is incredibly badly laid out and lit. Dark, dingy, diabolical are some of the words that come to mind. The flow of people around the exhibits seems very poor with lots of bottlenecks where people get stuck in corners. The cases are so big that you can't get close to what are some very small objects. Some beautiful gold coins are absolutely wasted. You can't see any details whatsoever and the poor quality englarged pictures beside them are gross. There are bits of "furniture" to evoke church or home scattered in the middle of the floor that do nothing whatsoever to enhance the experience. There is one row of household items in a long line where instead of spreading the items and their descriptions so they can be seen from both sides, you are virtually forced down one side of the line. Much of the gold and tempura paintings are dull and lifeless. In the rare examples where they are well lit, it is almost impossible to stand and look at the items without casting a shadow on them because the lights are behind you.

Third, the show just doesn't hang together. There is very little sense of chronology in the show with you jumping geography and timeperiods from room to room. Even where the items are grouped thematically it is tough to see progress or difference between the items. There are some magnificent items here, but they are lost in the clutter. And I don't really know what to say about Byzantium after having been to the show.

If there is a redeeming feature it is the last room where some fantastic pieces from the Monastery of St Catherine of Sinai sing out through the dark and the gloom. At the end of a tedious trudge through the crowds, I almost missed how gorgeous they are. If I had been one of the people on the first days who missed them because they had trouble getting to the UK I would have been severely disappointed. They are the highlight of the show. And the shock of going out into the brightly lit gift shop at the end is truly jarring. The new temple of mammon, brightly lit, with cash registers ringing, and better looking copies than the original.

Don't bother going to the show. If you want to spend money, go buy the extortionally expensive book which at least shows off the pieces in all their original colour and glory. Better still, just drop in and spend 30 minutes flicking through a copy in the gift shop. Probably less crowded, certainly better value, and a much better representation of Byzantium. The Royal Academy probably won't care. They are getting plenty of people through the door and willing to be ripped off.

Mobile OS challenges - How open minded are they?

Since we now have Android, Symbian, Limo, Apple and Microsoft Mobile operating systems all available, one of the interesting challenges for them is how do they handle acceptance for and distribution of applications that will be popular but will strain their brand values - I mean here specific apps in the area of pornography and mobile gambling.  Will they allow them to be bought and downloaded from their online stores?

These are clearly applications that people will want and will pay for. And while some societies find them socially unacceptable, they are viewed much differently in other societies.  Note - I'm not an advocate for either pornography or gambling. I just know they are potentially big applications with big audiences. One study says $1BN for mobile pornography today and another says that mobile wagering will be $23Bn by 2011.

Apple versus Symbian - the battle begins

The last two days have seen the Symbian Foundation lay down the gauntlet in the next round of wars in the mobile space. With the prize being 1 billion consumers who already use mobile phones, the stakes are high. Both organisations are fighting for the hearts and minds of software developers, because everyone realises the markets are too big for even a few companies to dominate.

There are subtle differences in approach that make the two "ecosystems" fascinating to watch. Note I didn't say Apple versus Nokia. Clearly Nokia is driving a lot of the enablers and sees it as a way to bring software innovation to their phones. They believe that harnessing independent developers will be good for them. And they claim not to want to exercise as much control as Apple, who reserve the right to refuse to distribute sofware through their online store.

For me the success of Symbian will depend on how they drive hardware prices down and enable more mass market acceptance and volume for their platform.  Apple will not likely play more than a niche role based on their past performance in other sectors. A big niche, but a niche.

Boating casualty

At the recent Southampton boat show, I spent some time on the Raymarine stand. Some of our electronics have been recently unreliable. A nice gentleman from Sea Ventures took our details and said someone would take a look within a week or so. Didn't hear back, but did find out why they haven't been in touch.

Sea Ventures have gone into receivership, meaning that one of the largest Jeanneau dealers in the world has gone. In the scheme of things, our little bit of electronics servicing wouldn't have been high on their list of things to do. I'm very sorry for all the people who will be affected.

What they missed, however, was that they could have turned a one hour service call into a very profitable sale. We were contemplating replacing all the electronics on our boat, including redoing the wiring, the antennas, the gizmos at the top of the mast, and setting up so that we could have the latest charting toys down below as well as new instruments and radio. My guess was that this would have cost between £2000 and £3000 and been a pretty good earner for Sea Ventures. It could have been done in a slow time for them, optimising their work force, because it didn't matter much to us when it happened. They could have probably sold us extra stuff we hadn't thought of. They would have made decent margins on the electronics and great margins on the labour. And they were located about 100 yards from our boat, so not far to travel.

Perhaps one of their skilled installers is looking for work?

Smart and Functional - iRobot

  Every now and then, a new product shows up that really intrigues me. Here is the iRobot Roomba. It sits in a recharger until you press the button or the preprogrammed time arrives, then zooms around cleaning your rugs, carpets and floors. At first I couldn't figure out why it appealed.

