Steve Neiderhauser

Archetypes and Marketing

Seth Godin writes about archetypes and why some products seem to market themselves. In another post, he writes about the magic-stick archetype, and places the iPod in this category.

From the Storymaking Seminar, we know that metaphors spring from the archetype. So just as Obi-Wan Kenobi is a metaphor of the father-figure archetype, the iPod is a metaphor of the magic-stick archetype.

How do you make a metaphor relevant? By using creativity's tools -- multiply, magnify, minimize, and combine elements until your image is captivating. Perhaps the iPod will become the ultimate magic device when wireless is added -- and songs are waved from one magical device to another.

tags: Marketing, Story

Definition of a product manager

What does a product manager do? Simple question, isn't it? And yet, few companies understand the product manager role. Michael on High-Tech Product Management defines six roles of the successful product manager.

Update: I had an interview with a startup company this past week for a product manager position. The VP of Software was so proud of his designs -- with each cleaver detail he revealed, a grin crawled across his face. This reminded me that one of the key roles of a product manager is making sure that the company is driven by marketing, and the voice of the customer.

tags: Product Management

Once upon an option

Seemed silly, didn't it? Apple having a team of high-paid engineers maintain an Intel version of OS X -- especially when no one was using it.

And yet, when Apple -- in the springtime of its options -- switched to Intel hardware, the wisdom of options, blossoms. For the switch to Intel has produced a field of options that are making some dreams come true -- "Yup, I can run Windows on a Mac."

Still, Intel's embedded "Virtualization Technology" is begging to be exercised. So don't be surprised if Apple powers up a virtual OS engine in its next OS: Leopard.

Indeed, Parallels now offers a virtual Windows platform, turning Windows into a virtual appliance.

tags: Marketing, Product Management

3D Lens for IT Strategy

Several years ago, I attended a marketing seminar given by Dr. Art Weinstein. Dr. Weinstein taught us how to define a market using the 3D analysis model. The 3D model consists of the following dimensions:

• Customer groups (market segments)
• Customer needs (functions / uses)
• Technology

Here’s an example for the laptop market in 1995:

• Customer groups: Business traveler
• Customer needs: Laptop, mobility
• Technology: 486DX chip

During the lecture, I realized that a consulting company could use this model to build right-sized applications for its customers. Suppose a 76-person business asks a consulting company to develop a web app that stores information in a relational database. Let’s peer through the 3D lens and see what database appears in the target window.

• Customer group: Mid-sized company
• Customer needs: Process 2,000 records per day
• Technology: ?

Given the customer groups and needs, a vision begins to form for the database technology. We’d skip past an Oracle database configured in high availability. Instead, we’d be inclined to select MS SQL Server -- or MySql -- for this target market. Anyway, you get the picture.

tags: Marketing, Product Management