Apple is a popular example of customer driven innovation that wins the market. Nobody can argue with the company's exceptionally high market share, high profit margins, and deep customer loyalty. Nor do we think many would debate that Apple's focus on the customer is embedded throughout the company. It is a true marketing culture top to bottom.
Tim Cook's Transformation
As proof we offer the journey of Tim Cook, the current CEO of Apple. Cook grew up and made his career by minimizing the value of marketing. At Compaq and IBM, he was a materials management and supply chain guru. He made a difference by minimizing value to reduce cost. In many ways, he was marketing and sales' worst nightmare.
After joining Apple in 1998, Cook rebuilt the company's supply chain to reduce cost and improve efficiency. He used Apple's cash to get better deals from suppliers. He was an expert at negotiating away differentiation. But still, the Apple culture worked its magic on him.
The change was clear in Cook's first in-depth interview as CEO. Now he asks questions like, "We would look not just at this (TV) area but other areas (and) we would ask can we control the key technology? Can we make a significant contribution far beyond what others have done in this area? Can we make a product that we all want? We think we're reasonably good proxies for others. Those are the things we would ask about any new product category."
These questions are all about marketing, customers, value, and differentiation—the very things Tim Cook spent years minimizing. His questions clearly reflect Apple's commitment to keep its promise to the market and consistently promote their brand.
Are You Committing to the Customer?
Customer driven innovation and design are king. Tim Cook is a brilliant businessperson, so it's no surprise that he gets it. But for a person with his background to make such a 180-degree turn indicates to us the strong influence of a transformative marketing culture. Apple's success is defined by a rabid focus on understanding their promise to customers and delivering against that promise, and this focus clearly permeates their business across all functional areas.
What about your culture? How well do your people understand your market? Do they know your promise to your customers? Can they communicate the unique value you deliver? Does your promise permeate only your marketing department? Marketing and sales? Marketing, sales, and leadership? Or, like Apple, everywhere?
Making a compelling promise and embedding that promise as the fundamental goal of an organization is a journey. It requires strategic thinking and a range of new skills, processes, tools, and capabilities. EMM Group has helped hundreds of organizations succeed on this journey. If you believe your organization can benefit from customer driven innovation, we'd welcome the opportunity to speak. Please contact us to schedule a discussion.