Well,it appeals as a great toy to the gadget freaks in the household, and surely has to appeal to the lazy, busy household. And perhaps even to offices, factories, shops as a good way to make sure that cleaning schedules are always maintained. Even better, although it is really an unattended vacuum cleaner, it really doesn't fit in the vacuum cleaner aisle.

It is one example of a bunch of new products that will continue to roll out that combine intelligence and functionality. I like the idea of buying smarter products, but also ones that are incredibly easy to use. I think the iRobot concept is smart and functional. And that's why it appeals. Now I have to save my cash to buy one.

How much confidence do you have?

Right now there is huge effort being exerted by the leaders of the major economies of the world to build your confidence in the financial system. Enormous sums are being talked about. $700Bn translates to about twice the net borrowing of the US government in 2007 or 15% of total tax receipts for that year. The UK and European governments are mounting similar efforts to assist local banks.

Confidence isn't just about savings, retirement plans and house prices. It is all about attitudes at work - how much risk will enterprises take in this environment, how many people will be in work, how much expansion and new business gets written. But if people are worrying about their personal losses, they probably won't make great decisions that will help the economy overall to recover.

So when you go into work today, how much confidence do you have, and how will it affect your business recommendations and decisions?

Is your recruitment a branding disaster?

I have spent the last four months in a recruitment dance with an American company that has European headquarters in Paris. They still haven't hired for the role that we were discussing, and that's OK. Recruiting the right person is important, but running the process badly is very bad for the brand. Sadly, they revealed their real brand values during the interview process. And because they claimed that culture was the reason for not making an offer, I'm happy to tell you what I learned about their culture during the process.

First, their culture is very slow moving. Four months to go from first contact to deciding I wasn't the right candidate.

Second, their culture is very rude. They needed to be chased endlessly by the recruiter working the assignment to get them to move on to the next stage.

Third, the role had two bosses, and they didn't seem to be playing nicely together. One was in Paris and one was in the USA. They clearly wanted an intermediary between them but weren't prepared to agree on a candidate that could do this job. So far they have taken 14 months and still no candidate in sight.

In the end, I'm glad they didn't make an offer. The job was pretty cool, it was well within my capabilities, I would have loved living in Paris. But their real culture and real brand values didn't fit mine.

Sovereign Harbour Showers

We ended up spending a reluctant weekend in Eastbourne because our yacht engine developed a problem. The local engineers were very nice but couldn't get to us until Monday, giving us three unplanned days in Eastbourne. The marina is in the middle of one of the biggest housing estates I have seen in the UK. Everywhere you look there are houses and apartments, some just being finished, others up to ten years old.

The showers in the title refer both to the lousy English weather and to the toilet block for marina use. The toilet block was superb. Clean, spacious, not terribly busy, nice mirrors. They also had the radio blaring through the speakers, but everything can't be perfect. In fact the showers really did reflect the care and attention that the staff gave us throughout our visit. For the first time in 25 years, we needed to be towed into the marina late thursday evening. The staff who came off duty to run the workboat out and tend to us were fantastic. The lock team who manned the radios were sympathetic and friendly. They offered to order us takeaway if we were too late for the restaurants (but fortunately one did serve a very nice pizza and salad!

Sadly the state of the economy can be seen from walking around Sovereign Harbour. Boats, particularly motor boats are up for sale as people try and cut back. Shops were closed, including the chandlery. Now a chandlery that can't make money with a captive boat population of 800 plus is in a mess of trouble. The yacht club was pretty deserted, and the restaurants only did well when the sun came out. Lots of property for sale too. So it will be interesting to see how Sovereign Harbour does over the next few years. Showers ahead, methinks. Hopefully they will be the nice clean ones in the toilet block, not the squally black clouds that hung over us most of the weekend.

Tired Eurostar

Its been a while since I travelled on Eurostar, but yesterday I went to Paris and back. For the first time, I travelled business class at a premium price that was the equivalent of an airfare to Paris from BA.

The staff and service were great. They looked after everyone well, spoke both French and English to a very high standard. The trains departed and arrived on time. This was the first time that I had been on the"new" track on the english side, and arriving at St Pancras. It made a huge difference to the clanky nasty old rails that used to carry Eurostar to Waterloo.

The bad news is that Eurostar really needs to do some urgent refurbishment. Toilets were dirty and doors wouldn't stay shut. One loo on each train was out of order in the section I was in. The business carriages were extremely tired. Dirty carpets, dirty seats, leather arms on the chairs in very poor repair, colours looking extremely dated.

I feel sorry for the staff - they do their best to uphold the brand promise. But they are let down by the infrastructure, and that's a fixable management issue, given that Eurostar traffic seems to be holding up well by my unscientific count of the number of people waiting to travel yesterday. Maybe the management is as tired as the trains. Maybe the people who run the operational timetable at Eurostar should get a job at BAA, and perhaps the BA people who keep the interiors of their airlines could do a lot for Eurostar.

