14 Year Olds May Think You Are Cool

I was watching and listening to the keynote conversation (just click on the links that say 750, 300 or 100 on the side) by Guy Kawasaki with Steve Ballmer of Microsoft at MIX'08 last night, and something jumped at me.

At one point Kawasaki says that 14 year olds do not know about the OS wars and the antitrust. They know Xbox and Halo and think that Microsoft is pretty cool. They have no history with OS and productivity. There is opportunity there for Microsoft to ride a different image.

Later in the video, Ballmer talks about the Mountain View Campus where the company lets people touch and see its products at events. The key is to keep making great products and hiring people who want to get up in the morning and change the world. It was refreshing to hear and see a CEO unplugged without PowerPoint presentation with bullet points. Garr Raynolds at Presentation Zen has his take on the odd couple.

The big a-ha to me was to think that to new customers your company has no legacy. No history in what you may have not done right, nor in what you used to do. That is both great and scary. The opportunity is enormous. You can decide to stretch and change. Or you can fear change, become protective of your history and be on your way to irrelevancy.

"In this industry, you either move forward or you become irrelevant," said Ballmer, "I don't think that there is one option that says do one thing, do the same thing for 100 years, never broaden your footprint... software is this funny thing, it never wears out, so you've got to keep pushing."

The thing is that with new generations of customers you have a blank slate. If it is an unnatural act for you to change in the midst of a relationship with current customers, you have the chance to learn how to be different with new ones. They think you're cool.

You may think about new customers as 14 year olds, who don't see all the history and (sometimes) the mistakes you've made to get there. With their help, you can start thinking of yourself and your business differently.

You can then borrow that energy and willingness to change for existing customers. Xbox may very well have been the inspiration for SharePoint's open platform to serve business. Kawasaki himself talked about Microsoft being a different company to work with now - none of the arrogance that used to be associated with the brand is there. I was impressed with Ballmer's ability to respond to questions with such clarity.

The dream of every company is for its customers to reconsider them as a viable purchase. What Microsoft is doing by being so open, on top of visible, is allowing that. I switched to Mac last fall after years of disappointments with Windows-based PCs, which I still use. Yet, I might consider Microsoft's new products and will be watching for innovative things from them.

How open are you to listening to what new generations of customers are telling you about your business? Are you making the leap to the future of your business?

Comments

[Michael Walsh]

In my experience at a global IT vendor, there is far too much attention placed on legacy and precious little on growing opportunity.

Suddenly, statements like "thirty years in the business" seem as pointless as they are relevant to customers with no idea about your past and it's here that the cracks between the people who built the company and those trying to move it forward tend to reveal themselves.

Having said that, if a company is following the demographics of who wants what, they already have a pretty good idea of the scale of these emerging opportunities.

Convincing them that they are worth pursuing is a different matter entirely.

[Corvida]

Indeed all of this is true, yet is a company doesn't take advantage of the situation quickly, it could do some serious damage. Customers won't remain ignorant forever.

[zaine_ridling]

So I take it that 14-year olds don't read tech news? Eventually they'll see Microsoft actively works to restrict and restrain progress on so many fronts rather than openness. When they're 15, maybe they'll go back read about the whole MS-OOXML/ISO debacle.

[Jeremy Pepper]

Is the XBox and Halo that popular in the 14-year old demographic? I would think that Wii and Rock Band/Guitar Hero are more that demographic.

But, it also depends on the 14-year old. A lot of them are mobile fanatics, and it would seem XBox/Halo would be outside that realm.

Seems like a bad example to me, while it's base point might be valid: that there is less consumer loyalty in the younger generation. But, well, I read the WSJ and NYT and already know that.

[Mike Stopforth]

Valeria I think this is a critical point, and not just because I picked up on it too in my recent post on the subject :) - http://tinyurl.com/yvy92b

Some time ago in a consulting session with a popular South African newspaper the delegates expressed a major fear over the paper's history, which happened to have been born out of racist, propagandist apartheid South Africa Nationalists.

The irony of the matter was that I (as a 27 year old) didn't have a clue about any of this history and as a result judged the paper on face value and editorial just like any of it's competitors.

Lesson to be learned is that often we, internally, are the people most worried about legacy perceptions, mistakes and associations. Markets at the time are often unaware, or couldn't care less, or forgiving by nature or if not, dead by then :)

[Brian C.]

Valeria, these are excellent points. From personal experience I have witnessed young teens fawn over MSFT products because they love Halo and the XBox series of game platforms. They have no knowledge of MSFT before XBox and could really care less about their past. As a branding professional I think the insight on this is right on the money.

[PJ Brunet]

When I was 14 y/o Microsoft was busy killing off creativity with Windows 3.1. Before Windows every program revealed the personality of its creator, software had style. Using and writing software was a lot of fun, then Windows put an end to all that creativity, killed off the Amiga too. This is why PC users were called "nerds" for years until the Internet came along. Then MS had the nerve to run ads bragging Microsoft hired artists which was a lie to help their image. Yes, never underestimate kids, they have a good memory and end up running the world.

