Apple iPod a la Nope or It’s not a wePod

By on February 14, 2007 in Marketing with 6 Comments

I was all set to carry on Tim Johnson’s idea about sharing a soundtrack of my life. I was all set to download 10 songs on iTunes and share it in a future post…until I read about the worm in Apple’s core.

Apple has killed iPod Mondays, a weekly event of raving iPod fans who gathered to share their playlists. This is a diverse community, bringing together fans of all ages. It was contagious. But Apple doesn’t dig Brand Hijacking.

What I’d like to do is buy Apple a copy of the books, Citizen Marketers and Word of Mouth Marketing.

Looking at Apple’s point of view, the gadget is called an iPod – not a wePod. Maybe community-builder Clint should change the name to wePod Mondays.

As for the soundtrack I plan to share, guess I’ll use Rhapsody.

Follow on Twitter or Facebook or on Google+

Find Your Social Media ROI

I hear it from a lot of business owners: “Where is the ROI with all this Social Media?“ If this is a question you ask yourself, maybe we should work together a bit more. We can work together solo, or via a professional learning community. Find and increase your ROI. There is a “there” there.

About Mike Sansone:

All Posts by
  • http://brandandmarket.blogspot.com Chris Brown

    Mike:
    Sure seems like Apple is biting the hand that feeds it…
    When you stop your consumers — raving fans — from spreading great word of mouth about your product, you’re killing the golden goose… the best marketing there is. Free. Sincere. Believable. Compelling.
    So now the “new” target market to be will have to be influenced only by the owner of the trademark, Apple. So they will make a buy/no buy decision based on what the manufacturer tells them is so great about the product.
    Humpf. Now they’ve opened themselves up to price comparisons. How many MB do I get for the dollar? Not a good place for a manufacturer to be when their product “which will remain nameless” was almost ubiquitous with MP3 player.
    Thanks for the post Mike.
    Chris

  • http://www.TheBrandingExperts.ca Ed Roach

    Chris,
    I think Apple legal is pretty short sighted on this one. Perhaps the legal department is bored now that the Apple Corp. suit is settled. It reminds me of a move Disney’s people made a few years back here in Ontario. They went after a hospital children’s ward who took it apon themselves to have Disney characters painted on the hallway walls – copyright infringement.
    Sometimes the sentiment – “fight the good fight” means nothing to mean spirited people.
    In both cases though, I wonder if it’s fair to blame the entire corporation? I can’t imagine Steve Jobs losing sleep over iPod Mondays.
    Ed

  • http://moblogsmoproblems.blogspot.com Mack Collier

    Thanks for posting about this Mike. Anytime you do anything to kill evangelists’ enthusiasm for your brand, you are making a mistake. Apple may not realize this or care at this point, but that might change if all those iPod owners start evangelizing the Zune.

  • http://www.storiesbyrel.com Mark True

    And the better answer was so simple…just ask the bar to include a small line that says “iPod is a trade mark of Apple.” And then sit back and listen to the sweet, sweet sound of the cash register, knowing that you’ve protected your intellectual property all the way to the bank.
    -MT

  • http://www.maryschmidt.com Mary Schmidt

    Sure, the rules could be followed by the trademark line. But, seriously – was there any real downside to this? Or confusion in the market? It’s not like the bar’s name is Zune.
    Here’s an even simpler (and imo cool) solution – Steve Jobs stepping in and telling his attorneys to get a life – and then personally showing up at the bar with a box of free iPods? (I hear Des Moines is lovely this time of year, Mr. Jobs!)

  • http://www.converstations.com Mike Sansone

    >Hi Chris – great points about biting the hand. For many, I’m sure they’re wondering where the loyalty is – not customer loyalty to the brand, but company loyalty to the customer. Apple just said in a loud voice, “Mine!”
    >Hi Ed – I think every company should send their legal department to a Seth Godin event or have them visit with Kathy Sierra for a week.
    >Hi Mack – Apple sure seemed like its goal was to do just that – kill enthusiasm for their brand. Drew had some good suggestions on what they should’ve done – borrow the idea and take it global.
    >Hi Mark – What a brilliatnly simple solution! I wonder what the corporate attorneys would think of that!
    >Hi Mary – That would be a cool way to smooth things over – if that happens, I’ll switch to a MAC.

Stop SOPA