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18th out of 21 books
—
24 voters
Insanely Simple: The Obsession That Drives Apple's Success
by
Ken Segall
To Steve Jobs, Simplicity was a religion. It was also a weapon.
Simplicity isn’t just a design principle at Apple—it’s a value that permeates every level of the organization. The obsession with Simplicity is what separates Apple from other technology companies. It’s what helped Apple recover from near death in 1997 to become the most valuable company on Earth in 2011.
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Simplicity isn’t just a design principle at Apple—it’s a value that permeates every level of the organization. The obsession with Simplicity is what separates Apple from other technology companies. It’s what helped Apple recover from near death in 1997 to become the most valuable company on Earth in 2011.
Thanks...more
Hardcover, 240 pages
Published
April 26th 2012
by Portfolio Penguin
(first published February 1st 2012)
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Of all of the books jumping on the Steve Jobs bandwagon, this is perhaps the one that’s most of value.
This is perhaps the one management book which has really resonated with me since Don Peppers and Martha Rogers’ The One-To-One Future. Let’s face it, that’s not great: that was published in 1996.
I’m old enough to have worked for organisations both large and small – as an employee and as an outside supplier. It can be frustrating to be working for an organisation that has a core of brilliance but...more
This is perhaps the one management book which has really resonated with me since Don Peppers and Martha Rogers’ The One-To-One Future. Let’s face it, that’s not great: that was published in 1996.
I’m old enough to have worked for organisations both large and small – as an employee and as an outside supplier. It can be frustrating to be working for an organisation that has a core of brilliance but...more
광고대행사 Chiat/Day 시절부터 스티브잡스의 마케팅 대행일을 해주면서 애플사의 iMac에 i자를 애플 제품들의 고유명으로 자리잡게 한 광고컨설턴트 Ken Segall씨는 애플사의 성공을 견인했던 중요한 요인은 모든 점에서 “simple”한데 있다고 주장한다. 단순함을 위한 스티브잡스의 열정은 디자인은 물론이고 마케팅, 조직관리, 그리고 유통에 이르기까지 애플사 전분야에 걸친 비즈니스 철학으로 자립잡는다. 심지어 애플은 구매 대상층의 분석도 단 하나로 통일해 버렸다. 바로 “사람”이다. 마케팅 전문가들이 보면 가장 비과학적인 마켓 분할이 아니던가? 다른 회사들은 비즈니스 컴퓨팅 시장과 일반 소비자 시장을 나누고, 그 안에서 또 다양한 소비자 세분화(세그멘테이션)를 시도한다. 운영체제도 가정용, 학생용, 전문가용등으로 나뉘고 MS오피스도 마찬가지다. 하지만 애플은 단 한번도 기업 고객 시장을 위한 제품 차별화나 마케팅 기획을 한 적이 없다. 또 조직관리에서도 스티브잡스는 단순함외...more
Written by a LONG time Apple marketing guy - I mean long time. Worked in the pre-jobs-return era, worked with Steve at NEXT, worked with Jobs after his return. Written as a business book about "embracing simple" which is all very interesting and obvious and whatnot, and mildly useful in that realm. But it does have some great little anecdotes, though not tons of them. Some nice intimate moments between the author and steve on the phone late at night, and a crazy anecdote about a deep, long consi...more
Yes, this book is that good. It's quite possibly the most important marketing book since Purple Cow: Transform Your Business by Being Remarkable by Seth Godin. Segall shows us how Apple's maniacal emphasis on simplicity distinguishes it from Microsoft, Dell, HP, Intel, and other tech stalwarts.
In an age in which consumers are king, inundating them with features and specs is exactly the wrong approach. Rather, as Segall shows, Apple (through Steve Jobs and continuing under Tim Cook) does the oppo...more
In an age in which consumers are king, inundating them with features and specs is exactly the wrong approach. Rather, as Segall shows, Apple (through Steve Jobs and continuing under Tim Cook) does the oppo...more
This book is written by one of the advertising and marketing guys that has worked with Apple for decades. He wrote the book for business leaders. The stated aim of the book is to help those business leaders embrace the simplicity that helped Apple turn around and become one of the most successful companies, and well-known brands, in the world.
That is not why I read the book.
