Posted on

Reflections on Steve Jobs’ Death Stirs Refelections on Early Forecasts for iPhone, Elegance of Jobs Design

It was only natural for anyone touched by Steve Jobs (just about all of us) to reflect on his accomplishments. I will most miss his genius as a marketer first, inventor second. From my perspective, Steve Jobs was able to create a need and fill it with outstanding products that fit a brand promise to not only be different, but better and more elegant. And in that elegance within each product produced under his direction, Apple transcended from electronics manufacturer to become a luxury brand market driver. PC’s and cell phones were just mainstream–something to use but nothing special–just a functional ho-hum experience. Jobs understood that to create sustainable value, a product and its producer must exceed expectations. That the face of an iPhone is glass meant Jobs cared about screen quality and the overall consumer experience that could replace ‘ol fido as man’s best friend. But it got even better with each turn of the design. The nuances were innumerable and the public placed premium value on the iPhone as a result.

So this is where the moment of truth or consequences came for Apple with the release of iPhone 4S. What is under the hood is substantially better, faster and will improve the user experience. So the superficial knock on the iPhone 4S is that it’s not 5. We all expected a 5, right? Now would be a good time to review the paragraph above as an illumination of Jobs, the brilliant marketer. The iPhone concept, design and its successful launch meant so much to him and Apple (one and the same) that, to get it right the first time, he delayed production–obsessing over the details. The iPhone 5 is tucked inside the iPhone 4S and my belief is that this model is a quick tip of the hat and wink to Jobs. This iPhone model didn’t need a 5 on it. That can happen Next. This turn on the phone was for Steve–4S. So, this one is 4 Steve. Thank you.

Here’s the full content from the 2007 interview that covers iPhone, luxury branding and how 2008 was going to be a big year for Apple as predicted to be one of the two most admired brands in 2008.

AN INTERVIEW WITH MARK CAIN
BRAND CORE INNOVATOR
April 2007

What trends have you seen within the luxury world?
Authenticity is key. The luxury demographic has an incredible appetite for authentic products and more notably, experiences that provide opportunities to connect with family or friends at a higher level. Over the last 5 years there has been a significant increase in the demand for exotic experiential travel to unique destinations, villa rentals in far-away places and personal services to streamline the process of planning and enjoying these journeys.

When did wanting to be rich and live a life of luxury become so popular?
It’s a basic part of the human condition to improve and raise the level of existence. Economic cycles encourage or curtail the pursuit to a degree, but the pursuit of wealth and the appetite for luxury grows the more it is fed.

Do you think that the middle class is dying?
The middle class is here to stay but to a greater extent there is a rising separation in the market between traditionally wealthy households and a rapidly emerging ultra-wealthy demographic with incredibly sophisticated lifestyles.

There seems to be an explosion of luxury goods. Which goods do you think are the most popular?
The offerings of exquisite, handcrafted timepieces have exploded to emerge as a barometer of wealth and sophistication, especially for men. This contradicts the trend of middle-market consumers that use an iPod or their cell phone for the functional need of keeping time. Wine collecting and the appreciation of artisan wines are rocketing in popularity. Today’s wine collector may have thousands of bottles stored in home cellars in addition to offsite temperature-controlled wine vaults. That’s hundreds of thousands of dollars in inventory that will be consumed over generations. A terrific example of filling a specific niche in this new luxury explosion is The Napa Valley Reserve, located in St. Helena, California. It’s clearly about the wine there since Harlan Estate and Screaming Eagle are the viticulturalists and winemakers, but it’s also about the entire experience, the culture of cult cabernet and connection their members enjoy.

What products/brands do you anticipate being popular for 2008?
Apple iPhone and Virgin Galactic

I’ve heard about luxury canned food companies. Do you see this market taking off?
The American household dry goods pantry is shrinking while the refrigerator is expanding. I’d bet on any service business that focuses on providing a great variety of fresh, fast and convenient meal solutions for all three day-parts. It can be gourmet grocery or meal assembly centers depending upon what consumer they intend to serve.

It also seems that sunglasses/handbags/shoes are always some of the most popular items. Why do you think these make for good luxury purchases?
It’s how they make you feel—plain and simple. A woman will wait 2 years for a Hermes Birkin Bag ($9,000-34,000) because she has to have it and she knows that not everyone else will. And when she does get it, it makes her feel like a million bucks. Owning and wearing these is a statement of sophistication and wealth as much or more than the element of fashion.

