I was thinking about the power of brands the other day. Not that I usually sit around thinking about brands. But I was struggling with my iPhone – not the iPhone 4, the older one. I just updated it to OS 4 and am having such a downright negative experience with it. Since I downloaded the new OS, the ATT 3G network has a weaker signal everywhere I go, when I do get a signal it is slower than molasses. Wow, who would’ve thought it could be any slower. To download simple e-mails or upload a photo takes 10 minutes or more. I don’t know about you but I do not call that progress – which is one generally expects when one upgrades, now isn’t it?
That got me thinking about all the other negative things going on with the iPhone, which are many.
- We all know the battery life of the iPhone just plain sucks – although I hear the iPhone 4 is much better. I had to buy a Mophie to extend the battery life because I couldn’t even use my iPhone for a day on the road… it died halfway through the day – when I was barely using it. Not good.
- We all know the speaker on the iPhones is barely usable. Again, I hear that’s fixed on the iPhone4, but what about the rest of us? How could Apple call that device a speaker with a straight face? I chatted with a friend this weekend who is now using his iPhone only as an iPod thanks to that lousy speaker. He bought a Spring 4G phone and LOVES it. Maybe I need another iPod….
- Then there’s the antenna issue with the new iPhone 4 – but I won’t go there. No reason to continue beating that dead horse.
Most smart phones would fail in the market with half of the above issues. The slow network alone would’ve been the kiss of death, not to mention a battery that doesn’t last for more than four hours when you’re not even using the phone. Yet the iPhone is revered by all who use it.
Is its success because of the power of the Apple brand? Is it because of the cool interface, the link to iTunes and its applications? I’m not sure.
What I do know is that Apple is challenging a big-time status quo, with the iPhone and with the iPAD. Both devices have issues, both devices lacks some key features. In today’s technology market, such problems would kill another company. Yet they continue to fly off the shelves, and Apple continues to prosper.
Apple has proven that sometimes the status quo rules don’t have to apply to your business. Sometimes, even the good rules can be broken – rules like leading-edge functionality, products that work, user satisfaction.
Sometimes the power of your brand, the magic of the story you weave and the image you create can help you break even the tried and true rules.
But sooner or later – you do have to deliver satisfied customers. I’ll be watching to see if Apple finally does just that.