Ken Segall worked closely with Steve Jobs for a long time and I was hoping to get a first-hand account of Jobs as the leade...more
That is not why I read the book.
Ken Segall worked closely with Steve Jobs for a long time and I was hoping to get a first-hand account of Jobs as the leade...more
Insanely Simple is motivating and fun to read. The book would have been better with pictures of the Apple print ads cited, or even a list of the Apple print and television ads, so the reader could hunt for them on the Internet. (Here's a start.)
1985 Superbowl Apple "Lemmings" ad:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PYP1Tj...
Apple 1984 ad:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HhsWzJ...
Think Different ad:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cFEarB...
2006 Mac vs. PC:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z-dfYp...
Apple "Toas...more
1985 Superbowl Apple "Lemmings" ad:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PYP1Tj...
Apple 1984 ad:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HhsWzJ...
Think Different ad:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cFEarB...
2006 Mac vs. PC:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z-dfYp...
Apple "Toas...more
“Simple can be harder than
complex. You have to work hard to
get your thinking clean to make
it simple. But it’s worth it in the
end, because once you get there,
you can move mountains.”
—Steve Jobs”
The book speaks of only one thing, 'Simplicity'. But mind you, that simplicity has produced and is currently being observed by a multi-billion dollar company, nuff said! This book is just a snappy glimpse in Steve's professionalism. Recommended for young individuals who aspire in jumping-up their level of...more
complex. You have to work hard to
get your thinking clean to make
it simple. But it’s worth it in the
end, because once you get there,
you can move mountains.”
—Steve Jobs”
The book speaks of only one thing, 'Simplicity'. But mind you, that simplicity has produced and is currently being observed by a multi-billion dollar company, nuff said! This book is just a snappy glimpse in Steve's professionalism. Recommended for young individuals who aspire in jumping-up their level of...more
Voici un livre qui donne matière à une (bonne) réflexion. Dans cet ouvrage, Ken Segall ancien directeur de création publicitaire pour Apple nous donne le "secret ingredient" de la réussite d'Apple : la quête continuelle de la Simplicité. Par le biais d'exemples et d'anecdotes, nous entrons au coeur du processus de création d'Apple. Chapitre après chapitre la recherche de la Simplicité, déclinée à chaque moment de la conception des produits, démontre sa supériorité par rapport à la Complexité opp...more
Very good book that provides a different perspective from the Steve Jobs biography. Basically the reason Jobs and Apple were successful was an intense focus on the most import things. This focus lead them to "simplify".
One example is Jobs push for the Macintosh team to have a one-button mouse or the iPhone team to have one-button that will take you to the Home Screen. This carries through to everything they do, including the Apple Store where you will see no cash registers but the purchasing exp...more
One example is Jobs push for the Macintosh team to have a one-button mouse or the iPhone team to have one-button that will take you to the Home Screen. This carries through to everything they do, including the Apple Store where you will see no cash registers but the purchasing exp...more
This is a quirky and charmingly plain collection of anecdotes about Segall's interactions with Steve Jobs, and, more importantly, his takeaway lessons from Apple's success. It is, by design, a cherry-picked history, but in that it actually succeeds where Walter Isaacson's authorized biography failed. Isaacson spent so much time making sure his Steve was well rounded and fairly covered, he forgot to find (for lack of searching, it seems) any cause for the man's mindblowing career. Segall gets to...more
I hated the marketing book parts of Insanely Simple. Maybe all marketing/business books are like this, but I don’t read them very often – if this was a presentation, I bet it would start and end with a detailed agenda, and slides would be bullet points with tons of repetition.
But the pandering and hammering the points over and over again aside, the book contains tons of fascinating marketing stories from Steve Jobs’s life at NeXT and post-NeXT Apple. Many of those stories have not been told bef...more
But the pandering and hammering the points over and over again aside, the book contains tons of fascinating marketing stories from Steve Jobs’s life at NeXT and post-NeXT Apple. Many of those stories have not been told bef...more
Představte si, že život Ježíše se skládal povětšinou z událostí, jako bylo zlořečení fíkovníku... a vy chcete napsat evangelium.