Do you think these items will still be popular in 2008? Would these markets be good for entrepreneurs to invest in?
Virtually every luxury category is highly competitive and anchored by established brands. If you have an edge or angle that makes you different then you can establish your own space. I think the Kate Spade brand is a terrific example of filling a niche and building a smart brand with a consumer who gets what her approach is all about.

What is new? Are there any markets within the luxury world that are untapped?
I remember watching Kirk Douglas in Jules Verne’s 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea as a kid and thinking about how amazing it would be to live under the ocean in a luxurious submarine that sports every amenity you would want to enjoy while taking in the mystery of the ocean. If space journeys are the next big thing, then who knows, maybe ultra-luxury submersible experiences are the next, next big thing.

Can you talk about Destination Clubs? Is this a market that you think will continue to thrive in 2008? How could an entrepreneur get involved in this market?
Destination Clubs are far and away a superior alternative to traditional second home ownership and they satisfy a growing demand for greater variety of destination experiences without the limitations of hotel rooms. A family can easily travel to a number of club homes in ski, beach and golf locations year round without the burden of housekeeping and maintenance. The home quality is also consistent in a club and members can rely on pre-arrival services such as pre-stocking of grocery items, children’s needs and holiday décor. The financial aspect for members is simple and mirrors most country club models where a one-time refundable deposit is made with the club and then annual dues recur every year of membership. Return of membership deposits range by club, but are generally in the range of 80-100 percent of the original deposit.

The idea of running a destination club seems easy at first; buy houses and find members. It’s a real estate portfolio exercise with an incredible amount of service requirements operating in the field to deliver the experience members expect from your brand. Starting a club today to get mass and scale to compete with established brands would be in the $50-100 million range. Other than capital requirements, there is a limited supply of executives with the experience it takes to build a club from the ground up. Having said all of that, I think opportunities exist to provide services to clubs and their members in specific resort markets. Clubs will always be searching for more ways to add value to services in more efficient ways and that could open the door to nimble personal service providers.

What markets do you think would be the best for entrepreneurs to invest in (butler services, upscale products, yacht services, massage services etc)?
An interesting model that really intrigues me is what I call the personal reward space. I see traditional men’s barbershops that make a haircut and shave as getting only a slice of the experience. Why not add a pool table, cold mugs of beer and dry-cleaning service? The same can be said for the personal massage business where both sexes are taking an hour out of their week to relax. Two years ago the notion of a “man cave” was unheard of. A smart remodeling contractor could market turning unused rooms into personal space to suit a man’s need to relax in his own environment. What about a hair and nail salon that’s also a martini bar?

What opportunities are there for entrepreneurs to add luxury to their existing business?
Scott Berger is an incredibly talented friend who designs the Addison Taylor jewelry line. Each piece is handmade and amazing, but the showroom environment is as unique as his designs. The location is on the 9th floor of a high rise in Scottsdale where he’s installed a pool table and a sleek lounge that transcend retail jewelry purchase experiences. He built his brand into something unique and appealing to his clientele who appreciate and prefer handmade authentic craftsmanship and the experience he delivers more than running into the mall to grab a Tiffany blue box.

What opportunities are there for entrepreneurs looking to upscale an already existing product?
Think beyond the functional elements of your product and innovate around creating and delivering an emotional reaction to it. That’s exactly what Steve Jobs did with the cell phone market. Instead of making a phone that was just better, he encouraged Apple to design their product around a different user experience. It’s not the fact that the iPhone sends and receives calls, manages data or plays music; it’s the experience and the emotion it delivers when you see the icons, hold it your hands and swipe your fingers over that smooth glass face. Apple leapfrogged a flat phone manufacturing industry and created the first luxury cell phone experience. Who thought that was possible?

What do you think is the best target market for selling luxury products?
I’ve identified a segment I call the Conscientious Elite. They’re incredibly wealthy and can afford to buy virtually anything. But at the same time, they realize that leading an extravagant lifestyle can send the wrong signal. They’re selling second and third homes and buying alternative luxury fractional ownerships or destination club memberships. They are squarely focused on quality over quantity and they care a great deal about the environment they will leave for future generations. The Conscientious Elite see their legacy less in financial terms because they have amassed a multi-generational fortune, which frees them to focus on sharing high-quality multi-generational retreats, and connected experiences.

