I love technology. I
have spent my career working with it, whether it be access systems,
ASIC design, optical transmission systems or more recently in two
technology based start-up companies. I have been in the design side
as well as the Product Management of Technology and it’s all been a
blast.
The pace of change and
bewildering array of technology means I struggle to keep up....
I-pad, I-phone, I-don’t know what, Twitter and the really popular
BookFace which everyone is using. In fact I love that you can’t
really keep up with it all – we do well to keep up with some of it.
However, one of the
things that I do note as I look at the ads in Tech magazines and
technology companies web sites is that tech companies often push the
technology (features).
Sounds a little odd
doesn’t given what I have just said but what I want to know is what
will all this lovely tech stuff actually do for me?
Many tech companies are
in fact poor at marketing. They talk about fancy features and give
them even more confusing acronyms for example Sony's XR400 motion
flow technology.....totally meaningless twoddle.
Examples are
everywhere. Sexy technology that runs this operating system, or does
more mega-flops than an inebriated amateur diver is all well and good
– and if you’re a tech head I’m sure it’s all very
interesting. BUT… what does it do for the end user?
You know, the poor
person who is actually the customer. Yes that’s right, the
individual who actually splashes his or her hard earned cash on this
wonderful product – what benefits does it deliver?
If the product doesn’t
deliver any tangible, measurable benefits then what’s the point?
But of course the vast majority of products DO deliver benefits but
the company’s marketing just doesn’t make it clear. But boy can
you read about the technology. And as for those mega-flops….
As a Product Manager I
got into the habit of asking the tech-heads the “so what?”
question. It would go like this.
Tech Head: “This
device can send 5 gazillion bits down this ying-yang”
Me: “So what?”
Tech Head: “Well we
can squeeze more into the ying-yang”
Me: “So what?”
Tech Head: “Well it
improves the utilisation of the ying-yang”
Me: “So what?”
Tech Head: “Well it
lowers the cost per bit down a ying-yang”
Me: “So what?”
Tech Head: “Well a
new ying-yang is mega bucks – they dont need to buy another one”
The point I’m making
is that all this technology must have a purpose. It must bring some
benefit to the customer – in this case the benefit is lower cost
and the value is it avoids the need for new investment in expensive
ying-yangs .
The “so what?”
question is a tad old now, and maybe it’s gone out of fashion but
it really is important. I think there are many companies – not just
those in the high tech sector - who should ask themselves this
question. A business needs to be really clear on what they are
selling and why customers buy what they are selling.
Another way of looking
at it is to ask a slightly different question. I was speaking with an
Angel Investor recently about a Music Technology product that is
being developed by a small start-up company that I was working with.
I thought I’d clearly outlined the benefits – my 30 second
elevator pitch was very polished... or so I thought.
He then simply said
this: “What problem does it solve?”
Like the “so what?”
question, this can help focus the mind and we would all do well to
remember this.
Customers dont buy
features, they buy the value that benefits deliver. Value to
customers is when a feature has value. If the customer has lots of
unused ying-yangs the benefit of lower cost per ying yang will
probably not light their fire!
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