Think Pink – First take on Microsoft’s Kin

This has been a pretty wild first quarter. Google’s in the phone business. Apple’s in the ad business. Microsoft’s launched not one, but two new mobile platforms (anyone out there still think Microsoft is getting out of the mobile space?).

Yesterday, MSFT launched KIN, a new brand and set of devices aimed at specific demographic that bucks the trend of many mobile strategies. My first take on the news is the subject of this week’s Engadget column. While there are those who view this effort skeptically, there’s a lot of data to suggest that there’s a very specific market here that’s looking for exactly this kind of targeted functionality.

“Mature platforms and markets fragment. This is true of just about all markets. There are features, designs and other factors that all target different users and demographics. It’s something that’s just starting to happen in the mobile space and Microsoft is wise to get ahead of this curve. If one-size-fit all, and the only focus was on utilitarian functions we’d all drive Honda Civics, wear Timex watches and use BIC pens. We don’t — and the reasons that we don’t are what make Kin look very attractive”

We’re past the point of one size fits all for mobility. Look for more targeted products that aim to specific demographic or psychographic and look for more products that are polarizing in their appeal.

What Twitter’s “Promoted Tweets” Means To The Ecosystem

This has been an interesting few days for Twitter, affecting everything from Twitter client vendors to a new advertising model. Altimeter Group takes a look at the new promoted Tweets model ad what it means for the Twitter ecosystem. Read all about it here.

Why CIOs need to think CES

So much of today’s technology is driven by end users and consumer technology rate and pace is becoming more important than business adoption. Net result? Consumers are both more informed, more empowered and want a seat at the technology table. That’s why I advice CEOs to think about CES in my latest Computerworld column.

“Today’s business users tend not to make a distinction between business and personal technology. In fact, they have become the early adopters of technology, and more and more it is common for their personal technology to be superior to what they use at work. At home, they have become accustomed to doing tasks that were once the exclusive province of IT workers.

In middle-class American homes today, you will likely find several networked PCs. The household’s tech savvy members take on roles pretty much equivalent to CIO and help desk manager. Little Susie and Johnny might still be expected to make their beds and take out the trash, but they might also get chores like updating all the computers with the latest security patches.”

Details, Details, Details. Why Apple’s MacBook Pro refresh matters more than you think

I wasn’t planning to write about this morning’s MacBook Pro refresh. After all, for the most part, these are speed bump machines with some nice processor upgrades for the most part. Nice, but not earth shaking either. Then three features leaped out at me. Better battery life. An automatic way to switch between discrete and integrated graphics and momentum scrolling. Three features. None of them are a reason to buy a new computer. In fact, if Apple had ignored them didn’t include any of them in this release, I suspect they’d have not sold one less MacBook as a result.

Which gets me to my point. They did include them. Why? It’s simple, details matter. A lot. We often hear of the “Apple tax” and have seen vendors copy Apple’s form factor down to the metal case, keyboard layout and other design elements. What many other vendors miss is the attention to the small details that by themselves don’t matter all that much but add value and delight as the user discovers them. Are they small issue? Sure, but they fix real problems. The need to switch graphic modes by logging in and out is not a big deal but it’s inelegant. It costs wasted cycles. It makes things harder for the user. Some engineer was bothered enough by this to fix it. It’s now a feature. It’s now the standard on how this function should work. In short, for those that use this feature, it will bring a smile to their face. To those who never used it, it’s one more way the computing experience became that much more seamless.

When vendors focus on the big picture but also focus on the small details as well, they differentiate themselves from the market. By worrying about things no one else is worried about they find new ways to delight and provide value to their customers. Along the way, they change customers to fans and generate trust and loyalty. And that’s the important takeaway from what appears to be a minor product refresh but actually is something more.