What about the personal services industry?
Certainly one of the top opportunities but it comes with a few hurdles. Liability of course is one, but the logistics and economies of providing customized services, as a scale model is a gating factor. Wendy Lyn is a personal services provider who connects individuals who are interested in the wine, food and culture of Paris with authentic experiences and the artisans who have a passion for what they do. The only way to tap into that type of experience is through a personal services provider, and by the very nature of what they do at their extremely high level of expertise. It is not scalable—thankfully.

Posted on

Shared Ownership & Flexible Access Will Lead Vacation Rental Home Markets

We’ve spent some time over the years counseling to and conversing with real estate developers and hospitality operators about the concept of a “Portable Nest”.  So what really is a portable nest and how can developers and operators leverage this notion in the new Shared Use Economy?

 

A Portable Nest is really a metaphor for the ease in which a family (school-aged children) or empty-nester couple can experience a second home lifestyle in multiple destinations without the drag of ownership or sacrificing on the core conveniences they expect and enjoy at home.  Portability of experience emerged with the advent of the summer cottage or the Sunday houses in Texas. That demand for personal and family space, lifestyle conveniences and sense of easily repeatable experience fueled the early second home marketplace; the first use occasion for a vacation home emerged.

 

Before I proceed though, first, a quick linear evolution overview of shared-ownership/use for perspective will set the stage for Portable Nests.  Of course the vacation home ownership model has morphed over the years in the forms of timeshare, fractional and residence clubs, but the essence of  “ownership” of experience has not deviated from the notion of a deeded interest in the real estate. With the introduction of shared-ownership, the rising need for controlling use plans (how the varying owners would have equitable access to the real estate) became important as a way to ensure that the basic tenets of the second home experience were preserved.  And when destination clubs were introduced a little more than 10 years ago, they immediately satisfied a growing appetite for what could be said at the time was an American craving for excess: excessive and extravagant lifestyles on leverage. Gone was the need to own a traditional second home because it became clumsy and difficult to maintain (read “more expensive”).  Also gone with destination clubs is the deeded interest and underlying securitization of deposits as resort real estate values plummet.

 

So how does all of this history relate back to the Portable Nest?  If we fail to learn anything from history then we are doomed to repeat the same mistakes.  In fact, Einstein once said, “ We can’t solve problems by using the same kind of thinking we used when we created them.” How this relates to the Portable Nest is that real estate developers and hospitality operators need to think creatively/differently to bridge the gap between portability of experience and access/ownership structures.  The same is true for the antiquated marketing programs and processes used to attract buyers.

 

Portable Nests are the future of vacation real estate, and the rise of a more flexible access plan combined with decreasing financial risk based upon a pay-as-you model will lead the way. Incentive to own the real estate will come later, but for now, smart consumers will realize that paying slightly more for flexible access without risk is the way to go.  Developers and operators that think through the concept of Portable Nests and re-envision their offerings to match this new model will be better positioned to survive the short-term pain and reap the rewards of long-term gain.

 

To learn more about migrating your development to the new model, give us call.  We’re portable too.

Posted on

Cognitive One Celebrates S4 Golf Tournament and Public Unveiling of Logo at Autism Awareness Event

 

Cognitive One was honored to be selected as the marketing team to create a new logo for the Swinging Fore The Spectrum charity golf tournament to benefit children and families affected by autism through the Arizona Autism Coalition.

 

Cognitive One created a logo that captured the energy of a sports brand that could be used in many additional venues and applied to golf and sports merchandise.

 

Reid Peterson, S4 tournament founder kindly stated,”We were blown away by Cognitive One and what they presented to us even in the first round of creative. They nailed it for us and the response has been very positive. We put it on the golf shirts and it was pretty impressive.”

 

About Cognitive One: Cognitive One is an interdisciplinary, innovative and uniquely skilled team that builds, hones and reinvents existing brands.  We develop and assist in financing emerging brands and management teams we believe in. We deliver tangible results that are measurable in each segment of our practice areas.

Posted on

Render-on-the-fly Personas and Branding

I was sharing great conversation in New York at the Russian Tea Room with Shane O’Neil who is the former president of RKO Group (yes, King Kong and more movies, TV stations and bottling conglomerate) and we happened to arrive at the topic of teen-aged children and their amazing ability to adapt. I thought it would form the basis of an interesting post.

 

For those of you how have tracked my spontaneous “coinage” of new phrases and concepts, I thought of a new one just then: render-on-the-fly personas.

