22 posts tagged with "strategy"

A good strategy is both surprising and reasonable. For example, in 1997, Steve Jobs' turnaround strategy upon returning to Apple involved drastically reducing the product line and focusing on a few profitable products. When asked how to deal with the powerful Wintel alliance, he did not engage in grand strategic speeches or set ambitious growth targets; he simply smiled and said, "I will just wait for the next big thing."

Trying to do everything and believing everything is important is equivalent to believing that nothing is important. Good leaders need to know not only what to do but also what not to do.

Why did Amazon made Kindle?​

• Year 1997: Eberhard asks Amazon's investiment in NuvoMedia's Rocketbook, a ebook prototype that can be held in one hand and with battary lasting 20 hours.
• Year 2003 - External Reason: Learning from iTunes and iPod.
• Year 2004 - Internal Reason: Innovator's delimma - great companies fail not because they want to avoid disruptive change but because they are reluctant to embrace promising new markets that might undermine their traditional businesses and that do not appear to satisfy their short-term growth requirements.

Why did Amazon succeed?​

• Huge negotiating leverage: cajoling and threatening book publishers to embrace the digital format but not disclosing the future low prices
• Amazon's user acquisition channel. e.g.
  • kindle ads is put onto the top of Amazon homepage. almost all readers use Amazon.
  • Bezos appeared on Orah Winfrey's talk show.
  • Hunger marketing: ads are still on even when they are sold out
• great user experiences