Tag Archives: Case Study

Apple iPad: Solution Evaluation

– By Steve Robins

Rating the Apple iPad as a Solution
iPad Series Part II

Read Part I, Apple iPad: Tablet or Solution

iPad - a complete solution

A complete solution incorporates users, process, content, technology and services

Since January, I’ve been researching the Apple iPad in order to rate it as a solution.  I even took one for a test drive on Sunday (thanks Jeff Berg of Purple Shark Consulting!).  The rating is actually a strategic tool that enables marketers to meet customer needs by offering a complete solution. But the Apple iPad has generated so much hype that it’s a great solution to evaluate.  The iPad received a rating of 4.3 out of 5.  By comparison, most other tablet offerings today would probably score 2.5 or lower on the solution rating scale.  The best possible score is 5 (complete solution) while the lowest is 1 (product, not a solution).  This is an independent evaluation and was not funded by Apple.

Click “Keep reading” below to see the full solution evaluation of the Apple iPad.

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Filed under Case Studies, Pricing, SIVA - Elements of Solution Marketing, Solution Marketing, Value

Apple iPad: Tablet or Solution?

– By Steve Robins

The Apple iPad is a complete solution
iPad Series Part I

iPad is here

Read Part II, Apple iPad: Solution Evaluation

In recent weeks, you may have wondered about the anticipated success of the Apple iPad, similar to that of the iPhone and iPods that preceded it.  Yes, Apple builds powerful, well-designed and easy-to-use products.  And yes, despite Apple products’ frequently higher price, consumers have snapped up Apple Macs, iPods and iPhones at a rapid clip (over 75 million people use the iPhone and iTouch today).  At the same time, the media industry itself is all abuzz that Apple devices, especially the iPad, will finally provide a content platform that enables them to make money from their digital content.

Apple doesn’t create technology platforms alone:
Apple solves problems.

But all of this misses one critical point: users have problems to solve and Apple does a better job of solving their “problems” than most other PC or electronics companies (Do you agree?  Comment below!).   So what is this “problem”? As the computer experience has shifted from digital content creation (think spreadsheets and documents – which will always be important) to digital content consumption (music, Web, images, video), people want to be able to access content from anywhere – on the go, at the office, in the living room.  And thus far, Apple has solved the problem better than anyone else.

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Filed under Case Studies, Solution Marketing, Solutions

It’s the Business Problem, Stupid

A Lesson from AMD’s Consumer Solutions

– By Steve Robins

AMD Simplifies Chip Labeling

AMD Simplifies Chip Labeling (Source: TechSpot)

Several months ago, chipmaker AMD updated their consumer marketing to focus on the total value of their PC chips rather than the speeds and feeds that consumers often found confusing and nearly meaningless.  This case study offers a great lesson for solution marketers.

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Filed under Case Studies, Information, Solution Marketing

SAP Customers Demand Value for Enterprise Support

By: Steve Robins

This is an update to the earlier post, Oracle, SAP and the Value of Maintenance & Support Contracts:

VALUE is a core element of the SIVA solution marketing model.  Not surprisingly, the most important element in pricing a solution is the solution’s VALUE as perceived by customers.  That lesson proved embarrassing for SAP this week as they were forced to slow down a planed support price increase until they could demonstrate its value.      Continue reading

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Filed under Case Studies, SIVA - Elements of Solution Marketing, Solution Marketing, Value