Do travel agents have a future?

Recently I have been planning a holiday in Australia. Fairly complex, lots of options, but tons of opportunity for a travel agent to show that they really know their stuff. What we wanted to do was visit friends in Sydney and Gold Coast, do some liveaboard diving on the great barrier reef, and then see whatever else fitted in with the trip.

One Oz specialist kept trying to put us in places with a 3 day or a 5 day minimum which we didn't want. Another UK long haul agent did a reasonable job on flights but insisted on using Quantas so missed out on better deals from Singapore. They really blew it when they told me inaccurately that the dive boat we wanted was full - I later ordered it online. Presumably they got a better commission from the other boat they offered instead. Instead of selling the positives of the new offer, they tried to tell me that my choice wasn't available. Silly people.

So I ordered the trip online a la carte from a bunch of suppliers. Am I better off? Well, as my partner says, planning the trip is a big part of the thrill. So I guess I am pretty thrilled already. Would I have liked to find a travel agent who would have done the legwork and earned a commission. Yes, but I didn't find one who earned it. What this tells me is that to survive in the travel business today, you had better be very clear what your value is, and make sure you sell it hard to every prospect. I never got a clear message from either travel agent about why they were better than what I could do online myself.

Electronic walking around?

It's Proms season in London right now. One of the concerts I went to was a world music celebration. The last act was from Mali - Bassekou Kouyate and his band. They played a range of music from 17th century traditional to more recent works. What was fascinating to me was to see the thread that connects this music to US black southern music to jazz. The connections were really clear.

Bassekou had wireless mikes on most of the instruments so they could move around on the stage and dance. As the leader he spent a huge amount of the set walking around, looking at and connecting with the other musicians individually. He was definitely in charge and making sure that everyone was connected. My wife leaned across - "management by walking around" - was her comment and it was really true.

As we move away from meetings and offices and more into the electronic, home working, remote office scenarios, I wonder how we create the electronic equivalent of management by walking around? I have been spending more time away from my office location recently and haven't found a really good way yet to replace the eyeball contact with co-workers. IM, phones, netmeetings, email, video conferences, all have their own place. But I haven't found a better way to keep the team focused and positive than physically walking around. Any one else got any better ideas?

like.no.other

Finally bought a new digital SLR yesterday. It happens to be a Sony A200. I'm actually shocked I did buy Sony, because I was going to get a Nikon but...read the reviews, did some research, and the Sony seemed like the right buy for me.

Registered online, pretty painless. Then oops. Got my first email from Sony today. It was a nice email, if content free really. BUT they personalised it as Dear Mr./Ms. Davies. Such a silly thing to do. I told them my title in the registration and they STILL got it wrong.

Will I return the camera because of it? No. But the product experience gave them a great halo that the marketing communications department ruined by inappropriate personalisation. My trust in their communications is much lower. And that's a shame, because on the basis of a couple of hours playing with the camera, it represents the Sony brand well.

A Tale of two sailing suppliers - part 2

Previously I wrote about a bad experience - today is a much happier tale. Our aged rubber dingy for our yacht was not staying inflated. I happened to come across an ad for Suffolk Sailing. Curious name, because in fact what they do is marine safety. Their main business is servicing liferafts and other safety gear. They also run Sea Survival courses where you spend a day trying to get into a liferaft in a pool with all your heavy sailing gear on.

With some nervousness we transported said aging dingy to their premises on an industrial estate not far from where we keep our boat. We were assured that they could look at it. I phoned about a week later, they said they had done a couple of bits of repairs, were testing that it still stayed inflated, and would be ready tomorrow. How much? was my question, but the nice man didn't know. He said, not much. Well, that made me a little nervous.

Let me tell you, here is a company that deserves all the customers that they can look after. Cost was less than £54. That included inspecting the dingy, replacing a crappy patch that I did with a proper one from them, replacing two valves that were leaking, and making sure that everything stayed properly inflated. Lots of people wouldn't get out of bed for that price.

Suffolk Sailing. Need a liferaft, rental or buy? Need marine safety equipment serviced? Cheerful, honest advice? They are gems. I couldn't recommend them more highly. www.suffolk-sailing.co.uk

A tale of two sailing suppliers - part 1

My wife and I own a 28ft (8.6M) sailing yacht which is about 20 years old. So she is increasingly in need of attention for various bits and pieces. Recently we had two very different experiences from two local suppliers.

First, we decided to add a new piece of navigation gear. We looked up their website, phoned all their dealers one Saturday in the East Coast of England and none of them had the product in stock. So we phoned the manufacturer and ordered it direct. They delivered it to our dockyard the next day. So far so good. We then installed it and started to use it. The instruction manual was poorly photocopied and confusingly referred to two different products with different instructions for actions for each. The practice chart that was supposed to be included was not. We tried using it on the first set of charts and all was well. We then tried using it on a second set of charts, those for Solent waters. This area has the highest concentration of sailing enthusiasts in the UK. The charts were not pre-entered.