 

GenX-ers and GenY-ers are an enigma, in that they adopt behaviors at lighting speed—they text, email and transfer social behaviors faster that ever imaginable for marketers. We all know that technology is the enabler of this bundle, but how does it occur and can you distill it and bottle it (that one’s for Shane) into a concept other than just an X or Y?

 

I think that video games and instant messaging/communication have facilitated a new psychographic, a deeper concept than just a demographic, that has given rise to the ability for individuals to literally render-on-the-fly their lifestyle and how they build their world of relevance.

 

Video games are now delivering render-on-the-fly graphics with amazing quality and at speeds that deliver results as close to reality as possible. Have you played a game on an iPhone? A dimensional experience in the palm of your hand is what you get. (See my interview on trends for 2008 for my predictions about the iPhone that have come true). The Wii, Sony and XBox platforms are all delivering immediate, interactive and community-based experiences.  More than 10 million people are registered users of www.worldofwarcraft.com and have created the largest render-on-the-fly user base in the world.

 

In political parallels, Barack Hussein Obama has, in many ways, become a master of forming a powerful and believable render-on-the-fly personality.  In fact, his meteoric rise to political power from Chicago to Washington D. C. has been at nothing less than at render-on-the-fly speed in comparison to traditional political evolution.  In many ways, Barack Hussein Obama was able to render-on-the-fly a persona that transcends modern political convention and matched a render-on-the-fly generation’s thirst for personification of a candidate more than substance of person of reality.  My opinion is that today’s media was an accelerant to his render-on-the-fly transformation.

 

Think about render-on-the-fly branding. Can we learn anything from the render-on-the-fly concepts I’ve posted today? What are your thoughts on a new render-on-the-fly persona and what does it mean to your business?

Posted on

Join us In Sponsoring The Swing Fore The Spectrum Tournament to Benefit Families with Autism May 23

March 1, 2011 (Scottsdale, Ariz)– For the second consecutive year, the Arizona Autism Coalition is partnering with course host Pinnacle Peak Country Club for its Swing Fore The Spectrum golf tournament. Cognitive One is pleased to be a participating sponsor in bringing awareness to this very worthwhile event, taking place on May 23, 2011. Proceeds from the tournament support families who are affected by autism.

 

Key Sponsorship entitles you to a foursome in the golf tournament, complimentary food and beverages, your company’s name in the player’s book, hole signage and advertising in the Coalition roster.

Tax Deductible Contribution: $3,000

 

Hole Sponsorship provides you with advertising exposure to golfers in addition to your company’s name in the player’s book.
Tax Deductible Contribution: $300

 

Single Players will enjoy 18 holes of golf on one of the Valley’s finest private golf courses along with complimentary food and beverages.
Tax Deductible Contribution: $250

 

You can download all of the forms from their website here: Swing Fore The Spectrum Registration

 

We feel that this is a great opportunity for of our members and supporting vendors to demonstrate their commitment to the Arizona Autism Coalition and look forward to your contribution. If you are interested in either one of these opportunities, please send the check (and your high‐resolution logo for Key Sponsorships) to:

“Swinging Fore the Spectrum Classic” c/o Reid Peterson
39548 N. Prairie Lane
Anthem, AZ 85086

 

About The Arizona Autism Coalition
The Arizona Autism Coalition is an inclusive stakeholder organization committed to improving the lives of families, providers and educators impacted by autism in the state of Arizona. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 1 in 110 American children, more specifically 1 in 70 Boys, are now diagnosed with ASD: Autism Spectrum Disorder. This represents a staggering 57 percent increase from 2002 to 2006, and a 600 percent increase in just the past 20 years.

 

Because of this statistic, the chance that you have been personally affected or know of someone who has been affected by Autism is exceptionally high. The Arizona Autism Coalition is dedicated to the sharing of resources and information related to autism, and working with state agencies towards systems change for the betterment of the community. The Coalition is comprised of parents and family members affected by autism, representatives from provider agencies, medical professionals, local and state governmental agencies and other related special needs providers.

Posted on

National Coalition of African American Owned Media taps Cognitive One for Brand Strategy

November 1, 2010  Los Angeles, CA–Cognitive One has recently completed a corporate identity and brand development strategy for the National Coalition of African American Owned Media (NCAAOM) as the coalition emerges as a significant contributor to the dialog surrounding the NBC Universal and Comcast transaction that could limit access for African American content distribution.

