Always learn from the best...yup Part 2: Earl Wilcox of Plannerzone...and what they did for Apple..

Steve Jobs is my hero...i admit it in business. He believed in not doing market research to develop new products, people didn't know what they want Apple created it.

screenshot of the original add...click here to see it via youtube...they won't let me embed :(

Yet, they did do research, not to create a product, but to market it effectively. Plannerzone was who Apple turned to, because they weren't your run of the mill stats crunchers, they looked at the emotional relationship...which is not always the easy road in consumer research, yet its owner Earl Wilcox's forte.

In talking to Earl of Plannerzone...the idea was to show a person what the  IPad could do for you (benefit), instead of what it could do (feature)...the real learning in the work was that it wasn't about what the IPad did....but why it mattered.It empowered you to get even more pleasure from the thing you enjoy doing. "

To me its that right brain approach, not numbers for numbers sake that you can skew. Research that was about communicating with people. Our success in business all boils down to authentic relationships. I don't buy things because 51% of women buy it or deem it a nice product. It migh get my attention for a moment. I buy things because they do something for me, my latte takes me to a happy place when daily stress hits. A feature film helps me escape..My Ipad, makes me able to take my office anywhere...with out the bulk of a laptop.  I never buy anything just because it is a fad, good business is not built on fads it is built on long term relationships and trust

Earl gets that... as a small business it is one of the essentials that should be in your toolbox... as well as listening to the people who get it....it is an holistic way of doing business...

Gees, I have smart friends...stay tuned...you will be meeting more :) 

:) alyse