We sent an email query to the manufacturer over the weekend, but hadn't heard anything by Tuesday afternoon. So I called them. The person who read those emails was on holiday so no one had read the query. It turns out that for our needs we have to have a plastic cover for the charts, cost about 10% of the unit extra. We would also need a software update kit to enable us to update the electronics when charts change. Cost about 25% extra. So our cost of ownership suddenly jumped 35%.

At the time of writing we have agreed with the manufacturer to return the unit and get our money back. Their customer service did not seem very friendly. When I questioned why they didn't have an answering machine for out of hours calls, they said that they expected people to call back during their business hours. I suggested that their website could use a little updating so people understood what the proposition was. This was met coldly. I also told them that I had tried to buy it from every retailer on their list. Not much reaction.

The bottom line - the equipment was designed to speed up navigation while underway (and if you have ever bounced around in a strong sea in a small boat, you will know how important that is). As shipped it would take a lot of work to get all the charts we would use in, and they would not be sequenced in a user friendly way. Only by spending 35% more could one achieve something close. It also didn't make clear how the chart updating service/software would work and how essential that is for successful use. And their customer service attitude was typical of the 1950s in Russia. You are lucky to have us sell you this. Sorry, but no. For that price I am almost in chartplotter territory with additional bells and whistles.

It's the neighbourhood, stupid

Recently we have had a lot of news about knife crime with some really sad deaths. Now Gordon Brown wants to target 110,000 families with "disruptive" youngsters. Other commentators wring their hands and say that fixing some of these issues will take a long time. David Cameron makes a big deal out of family values as well.

At the same time I have been reading The Tipping Poing by Malcolm Gladwell. A couple of quotes from a much longer discussion. "Peer influence and community influence are more inportant than family influence in determining how children turn out. ...  A child is better off in a good neighbourhood and a troubled family than be or she is in a troubled neighbourhood and a good family. ...children are powerbully shaped by their external environment...It isn't just serious criminal behaviour, in the end, that is sensitive to environmental cues, it is all behaviour."

It's pretty tough to intervene directly in families and get results, as well as being hugely expensive for the state. Instead, lets put all those CCTV cameras and other resources to having a zero tolerance for litter, graffitti, and poor maintenance of all buildings in target neighbourhoods. Repair and keep clean the lifts. Make sure that parks are clean, safe, well maintained. Remove abandoned cars and enforce parking regulations. Focus on teen unemployment by incentivising specific job creation. Make it attractive for Tesco or Asda to open a supermarket with lots of part time jobs. Do the little things to make sure that deprived neigbourhoods don't look and feel deprived. Then they will come around, and remarkably quickly as well.

Crossing the Chasm

Recently I had a chance to talk informally to the national council of STAT. What really struck me was that some of the technology marketing models would work really well for promoting personal training/services/wellness. The Alexander Technique isn't very well known, but has a following in certain circles - music, dance, theatre, and is used for back and neck pain as an alternative therapy. We discussed Geoffrey Moore's Crossing the Chasm.

Simplistically, your early adopters are willing to accept the tradeoffs that come with being first to use a new technology. The price is high, the product isn't complete, but it is compelling enough for you to put up with the glitches. Then there is a chasm, and you have to get to the early mainstream users. Unfortunately, early mainstream users are completely different. So everything about your marketing, positioning, etc has to change.

That's where I believe the Alexander Technique is now. Their core early users are happy, but not enough teachers have enough work. They need to reach out to a new audience with a new version of the proposition. Its going to be hard for the council to persuade their teachers to change, but if they don't the Alexander Technique will be limited in its appeal or in the Chasm. Crossing the Chasm will require them to think quite differently about which new audiences and how to appeal to them. I think Geoffrey Moore would like the analogy, even if it isn't about technology adoption.

What's your inflation?

The nice people at the government statistics office have a cool new tool. Now you can figure out what your personal inflation figures are based on how much you spend on stuff each month. You can compare yourself to the average and figure out if you can do anything about it.

I'd show you a pretty picture, but the same nice folks who produced this stuff don't let you export it in any manner that allows me to share it. Whoops. How to spoil a nice idea.  Well, lets give them 50% for trying. 

It won't surprise you to know that the official inflation rate has moved from 2.5% to over 4% and that mine has gone from a smidge under 4% to around 6%. Time for that chat about a raise, or else about moving to a new country.

Deconstructing Risk

Malcolm McDonald, Emeritus Professor, Cranfield University School of Management wrote a little article called "Getting Marketing back into the Boardroom". At the heart of the article is the idea that marketers need to be able to deconstruct business risk into three components and then develop strategies that account for each of these risks. 

