…or at least it feels that way. You see, apparently owning an iPad comes with it an unpaid part-time job doing word-of-mouth marketing (WOM) for the product.
I pretty much carry my iPad around with me most of the time: I read (and Tweet) on the subway into work, I respond to emails in-between sets at the gym, and I check-in to wherever I go on Foursquare. Apple has done such a good job of making the product so coveted yet scarce that when people see one, they don’t hesitate to ask questions. It usually goes like this:
“Wow is that an iPad?”
“Ya, it is.”
“Do you like it?”
“I love it – it hasn’t left my side since I got it.”
“What do you like most about it?”
“I can get instant access to pretty much any content I want, easily.”
“I’ve been thinking about getting one.”
And it’s that last statement that’s the kicker. What Apple has done by inherently having me do their marketing for them, is that that I become the tipping point for those under consideration. Not only do “prospects” see the product and a very happy “customer” but they also get a candid and trustworthy validation for them to go ahead and buy it.
The media hype has and will certainly put people into the consideration set but it’s word-of-mouth and actually seeing/holding the (amazingly designed) product that works just as hard (if not harder) as part of Apple’s product marketing and sales. And they’re not paying me a dime – for those obsessed with ROI, calculate that.
Fellow iPad owners, you know exactly what I’m talking about. How many times have people come up to you when using your iPad and eagerly asked questions about it?
*People are always telling you what to do, but what's right for them may not be right for you.
Posted by: Air Jordan Shoes | January 02, 2011 at 10:27 PM