What PR professionals can learn from Steve Jobs' legacy

Back in 1984, when Apple first introduced the mouse with its computers, Steve Jobs insisted the packaging surrounding the device was designed to be difficult to open. While this may sound counterintuitive, he was basing his decision on what marketers refer to as a customer’s 20-minute fiddle tolerance level. Making the packaging difficult to open allowed consumers time to get acquainted with the new device, before they even used it. The packaging was designed so there was an order in which consumers unwrapped their new computers – forcing them to engage with the product. The result: return percentages for Apple products are at industry lows.

With the release of the new Steve Jobs biography, there will be much discussion over his legacy within the tech and telecommunication industries. Yet as revolutionary as he was in those areas, he was equally influential in the realm of marketing and public relations. A brief examination of that legacy is worth taking into consideration.

Owning and controlling your message
Apple product launches have become some of the most anticipated events both within and outside the tech industry. Steve Jobs deliberately shunned trade shows and created a well-oiled marketing vehicle in which Apple retained ultimate control of messaging, delivery and branding. While it has become increasingly difficult to own your message in the digital age, matching your message to the appropriate delivery outlet can help you retain control.

Authentic cultivation of hype
When Jobs unveiled the first iPhone, he announced Apple would be introducing three revolutionary products – a touch screen iPod, a phone and a breakthrough communication device for the internet. Of course, those three technologies were encased in one device. The iPhone went on to make history and change the entire nature of the mobile communications industry. Authentic hype allows journalists, pundits and fans to do Apple’s public relations for them. “You can’t con people in this business,” Steve said back in 1985. We don’t always have the luxury of pitching an iPhone, but accuracy and truthfulness are essential in any new release.

Matching the visual to the message
Another classic Jobsian tool is the clever use of a well-placed visual. When Apple first unveiled the Macbook Air, Jobs famously unsheathed it from a letter-sized envelope. It has become commonplace in online PR to include images and multimedia elements in your social media news release. Yet, these tools are rare in the traditional pitch. Posting your traditional release online, and linking back to it in your pitch, allows you to frame your story in ways that text alone does not allow. Even a radio producer may be won over by a slick headshot of your client.

Create your audience
Apple has a long history of establishing itself and by extension, its consumers, as David to the industry’s Goliath. IBM, Microsoft and Google have all played the role of villain in the Apple story. This tactic has created a devoted fan base. Apple’s customers identify with both the company and each other, it is a fraternity.