BizDharma.com

Around two and a half years back we had the iconic iPhone launch. There was a great media buzz around it. Hundreds of thousands of iPhones sold in just a couple of days. There were raving fans and blabbering media. Later the dust settled. 2 years from that days and every quarter the media now talks about the next phone coming in market. By any chance if the phone has some advanced functionality we term it as an “iPhone killer”. The way I see this, it is the most self killing prophecy that a company can think of. Being an iPhone killer, all you are going to do is reduce your sales and kill your business not Apple’s and that’s what these killers are doing.

Incase if you are not aware we had the Nokia 5800, N97, than Palm pre, Blackberry Storm, Sony Ericsson Xperia, HTC Hero, Motorola Droid etc etc… the list goes long. All were/are termed as the iPhone killers. If you think deeper, same happens with us in office and with companies in industries. The colleague, management or the end user tries to view a new person/product or company with regards to an existing one. We do that and that’s where we go wrong. So when you talk about Droid (and the new iDont campaign) what are you talking about? Droid or the iPhone? At times I believe (and I believe strongly) Apple should start paying these competitors to promote the iPhone brand free of cost. Because what they are doing, is simply awful!

Rather writing huge stories I better be to the point and put across top 7 good reasons why iPhone killers are in reality iPhone promoters and do understand that you are in the industry to create your own repute and grow your market; not try to compare or cut other’s business.

1. iPhone Killer is about the iPhone - If I don’t know a good laundry service and you come to me with your new laundry service saying you are better than Mr X, what will happen? I immediately understand Mr X is a reputed name in the laundry industry. Won’t I?
2. Who did iPhone kill? Big question. IPhone is not a killer, its a creator of its own market. It has its own personality. Was iPhone a Nokia XX00 Killer or a Sony Ericsson XXX0i Killer? Got it ?
3. Being a killer is being a ‘me too’ You try to compare yourself, that’s the worst thing you can possibly do to grow.
4. You concentrate on the wrong side of life Mother Teresa once declined joining an anti-terror rally, because the anti terror rally is about Terror and not Peace. Anti terror squad removes terror but world requires peace and peace squad is missing. Try to market yourself not your competitor.
5. You are playing the wrong game! The game is completely different here. iPhone is a cool device, cool operating system, cool service and a cool company all packaged into one. Nokia, Motorola, Sony Ericsson, Palm… all are bulk phone manufacturers. Compare the ratio of number of Nokia phones:Apple Phones.
6. Revenue is not only in the phone - Hope you got that. Even with tonnes of criticism Apple has made big bucks with the Apple store. Do you think any mobile manufacturer has a comparative service to Apple Store, yet?
7. Finally iPhone is in its own league - You read a word just now Apple phone. How many times have you read this “Apple phone”, “Apple’s phone” or what ever? Its just ‘iPhone’ and its concentrating out there. In India many don’t even know that the company that produces iPhone is Apple. iPhone is a brand in itself. Understand one more thing we have a Nokia 5800, 1234, 5678 etc and here’s an iPhone that is it not an Apple iPhone 6699. iPhone is about iPhone and it is a big brand now, in the league of its own.

Hope you got this head fake right. Not a technology blog post, it is just a way to make you understand to be what you are.  Don’t be a simple replacement or kill anyone’s market, have your own persona. I believe that is the only way to know yourself and pave your own path for success.

“When you are content to be simply yourself and don’t compare or compete, everybody will respect you.” -  Lao Tzu (Chinese philosopher) source thinkexist.com

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