 

1. Market risk: the risk that the market is not as good as you think it is

2. Share risk: the risk the strategy won't develop the share it promises

3. Profit risk: the risk the profit pool won't allow you to make the margins you promised.

 

I hadn't seen this before and really like it because the implications and actions arising from each are very different. My current employer actually faces a combination of all three. The mobile phone category is largely saturated so switching to a replacement market, the company is reworking it product porfolio to develop its share position, but the economics of the business and the cost of customising for individual markets make it very difficult to drive marginal profits from marginal markets.

Change This!

Just found a cool site www.changethis.com. Its the antithesis of the sound bite. Read their 9 page manifesto. Sounds like a lot, but its a good and compelling read. I haven't dived into any more of the content, but it sounds intriguing. I'd like to have my mind changed with compelling arguments rather than mainstream media content. We'll see.

Insure your new iPhone

Lots of comment on the new iPhone, especially about the more consumer friendly pricing. The 3G/WiFi combination works for me. Some complaints that some features like videoconference make it less attractive to the myspace/facebook fans, but that misses the point. Its not a swiss army knife, its a chef's knife, perfectly balanced for its intended use. Its a music and mobile browsing device with a telephone attached.

But if you do go out and get one, make sure you insure it. There is likely to be at least $300 worth of subsidy being applied by the network operators when you "buy" yours, and if you lose it or get it stolen you will quickly discover just how expensive a device it is. I'd much rather buy the device and then pay a cheaper rate for calls, but that's not how the business model works in most Western countries. Western consumers have an addiction to "free" phones and only discover the real cost when they have to replace a lost or stolen "free" phone.

Free Swimming

A fascinating show on BBC4 last night that tracks a number of kids from birth to adulthood. They are now about 8 years old. Lots of interesting stuff, but one that struck me was that borders have really shrunk for most of the kids. When asked if they would go to the shops and buy a pint of milk, most said no. Most weren't allowed to play outside unsupervised.

This morning brought an announcement that there would be proposals for free swimming for over 60s and under 16s as part of the 2012 legacy. In principle a good idea, although probably not both groups at once! Now the question is how many kids would be allowed to go there and participate by their nervous parents?

Creatures of habit?

It appears from a new study using mobile phones to track the whereabouts of over 100,000 people that we move in pretty small circles. Most people stay within 10km of their homes and return over and over again to the same locations.

Supermarkets could have told you this. They are pretty good at assessing how far people will travel to shop at their stores. And of course, people tend to return to work and home pretty regularly.

What would be more interesting would be to look at the edges as Seth Godin puts it. How about looking for exceptions and seeing what that tells us about people, their occasional habits and their movements?

Sense of humor or humour?

I just came across this - yes, you can accuse me of being slow, but it was such a giggle I wanted to share it. Apparently Richard Branson added an April Fool's Joke into his CTIA speech, but quite a few people didn't get it.

Now Google has got into the act with a website on the "joint" venture. Does show that some Americans do have a sense of humor or are the googlers honorary brits with a sense of humour?

What other kind of wounding is there?

All over the news yesterday was a conviction for unlawful wounding. The phrase got me thinking and wondering if there was any other kind?

Wikipedia lumps unlawful wounding and grievous bodily harm together and references back to an Act put on the statute books in 1851. There is also detail on the different kinds of charges on the Crown Prosecution Service web site.

Finally I came to the realisation that doctors and dentists "wound" you in the course of treatment, if "wounding means the breaking of the continuity of the whole of the outer skin, or the inner skin within the cheek or lip". Mystery solved.

One simplistic technique?

I was visiting a marketing website today and was struck by the number of articles that had numbers attached. 7 Secrets, 5 lessons, etc. While I am sure that quantifying and making lists of things does help to get attention, it seems to me this particular trick is being overused.

Forcing your messages into boxes may be necessary in this cluttered world but once you get beyond a small number, do you really expect people to remember all of them? And if they can't remember all of them, perhaps you need to simplify your message?

The reluctant business traveller and enthusiastic team builder

I've travelled a lot over the years. Mostly for business, and often in tight bursts with longer gaps in between. I think I just figured out why. Right now I am spending more time working from home. Apart from driving my wife crazy, it has substantially changed my working patterns. I rely on the modern electronic methods of communication and much less on face to face. When I do go to the office, I spend way more time walking around and talking to people, and virtually no time at my desk.

I travel whenever there is a new team or new group that I need to meet or a new context or relationship with people I know less well. I didn't get this until very recently. That's because i can work quite effectively with people that I have a good relationship by email, im, phone and conference call. But for me to be truly effective, those relationships have to have been built with a personal meeting and working together.

Otherwise there is just way too much misunderstanding possible. Especially if there are different cultures involved. Right now I am having a lot of trouble with someone in Korea. I know them, we have worked together, but we don't know each other in the current context and we haven't been physically together to work on current problems. For it to work going forward, we will have to get together. Someone is going to have to travel, and we need to work together on solving both the business problem and the relationship problem. Or it won't work. I should be smart enough to avoid the cost and the hassle of getting on an airplane, but for me there is no substitute for face to face.