 

“Cognitive One has taken the time to understand our immediate needs to communicate the platform of NCAAOM and developed a brand identity that is reflective of our multicultural content development, production and distribution advocacy.  The new logo has been overwhelmingly received by the coalition and we look forward to rolling it out shortly.” commented Stanley Washington, executive director of the NCAAOM.

 

Posted on

Tiger’s Train Wreck and How It Could Have Been Avoided

The whole thing about Tiger Wood’s story isn’t the infidelity with sex. It’s really the infidelity with truth, the mishandling of a great American treasure, and the unbridled arrogance of public relations handlers that underestimate the intelligence and savvy of the public.

Unfortunately, we watched a train wreck on Friday. More unfortunate is that it was avoidable – if only he used his moral and public relations GPS. Tiger had a window slammed shut on Thanksgiving Day, 2009. He hid. It was a total failure to understand the magnitude of the pending abject destruction of his reputation and the risk of loss of his legacy. Yes, even his children will pay for the domino effect of mistakes. Michael Jackson’s children have a story that will unfurl in the future. Tiger needlessly brought his back into the fight today as part of the one-man pity party.

Tiger had a window, albeit small, to neutralize the issue. He was mismanaged and told to wait. And in an uncanny parallel to our national debt, the reluctance to admit we’ve failed to elect leaders that can lead, and the sobering reality that China has exceeded our position as the global compass, so too has Tiger Woods fallen victim to our Pollyanna-glass expectation that our sports saviors are perfect. Alas, he has fallen. The global hybrid perfection myth has been pierced. Tiger now falls to the same weak and weary standard as Kobe Bryant, Prince Charles of England with his dalliances, and even Hollywood icon Mel Gibson; all failures of faith, moral turpitude and current values worthy of print.

It could have been different. Several investors, large corporate sponsors and observers asked me what I would have recommended. The answer would have made a pin drop. I told them that Tiger should have made a statement to shock the world – tell the truth…and fast. Admit failure in front of all cameras and reporters the next day; scratches, fat lip and all. Answer all questions until the last word has been uttered and the last flash bulb has fired. Execute the lost art of the take-away. Take all questions and news, conjecture and myth away. Absorb all the bullets at one time and leave nothing left to talk about tomorrow – then off to rehab to be fixed. Imagine a one-day PR cycle where the press has to say nothing tomorrow. This didn’t happen, mostly because we have PR hacks as advocates handling Tiger that have well exceeded their high school yearbook expectations.

Yes, call me a cynic, but I expected that professional handlers would have seen it clearly as a firefight. Put it out fast. Dump it all fast. Douse the flames; look like a hero. Instead, not much happened and we all saw the embers re-ignite on Friday, fanned by the flames of a horrific PR mishandling.

At first, Tiger and his handler denied the fire existed—even started. Then the flames appeared—more than one, and several. Now today, we witnessed the volunteer firefighting station claim, “we saved the foundation!” Appall. What a sad failure. Standing in front of camera(s) that shown a light through a lightless and wandering soul, we saw the calculated hunter, the conqueror, and the consumer of raw meat—Tiger Woods, who is now obviously in denial, claim that he will be a better vegetarian when rehabilitated. Hide the carrots.

His disingenuous story of cravings and subduing the impulse of flesh is ridiculous. He is a man. Admit it and we would forgive. Blame it on wandering from Buddhism shows more weakness and a failure to accept the blame for his actions. Even more, if he were following Christian beliefs as part of his “commitment” to marriage, then he passively indicted Christianity for failing him. Please. Step up—maybe 12 steps before you touch a microphone again. Today you were a fool. No 310-yard drive can save you from this hook from the tee.

That the cameras failed during his statement was poetic justice to his perfect swing and the perfect 32-foot putt to win a tournament. It was the perfect/imperfect finish to a failed PR campaign that was misguided like a hook from the first tee. It’s the turn of the second round of life’s tournament for him. Now Tiger has to scramble out of this disaster for a respectable finish on Sunday (church aside). Let’s hope he doesn’t wear red. Maybe a scarlet T is too harsh, but he has to be a real human for us to believe in Superman. That was the lesson for us all today; that Superman could love Lois Lane for her faults and that she could adore him for his, and that we admired both of them for their moral centers and character flaws that made it a wonderful tale. We all lost a hero today. Lois would shun Tiger today. So should we until he is transparent, real and understands that he has followed the wrong path, in far more ways than just sexual indiscretions. And then we can stop watching this slow-motion train wreck come to a painful and grinding (no pun intended) halt.

–Mark Cain