The Real Bruce

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My New iPhone – Coming Soon

September 22nd, 2009

OK, I already have a  iPhone 3G.  Heck I got up last year a 4a.m. and stood in line to make sure that I could get one. I love this thing.  It is probably my most important possession. Without it I wouldn’t know who was emailing me, what was going on on Facebook, how on earth to get to the next meeting, or what the weather was going to be. I use this device for everything, and I mean everything. Oh yeah, I can also make calls on it.

As you can tell, I am obsessed with my iPhone, and it has been killing me that for over 3 months there has been a bigger, faster, shinier version available, and I do not have it yet. “Why wasn’t I in line the day it was released,” you ask? Well for some reason AT&T likes to punish early adopters and not allow you to upgrade at the discounted price until you have owned your current model one year. If you do the math on the release dates, Apple released the 3GS 11 months after the 3G. While I love my iPhone, I also love staying out of the poorhouse even more so I put my purchase on hold, until I qualified for the discounted rate. Then came back-to-school purchases for my daughter, and license plates for the car.

Now here we are mid September and I still don’t have the new model. However, in just 7 short days, I will be having a birthday. What does that mean? Inevitably, some family members will send me some cash or a gift card or two. That means the 3GS will soon be mine.

Now I know that there isn’t much difference between the 3G and 3GS, but that is not the point. When you love technology the way I do, it is the idea that there is something out there better than what you are currently using,  and you don’t have it. That’s what gets you.

So for the next few posts I will be taking you through the wonderful world of upgrading to the 3GS. Will it be worth it? Absolutely. I have already been through this twice. When the very first iPhone came out I had to wait all weekend to get it to activate. Last year I went through 4 hours of upgrade nightmares. However, both times it was worth it. Stay tuned for my adventures as I do it once again. If I have learned anything over the last three years, if something weird is going to happen, it will happen to me.

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The Ultimate Internet Marketing Machine

September 8th, 2009

Tomorrow Apple will hold its annual Fall music commercial. That’s right a commercial. You see there are few companies in the world who can hold an event where media all over the world are begging for the opportunity to cover it.

This commercial will last over an hour, it will be covered by every media outlet in the world, and it is already the topic of countless blogs and internet speculation. If you do a search right now for “Apple music event September 9″ you will return over 35 million results. What’s all the hype about? The leader in the music world is about to unveil its fall upgrades to it’s iPod line and maybe a few other surprises.

During the music commercial you will hear nothing but positives. You will hear how fantastic each product is and how you are crazy if you don’t have one. You will also hear no negative stories about how Apple has locked down their famous applications store to the point even Google can’t get their apps approved. After all how can we allow someone to sell an app that competes with Apple.

Tomorrow you will hear all that is great about Apple and mostly likely it will be delivered by the now healthy Steve Jobs. He will be greeted like a rock star with a standing ovation, if he does show up. This from a man who failed to disclose the fact that he had to have a liver transplant until months after it was already completed. Never mind letting his share holders know or the millions of customers who buy Apple products, after all what business is it of theirs.

I advise companies everyday about internet marketing and how to devote their time to execute their plans. Apple has redefined the market when it comes to this. They simply send out an invitation to an event and immediately the blogosphere explodes with predictions and what we should expect and in the process it generates phenomenal buzz about the company. They don’t need to spend a cent to make this happen.

This is a lesson to us all. Stand out as a company. Create something that causes a buzz in the industry you are in then the masses can help you do your marketing with blogs, Facebook posts, and tweets. We have never been in a place in history where we can allow the masses to market for us worldwide. Take advantage of it. Learn from Apple. After all they are the iMaster of it.

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The Real Bruce

If you don't like what's being said, change the conversation.

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