Living the Steve Jobs brand
By Izz Mlambo
October 9, 2011

Time magazine, a leading international publication that defines what is news across the world as much as CNN does, rarely stops the presses. On Wednesday, 05 October 2011, Time stopped the presses. It was not because an influential head of state died. Far from it. It was because a world icon of pop culture died. Time reworked its entire content to cover the legend that is Steve Jobs and what the man stood for.

If anything, Jobs stood for uniqueness. He was personally a brand that was equalled by few in the cross-industries that he impacted with his products and their sleek, simple designs. From the Apple I, II, Mac to the iPod, iPhone and arguably his greatest achievement, the iPad. Not to also mention what his start up, Pixar, did to the animation film world and NeXT to personal computing.

As a brand, Jobs represented a new way of thinking and an approach that many leaders shunned away from: non-conformity. He was not afraid to try the new, to integrate what others thought to be two-edges of two different swords, to see opportunity where none existed, literally, and persevere with his personal preferences of what consumers should have as lifestyle experience.

Many brands survive, and a few thrive on regurgitating the norm. Run of the mill becomes predictable and provides ‘safety’ for brands that refuse to venture into the unknown. Jobs refused to think run-of-the-mill and insisted in his groundbreaking advert that introduced the Apple computer, ‘Think Different’.

Now, that is the essence of successful brands. A different way of thinking, which, consequently, will bring... continue