When is an express not an express?

I recently had to take a flight from Terminal 4 at Heathrow and took the premium priced Heathrow Express. Well, express it is not. They claim a 15 minute journey time from Central London. Their own web site admits that you now need to change trains at T123 and that "the frequency of the shuttle services between Terminal 4 and Terminals 1, 2, 3 is every 10-20 minutes".

My 15 minute journey actually took 45 minutes. The reason given is that because BA haven't moved their flights from T4 over to T5 there are more people wanting to go to T4. I am sure that the airlines scheduled to move to T4 will bve thrilled to know that their customers will have a slower journey. BAA want to move more flights to T4 and T5 so that they can refurbish the oldest terminals at Heathrow.

Heathrow Express have decided to go to T123, then to T5. Previously they went to T4 directly, so there is no reason that they couldn't today. But they decided not to. Instead they ask you to change to their competitor, Heathrow Connect.

All of this could have been avoided if the route had been planned properly and a nice circular route created between the terminals. But for whatever reason, this was not done.

The right answer is to recommend that anyone going to T4 should use Heathrow Connect from the start. You don't have to change, and the journey time is slower, but less hassle for people carrying baggage. Why isn't that advice given impartially to travellers? Also why haven't they increased frequency of service to reflect the increased need?

How are you perceived?

Part of being a politician is being in the public eye. British politicians have been fighting to keep their expenses claims private recently. What most people will remember is that they went to court to keep information private. Part of that information was the address of their second home. Unfortunately that is not what people will remember.

Instead they will remember that MPs were forced kicking and screaming to reveal information about how they spend their allowances. Allowances are important to them and they do incur real expenses in going back and forth to their constituencies.

Now, however, the perception is that a number of MPs are desparately trying to cover up the fact that they were slack with their claims and perhaps claimed marginal or inappropriate expenses. Why would they risk their careers over such relatively small amounts of money? What does it say about the integrity of these people that they are spending our tax money in court to protect their secrets?

Are you tired of being consulted?

I heard Gordon Brown yesterday talking about a new consultation on ways to fund elderly care. This appears to involve a compulsory new age insurance scheme (careful, don't call it a tax) to pay for the looming gap in caring for people who are living longer.

Allegedly there are no fixed ideas about how the scheme will work. So there will be forums for listening. Bottom line here, we have to fund our dotage somehow. The choices are either for people to save privately, the government to divert existing revenues, or raise new ones. The problem for the UK government is that people are not saving enough privately. That's because their taxes and cost of living are high enough that early in their careers people are in debt and don't get into the habit of saving.

Well, I'm tired of being consulted where there really is little chance that my opinions will be heard or will change anything. If you really want new ideas, fine. If all you want to do is sell the thing you have decided upon, don't call it a consultation.

Also recently there is a proposal to change the title of some Financial Services Advisors to sales people if all they do is sell one company's products. Good idea. Gordon, why not call your consultations something more honest? Sales meetings?

Shocking Statistics

Shocking, but probably not in the way that you think. If you read the recent UK housing news, you might remember that repossession orders have climbed 17% in the first quarter over the same period last yeat. Shocking....but the really shocking thing is how FEW people are affected, not how many.

Digging through the story, the following figures emerge. Mortgage claims are the triggering of the process that may ultimately lead to reposession, although often there are alternative arrangements made. And it is clear that mortgage claims are rising.

	Q1 2008	% of mortgages	Q1 2007	% of mortgages
Mortgage claims	38,688	0.33%	33,344	0.28%
Mortgage reposessions	27,530	0.23%	23,438	0.20%
Number of mortgages	11,800,000		11,800,000

But would you be shocked to learn that only 0.23% of mortgage owners got reposessed? One quarter of one percent of mortgage holders had to hand in their keys. Admitted that this is quite a lot families affected - approximately 27, 530, but given that nearly 12 MILLION mortgage holders are managing to pay their bills and keep their properties, it isn't a lot.

It also might not surprise you to know that where you live in the UK has a pretty big impact on the repossessions. The Midlands, North West and Wales are reposession hotspots, so what is it about those areas. It isn't unemployment, at least officially. They are around the national average. GDP per head in Midlands and North West are lower than average but not as low as the North East which has very little growth in repossessions.

Regional breakdown of possession orders and claims

Region	Possession claims: Annual change since 2007 Q1	Possession orders: Annual change since 2007 Q1
London	-1%	-6%
Midlands	22%	22%
North East	20%	1%
North West	24%	23%
South East	13%	9%
South West	17%	11%
Wales	21%	26%
Source: Ministry of Justice. Figures are not seasonally adjusted

The service called you

We have been thinking about completely renovating our flat in London. Most recently we asked a young architect and her partner if they would be willing to work with us. Because there is a connection we were pretty informal about the engagement. What they presented were three variations on a theme, all of which had some very interesting ideas.