Mytickou bytostí není v Insanely Simple syn tesaře ale minulý CEO Apple. Na sbírku historek z jeho života jich je málo, na rozbor jednoduchosti chybí cokoli hlubšího než "lidé to mají rádi jednoduché" a jako pokus zmapovat vznik některých produktů kniha stojí za houby, protože je napsal reklamkář a ne někdo, kdo má páru (iPhone je jednoduchý, protože má jedno tlačítko...more
Mytickou bytostí není v Insanely Simple syn tesaře ale minulý CEO Apple. Na sbírku historek z jeho života jich je málo, na rozbor jednoduchosti chybí cokoli hlubšího než "lidé to mají rádi jednoduché" a jako pokus zmapovat vznik některých produktů kniha stojí za houby, protože je napsal reklamkář a ne někdo, kdo má páru (iPhone je jednoduchý, protože má jedno tlačítko...more
Another very good business book which propels you into the the past and into the inner machinations of Steve Jobs as he takes Apple not once but twice into the annals of history. Wholly enjoyable, with an aside spent online viewing the iconoclastic Apple advertisements which redefined what technology can do for you. From small groups of smart people to creativity over process, this book is a primer on how to make business ideas matter. It is the philosophy behind a product, and how the authentic...more
This is a nice little book for those seeking to understand the philosophy of Steve Jobs, and how the mantra of simplicity in all facets of Apple has led to its remarkable success. Also it will be interesting to anybody in advertising or marketing, as it was written by a creative director from Chiat Day, Apple's ad agency. I found the stories of ad presentations entertaining, and there are techniques to be learned. But the book suffers a bit from the very thing it warns readers about...redundancy...more
This book is going to make me a pain in the butt at my office as I'm going to be the annoying "how can we simplify this" person from now on. It's a useful book to read, although frankly, how can anyone write a book on simplicity and not expect to be criticized for over-complicating the premise? The author repeats himself and explains too much to the nth degree, even though it's not a very long book. But he's a fun storyteller, particularly of Steve Jobs encounters. And he has a fun sense of humo...more
Buat gw yang baru mulai belajar membaca buku ini sangat simple, gampang dimengerti, memberikan arahan yang jelas, selalu ada pengulangan bahasan untuk setiap chapternya sehingga gw tidak kehilangan esensi dari setiap chapternya.
Buku ini memberikan mengajarkan bahwa hidup itu bisa sangat sangat simple tapi untuk menjalankannya bisa sangat complexity.
Steve Jobs menjadi center of universe di buku ini karena penulisnya sangat terinspirasi oleh jalan hidupnya dan hari-hari bersama Jobs.
Regards,
Dhedh...more
Buku ini memberikan mengajarkan bahwa hidup itu bisa sangat sangat simple tapi untuk menjalankannya bisa sangat complexity.
Steve Jobs menjadi center of universe di buku ini karena penulisnya sangat terinspirasi oleh jalan hidupnya dan hari-hari bersama Jobs.
Regards,
Dhedh...more
The spectacular success of Apple is well known—but that’s not to say it’s well understood.
Simplicity is not base. It is not easy. It is complex and messy and the result of slashing and cutting every thing you can while keeping something whole and real and worthwhile.
• Think Minimal: Distilling choices to a minimum brings clarity to a company and its customers—as Jobs proved when he replaced over twenty product models with a lineup of four.
• Think Small: Swearing allegiance to the concept of “sma...more
Simplicity is not base. It is not easy. It is complex and messy and the result of slashing and cutting every thing you can while keeping something whole and real and worthwhile.
• Think Minimal: Distilling choices to a minimum brings clarity to a company and its customers—as Jobs proved when he replaced over twenty product models with a lineup of four.
• Think Small: Swearing allegiance to the concept of “sma...more
Interesting and easy-to-read take on Steve Jobs and Apple from a marketer's perspective. However, I found it really distasteful how he criticized and shared negative insider details about his former clients, particularly Dell. I felt he broke the consultant's unspoken code of conduct. He also shared an anecdote where he let a colleague fail miserably in front of Steve Jobs and, in Segall's own words "So I started doing what any brave advertising guy would do: I made sure I sat outside the line o...more
Very entertaining read about simplicity in Marketing, and Apple's value and success due to Steve Jobs and his principles of simplicity and uncompromising leadership. I found the book to have new information about the Creative Director from Chiat and his experiences directly while working with Jobs. It was intriguing to say the least. Also, an insider's view to launching advertising campaigns with Steve directly, his leadership role in that as CEO of Apple, and the birth of the iMac. Overall, sup...more
This Is a relatively simple book to grasp the main ideas behind it. The author was obviously in a love hate relationship with Steve jobs, like everyone else but from a creative point of view and had great respect for the man.
