The Apple that fell from the Cool tree

What can be said about Steve Jobs that hasn’t been already? He was a pioneer, he was a visionary, and he was...Apple. What’s so impressive about what SJ achieved is the way in which a technology brand became one of the coolest brands in history. When Apple revolutionised the technology market with the Apple II maybe only Jobs himself could have predicted the innovation that was to follow. The Macintosh changed the PC, the iPod and iTunes changed music, the iPhone changed the mobile phone and the iPad...changed everything.

Innovation is something that Apple has done better than anyone and this is key for any brand wanting that cool label. James Murphy said “[cool] is simply a by-product of both integrity and innovation”. Apple have made what is on the surface the complete opposite of cool (computers) and made it supercool. People from all around the world are proud to go to the openings of Apple stores, to queue up for their products and it seems once you’re in with Apple there’s no going back. Being able to create this level of brand loyalty is no mean feat and it has caused the rest of the technology market to up their game.

Being cool is something that all brands should strive for regardless of the industry because that is at the core of brand loyalty. More people own Harley Davidson merchandise than Harley Davidson motorbikes. It’s all about the in-crowd and Apple have shown that even with the most nerd like products you can be cooler than a polar bear in a pair of Ray-Bans. I wish I knew how to create a fool proof ‘get cool’ plan, but the truth is that all brands have an element of cool it’s just how you talk about it. Recent cool brand lists have included Wellington boot manufacturers, chocolate, hair straighteners and websites one thing they have is an ashamed passion for their brand and this gives them the cool factor. Adidas, Aston Martin, Green & Blacks, GHD, Hunter, Barbour, Google, YouTube, Innocent, Lastminute.com they know how to talk about their offerings and they know who they are talking to.

Steve jobs knew how to talk about his product and how to think different. Here’s to the crazy ones, like Steve Jobs, because those who are crazy enough to think they can change the world, are usually the ones that do.