If you feel a "but" coming, well here it is. We had agreed a price for the work, but the invoice ended up one third more than we expected. It turns out they charged us for the presentation of the work. They also charged us VAT. The invoice also included a 1.5% per day interest charge for late payment. Taking a look at the invoice, it didn't include the right details for a VAT invoice in the UK. We were offended by the usurious terms for late payment; the fact that they didn't include the right VAT registration details was perhaps inexperience, but seemed pretty basic. The financial issue was that they didn't understand that paying VAT that we could not reclaim made a huge difference to the bill. 

Sadly, the experience with the invoice left us with uncertainty about whether this very nice couple could in fact deliver work that was the right quality and could keep to a budget. The invoice triggered all kinds of doubts that had nothing to do with their professional qualifications, their design skills, their empathy with what we were trying to do. It is so easy to devalue your brand, and very hard to recover the position.

STOP PRESS - good news. I sent an email, they responded very positively, we cleared up a misunderstanidng, and got a solution that both of us could live with. So did they recover 100%? No, but they did achieve a successful outcome and the best they could hope for under the circumstances.

Does it dwisott?

Translation - Does it do what it says on the tin? A great marketing phrase invented by the clever people at Ronseal that now gets applied to lots of different products and has made it into OUP idioms.

What is sad is that so often the product promise is at odds with the product experience. I've just moved doctors because I moved house, and was dreading the experience. My last surgery wouldn't issue anyone an appointment more than a day in advance. This was because if they forced people to phone up on the morning of the day they wanted the appointment, they made the government's target for seeing people in less than 48 hours. You couldn't book a non urgent appointment to suit your convenience. And you had to call between 8:30 and 9 or there were no appointments. Too bad, call tomorrow. The staff were surly, the waiting room dreary and tired, the doctor's offices pretty dire.

When I went into the new surgery in Central London there were a number of interesting differences. There was a smiling person behind the desk, but there was also an automated check in for people who were willing to use the touchscreen with large letters and a very easy to use display. Because this was my first time, I got given  forms to fill in, asked a couple of questions, and had to show some id. I had my national health card, so the nice person behind the desk said, "good, one less form to fill in" and took one of the forms back.

I'm registered. I can call any time to book an appointment. They will do non urgent appointments at a mutually convenient time. They have a vampire service (sorry blood taking service) that happens every morning for routine bloodwork. And my nic shiny new national health card arrived in the mail less than a week after I handed it in.

You know, some of the investment in the national health service might just be paying off. My wife tells me that all the doctors that she has met at the surgery are nice, competent, helpful. Just maybe the practice does dwisott.

Doom and gloom or a business opportunity?

House prices are down 1% from April 2007 according to a BBC story. That doesn't sound like a lot to me. The fact that house prices have been rising for four of the last five years is buried in the story. So now instead of being 10% above last year, they are now 1% below last year. But the graph looks much more dramatic.

It does say something that the BBC, on the whole known for balanced reporting, is using language like "sixth monthly decline in a row" and "steep decline". This is after property prices have RISEN 45% in the last 5 years.

So we are talking ourselves into a significant drop in house prices. The question really is - who is going to be really hurt? Anyone who has bought recently and not benefited from the rises. Anyone who remortgaged and spent the cash and now is sitting on a possible deficit. First time buyers because cheap and easy 100% mortgages have disappeared in the UK.

Well, first time buyers are going to be hit, but previously they were being squeezed out because prices were much too high a multiple of their earnings. Now they need a decent deposit to get a mortgage. Well, that doesn't seem unreasonable to me.

There is definitely a market opportunity here for housing that is affordable, and properly targetted at the people who are having difficulty getting on the housing ladder. Perhaps a mixture of owners and renters in professionally mainted properties with proper ongoing funding for maintenance. More commonhold properties would be a good idea. Why haven't we seen more of this in the UK. Well one important reason is that it eliminates ground rent as a source of income for developers and other sources of income from premiums for extending leases, etc. Perhaps a tax break to help encourage this important and cost effective type of housing?

Brainwave that made elevators safe

Elevators (lifts) are complex devices. But the fundamental safety device is incredibly simple. Electromagnetic brakes are held open while there is electric current. In the event of an electricity failure, the brakes are released and the elevator comes to a stop. What a great idea. Simple, positive. I love the thought that the absence of electricity triggers the safety mechanism. Its the inverse of what one might expect. Elisha Otis patented it and created the "safety elevator". How might thinking about the inverse of something create a new product or business opportunity today?

Where's the garage?

Nice story about how the people at HP have restored the house and garage where the company was founded.

But where will the young European entrepreneurs of tomorrow go to do their startup? More and more people are living in smaller and smaller spaces. No room for hobbies, no room for experiments, no room for starting companies.

