Simplicity

I was browsing the internet last week and came across a video interview with Ken Segall, author of Insanely Simple: The Obsessions that Drive Apple’s Success. While simple in nature, Segall, who had numerous interviews with Steve Jobs, talks how it’s not just your products and services that have to be simple, but the idea must be ingrained in your employees as well.

Before I go further, take a glance at the video.

The reason I want to talk about this is because I think any business, whether in marketing, accounting, retail or whatever, can take valuable lessons from Segall.

Keep things simple. We all know we should do it, but chances are, many don’t. Just look at an IKEA manual some time and you will see my point. Apple, on the other hand, despite being involved in one of the most innovative industries out there, never makes a product complicated or difficult to use. This idea of simplicity went as high as Steve Jobs and as low as their igeniuses in stores across the world. If the product isn’t simple to them, how would it be simple for their consumers?

In the video above, Segall referenced an image that really demonstrates how Apple stands out from the rest.

Why add more options when you could simplify things with fewer buttons? Why make your consumers work harder to use your products? If you, the company, works harder at designing and integrating your products into everyday life, that means less work for your consumers. If the idea of simplicity is ingrained in the company culture, that mindset will spread from the workers onto the fans.

Make your products easy to understand and easy to use. Make sure complexity is never a word someone would use to describe your product. Make sure your employees understand that making your products and/or service as simple as possible is as relevant as selling the brand itself. Do this, and who knows? Maybe Apple could actually have some competition.

Video source:iStrategy