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Speed Dial: 60-Second Marketing Insight Newsletter
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Companies work years- - no, decades- - to nurture the kind of brand loyalty and affection Apple has
developed with its consumers. The Mac, iPod, iPhone, & iPad have legions upon legions of
diehard fans who love and trust the innovative Cupertino
company.
Last week’s revelations hit them like a bomb.
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According to the Wall
Street Journal and ABC News,
Apple has been taking GPS data from its iPhone users and storing that information for over a year. They’ve got 6-12
months of detailed data from the typical consumer- - “where you live and work, where you frequent movies and dinner
and even if you’ve spent the night at someone’s house”, explains Peter Eckersley of the Electronic Frontier
Foundation.
The news was met with disbelief and shock. What? Why is Apple running covert ops on its users? What do they want
to do with this personal data? Many consumers are feeling bewildered and betrayed by their favorite
brand.
What you’re seeing, right here, right now, is a moment to remember. Pull up a chair, because you’re witnessing a
fascinating chapter of marketing history.
Apple’s actions, not Steve Jobs’ health, will determine whether or not the iconic brand implodes over the next
five years. Apple’s identity is at stake at this pivotal moment.
Because really, what is Apple? We all know that Apple is innovative. Apple is hip. At its very core, however,
the Apple brand is much more than that. Apple is the underdog in all of us, the David who dares to take on Goliath
Microsoft/PC based on brains rather than brawn. Apple is the guy we can’t help but love, the guy we cheer for to
beat all the odds.
Now we’ve got a problem. What happens when that storyline gets screwed up? We all love the little guy. But what
in the world are we supposed to do when he starts acting like a brute?
Apple’s reaction to the expose has been remarkably bad. Most of the time, the company declines to comment. When
it does, it coldly reiterates that all its policies are spelled out in its user agreement and that the data is
anonymous and untraceable to individual users. The message? Go away. Leave us alone. Stop bothering us with these
pesky questions. And this, from the company whose landmark '1984' commercial set out to shatter an arrogant, hostile, and
even sinister world.
There’s still time for Apple to take a friendly, transparent tonality and explain, step by step, just how easy
it is to turn off the tracking function. It can talk about how difficult it would be for anyone to link tracking
data back to a specific consumer. It can apologize for any misunderstanding, explain why the data is collected, and
ask consumers once again for their permission. What’s so hard about that?
Apple can do the right thing for its fans, right now. If the company continues its current course of action,
however, we’ll look back on today in a few years and ask a sad question- -
“So where were you when one of America’s great brands came tumbling down?”
And ironically, Apple will know.
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I guess time will tell. As always, thanks for the interesting take on things.
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