As I recently found out, even the smallest office in a central city location seems astronomically expensive and has all kinds of strings and limitations.

Is this one of the reasons that European innovation has to come from institutions not individuals?

A new career as a groqiteer?

The groquit allows you to scan all your stuff, so when you go shopping you can check and make sure you don't have whatever you are thinking of buying. Oh dear.

For $95 you can have a device and run around scanning your cds, dvds, books, etc etc and then see if there is a match for your barcode when you get ready to hand over your mastercard in the shop.

My problem with this is that the amount of effort to get all the data into the device isn't worth it. Its a solution looking for a problem. And in most civilised countries all you have to do once you realise you have purchased a duplicate is take it back. Most retailers are very cooperative that way. After all its no skin off their nose. The manufacturer usually pays.

So would I groquit? (rhymes with rocket apparently) Thanks, but even if I lose my job I can't imagine putting the effort in to scanning my collections. I'd rather rely on my fallible memory - and the good will of my favourite retailer.

Great marketing absorbs place and time

Over the weekend I went to an exhibition at Tate Britain of pictures by Peter Doig.

This is one example, called Blotter. Peter Doig says that "The title refers to (amongst other things) the notion of one's being absorbed into a place or landscape, and to the process through which the painting developed: soaking paint into the canvas."

It was a fascinating experience because the paintings evoked real nostalgia for Canada in me. Peter Doig was born in the UK, and spent significant time growing up in Canada. The paintings were mostly done while he was resident in the UK and some done in Trinidad where he now lives.

Blotter is fairly easy for anyone to deconstruct but most of his paintings do have enormous extra resonance for anyone who has lived in Central Canada. The subjects, the detail, the use of reflection on water all provoked  intense reactions from my wife and myself. I doubt that they will achieve the same effect for anyone who has not spent a lot of time there. It's that extra resonance that great marketing achieves and does evoke time and place. How about the iconic volkswagen print ads? The Apple 1984 TV ad? Everyone can relate to them, but they have an especially powerful effect on people who remember the original context.

How old is your airplane?

American Airlines apparently has jets with an average age of 18 years old. Now given that they get maintained and rebuilt a bunch of time during their career, does the age of your airplane matter?

An interesting coalition of groups including the Teamsters and the Business Travel Coalition, have a real bee in their bonnet about where aircraft are maintained. They don't seem to like the fact that it is being done in Korea. Now I understand that the Teamsters worry more about domestic jobs, but why would people who represent corporate travel departments care? After all, many of their companies are busy outsourcing large chunks of work to low cost environments.

We seem to have great difficulty understanding that  price does have an effect and that services do cost money. In this case, how much was paid for the ticket and how old is your airplane are related. I find this ironic - after all my corporate travel policy forces me to choose these carriers. They do so because the "discount" price they get off the "retail" fare means that I get to pay more as an individual when I fly so that the corporate travel folk can save money. But now they are surprised when the airlines do what they can to squeeze cost out of the equation so that they can offer "discounts" to "corporate customers".

But will it change our behaviour, let alone those of our corporate travel departments? Or in fact are we behaving like rational economic animals. After all, technical failure is only responsible for 20% of accidents and only 37.28% of accidents are commercial flights. 2007 was one of the safest years on record.

So if you are of nervous disposition - fly in Europe, fly on a jet. North America accounts for 32% of crashes. Hmm. Maybe the Teamsters have something after all.

Why Apple won't worry about iphone clones

Right now a lot of mobile phone companies are trying to design a competitor for iphone. So they are either looking at making it cheaper, faster, more features, bigger camera, bigger memory, bigger storage. Whatever. They might even make a better iphone.

They're missing the fact that they can't overcome Apple's position. OK, Apple might not have hit every feature right on the head when they launched the iphone, but competitors aren't going to be successful with incremental steps. That's because Apple has won the position in the minds of consumers for their phone. Not everyone will buy one, but everyone knows what it is. And they know that the future versions of iphone will contain the incremental steps. So most of them will buy another iphone, and convert more friends as well.

So what is the mobile phone company to do? Easy. Do what Apple did. Pick a consumer segment, meet and delight it, and you have something. Just one example - the way that the iphone screen flips from vertical to horizontal. Cool, practical, intuitive all in one. The little gizmo that is inside the iphone that does this has been available for some time. I remember getting pitched by the company that makes it. I thought it was cool but too expensive for the products we were thinking of making. I still think I was right, but I missed what the Apple team didn't. Combined with a touch screen, fast software and a good operating system it works like a dream. Apple probably weren't the first company to see the pitch. But they "got" it and made it core to the iphone.

So to be truly successful and gain a clear position, you have to have a great exploring technology mind combined with a clear focus on how to deliver to consumers. It doesn't get done by committees. It does get done by small teams with both great technology awareness and consumer focus. And that's not easy to do. The best their competitors can hope for is that Apple trips itself up. Or go and really think about what consumers want from technology.