Honestly it made me an insane simple thinking person, if you think it's simple enough think a thousand times again.
Many great stories and how Steve changed the world as we know it forever. Read this book with the comic book of twice jobs and his Zen master to get a real grea...more
Honestly it made me an insane simple thinking person, if you think it's simple enough think a thousand times again.
Many great stories and how Steve changed the world as we know it forever. Read this book with the comic book of twice jobs and his Zen master to get a real grea...more
Great story with some new insights on top of Isaacson's biography on Steve jobs (which is hardly possible). Ken Segall has been part of the creative / advertising teams that have worked closely together with Apple on different phases of the company. Segall also has worked for Apple's competitors which gives him the opportunity to compare Apple's strategies and success. And the key is: avoid complexity by keeping to Simple... Great read & highly recommended.
The book was a quick read and had some entertaining stories involving Steve Jobs. The author offers a compelling argument for the value of simple design, but he didn't need an entire book to make the point. He essentially takes a nice magazine article and fills it in with self-serving stories of his time spent with Steve Jobs to fill a book. If you are looking for books that provide insight to life at Apple, there are better ones available today.
One of the rare books that I would be interested in revisiting in it's entirety - not because I didn't get it the first time - or perhaps it is because I didn't get it all on the first read through. I believe that life is incredibly complicated - not because of technology, the pace of life and many of the other reasons that I've allowed myself to use as excuses - but rather, it is complicated because of my not valuing the elegance of simplicity. The author challenges: " . . .the great thing abou...more
This book doesn't provide the very deep secrets inside of Apple's headquarter, but Ken Segall a long time marketing expert for Apple, talks about why Apple is so successful. With Apple's long history, it has been a huge roller coaster ride, one thing that hasn't changed in Apple's philosophy is "Simplicity". Segall provided some interesting facts on how simplicity has helped Apple turned into an empire.
A nice compliment to Walter Issacson's Biography on Steve Jobs. But more than just another book on Steve Jobs, the author focuses on "Simplicity" and how it helps Apple distinguish itself from other tech companies. The book is well written and the anecdotes are concise and enjoyable. If you are interested learning more about Steve and even more about Apple and it's culture, this is a worthy read.
I enjoyed this. I listened to the audiobook, read by the author, and it was good. The spinal insight to specific marketing and product strategies adds a new edge, but there are many things cross coveed (and even referenced) to the Walter issacson which is much more comprehensive if you want a jobs biog. however, if you are interested in specific focus on simplfy with an apple slant this is excellent.
There's a fair amount in this book that exists many other places, but that material is: 1—necessary to make the points made; 2—often used to make points in ways others haven't (and often far better than Isaacson did). There's also stuff here that is new (or, at least, was to me). I could do with a little less repetition (i.e., make it simpler), but this is a book worth reading. I will keep it available for reference.
Great insiders view of the idea that became an obsession at Apple to simply "everything." According to Ken, it's what made Apple different from everyone else. Somehow I think Steve's innate brilliance and his killer drive to see his vision come to life had something to do with it too. However, if you're in marketing or advertising, you must read this book.
Enjoyable Steve Jobs anecdotes and a unique insight into how "simplicity" pervaded Apple, as told by one of its most experienced ad men. (Too much Steve worship for my taste though.) The power of simplicity is equally important for marketers, product managers, developers, writers--i.e., anyone who must communicate with others--to understand.
If you can look past the unprofessional way Segall rails on other companies, his bizarre pseudo-religious way of talking about simplicity and his overly enthusiastic love for Apple (even in a book about how great Apple is, Segall comes across as too much of a fanboy), there are some good nuggets here. It's primarily a book about marketing but there are some interesting stories about Steve Jobs and how Apple's best marketing campaigns came about.
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Oct 21, 2012 09:44pm
Oct 21, 2012 11:21pm