[Valeria Maltoni]

Michael:

Alas sometimes the people who got the company to a certain place cannot let it go and pass the baton. That is also why so many "old" businesses start to languish under the weight of "what used to make them successful." My former CEO and mentor taught me that, and it's a lesson to take to heart. There's research that proves that even in people's careers, there's a peak at 10 years when decision time comes. Do I continuously stretch myself, or do I become good at what used to work? Thank you for offering a departure for further thoughts.

[Robyn]

I used to love MAC's because they were so user friendly and they had the best graphics and coolest software programs available. But they were not compatible with the organization with whom I was employed because all their applications were Windows based and I was not able to access them through OSX. Recently the two have made some compromises so that software for one can also run on the other.

Your article is very thoughtful about the ways companies need to listen!

[Valeria Maltoni]

@Corvida -- I enjoyed reading some of the posts at your blog. Companies sometimes talk about customers as "theirs," as if they could do as they please with products and services. Ballmer talked several times about customers. I've not had an involvement with Microsoft so I have no idea if they follow through, but talking about something publicly can be a step in the right direction.

@Zaine -- I think 14 year olds are too busy experimenting, learning, and getting on with life to read tech news. Well, maybe many do, I do not know. You prompt me to think whether any one company, organizations, group of people, or person is ever "open."

[Valeria Maltoni]

@Jeremy -- I honestly do not know. My jump off was directly borrowed from Kawasaki's question. Maybe in the late adopters? There might be a curve for teens, too. You make a good point about loyalty, though. While I know we both get that I was going in a different direction, I see mobile as a destination for 14 year olds, especially in Europe.

@Mike -- thank you for the fast link, the kind words, and for jumping here. I will fix the URL so the period doesn't prevent direct linkage. You put your finger right on it. Internally we worry about a lot of stuff that markets do not even see - people out there are busy buying, sometimes (or often) from our competitors. the epiphany usually comes when the company is on the brink of extinction and by then, for many, it may be too late.

[Valeria Maltoni]

@Brian -- thank you for coming in and commenting.

@PJ -- point taken on many fronts.

[David Tillinger]

Great article, Valeria. I think the telling line was your "big aha" that "to new customers, your company has no legacy." I think that people lose a certain amount of opportunity by believing that they must be the same company to every customer. The chance to reinvent your company to each customer opens up a huge amount of opportunity.

While it is arguable that if you've established a strong brand through your past conduct and success, massive change may not be wise, the chance to brand yourself differently to a different audience of potential customers is something that every business should consider.

[Valeria Maltoni]

@Robyn - you touched upon something that I think is more about the future of everything: collaboration, co-production, working across environments and platforms. We were discussing that with an analyst today.

@David - you have good insights. Especially if you are in the service business, the opportunity is limitless. The only limits placed upon it are the company's. More and more, I find that those who win, are those who understand that.

[Jason]

That is interesting. I guess I never really thought of it from that stand point. To me - Microsoft has always be the million pound gorilla in the room. The OS that seems to be slowing down and losing ground.

This post has helped me step outside of my confines - THANKS!

[rinks]

Zaine- you're out of touch my friend. Xbox and Halo are hugely popular with 14 year olds. Hopefully these kids won't bore us to death like you and your ilk have with you M$ FUD for the next decade.

[Valeria Maltoni]

@Jason - I think in many respects it used to be true. What I am hearing today is evidence that Microsoft is listening and working on products and services that people want. The Q&A at the end was very informative, and candid.

@Rinks - I believe there are more interesting ways to disagree with someone. Remember that this is my blog/home and that everyone is a guest. Thank you for respecting the space.

[Jay, writer Memberspeed.com]

It's not always easy to find people who have that enthusiasm. Although from what I hear from Apple, their employees are pretty much the guys who wake up in the morning and want to change the world. I think they have successfully fulfilled that objective.

[Tripp Fenderson]

@zaine

Clearly you've never been on Xbox Live and I disagree with your comment about there being "less consumer loyalty in the younger generation".

I don't think the loyalty equation has changed but rather there are now more choices. Young people have always experimented more, played more, with their world - it's our human nature. When media options were limited, there was less to play with and a perceived model of brand loyalty ensued.

With more media and entertainment choices in the marketplace vying for one's attention, creating a great experience for the consumer drives loyalty. It's no longer good enough to just "be there".

Companies have to be wiling to explore these edges of attention to create opportunities to draw these new customers to their products and services.

[Valeria Maltoni]

@Jay - brand conversations are important on the inside; sometimes even more than on the outside. That is quite evident at Apple and other "winning" brands. People are proud to be associated with them.

@Tripp - thank you for chiming in. "Companies have to be willing to explore these edges of attention to create opportunities to draw these new customers to their products and services." And let's not forget that as consumers we love choices. Even if just to have them available to us on top of keeping the marketplace fair.

[huperniketes]

There are several possible scenarios to come when these teens who lack previous exposure to the Microsoft brand enter the professional workforce: 1. they have no interest in using products from a gaming/living room products company at work; 2. they look forward to using products from the gaming/living room company at work, and they're either 2a. disillusioned with the business products; 2b. or they're not.

Enough variables come into play that make it uncertain whether the lack of history among fans of the Xbox will result in a net win for Microsoft.

[Valeria Maltoni]

That is quite a literal interpretation, Huperniketes. Yes, indeed there are many options. In Microsoft's case, I think the more open stance, the lab and events, the market conversations they have started building on, may help the company more than Xbox would : )