7 Innovation secrets from Steve Jobs [LeWeb]

What are the secrets behind Steve Jobs’ success? I’ll bet you want to know.

Author and communications coach Carmine Gallo thinks he knows, and at the LeWeb conference in Paris, he provided some insight into them. In fact, he’s written a book entitled “Innovate the Steve Jobs way: 7 insanely different principles for breakthrough success”.

Here are Gallo’s 7 secrets:

1. Do what you love
For Jobs “being the richest man in the cemetery” didn’t matter, what mattered was “going to bed at night saying we’ve done something wonderful”. Without passion your business won’t work, passion is everything. You cannot inspire people unless you are inspired. Apple’s core value is that it believes people with passion can change the world for the better. Jobs was passionate about creating tools that helped people. Think about what you are selling and why.

2. Put a dent in the world
It is all about vision. As an entrepreneur, it is important to understand the difference between vision and mission. A vision is clear and concise and clearly communicated. Jobs’ vision was to put a computer in the hand of everyday people and Steve Wozniak understood that. A good vision is simple and bold. Vision helps you interpret what you see better. Vision and passion go hand in hand. Jobs was in the people business, be in the people business. Ask yourself: “What is your vision?”

3. Creativity
Apple is a company built on creativity. Jobs saw creativity in a very simple way saying, “creativity is just connecting things”. Foursquare is good example of this. It’s a great tool because it was done in collaboration with real estate companies and built in New York’s East Village connecting with the consumers. Connecting different things helps you build a creative product for your market.

4. Say no to 1000 things
Saying no to different things is good, and helps the focus of your product. It is better to stick with simplicity. Apple eliminates the clutter and avoids a need to continually add new things. All Apple features strip away the non essentials and focus on one thing.

5. Create an insanely great experience
It’s not just about the innovation behind the product, but also innovating around the experience. If people have a great experience with your product they will use it more. Simple. While building the Apple store, Jobs wanted to create a great experience for consumers modelling it on the Four Seasons hotel chain. There are no cashiers at the Apple store, just concierge and information bars.

6. Master the message
Jobs informed and illuminated with his presentations by captivating his audience. He inspired audiences by understanding and mastering his message. When communicating with audiences, Jobs used the “rule of three communication technique” to inform quickly and engage. This notion of three is popular in design and communication where things are placed in groups of three to help retention. Thinking visually is key to a good presentation: don’t crowd your presentation. Picture superiority allows you to up audience retention by 60% in a verbally delivered presentation. Master the message, the delivery and the presentation.

7. Sell dreams not products
Consumers don’t care about the product or the brand, they care about themselves — their hopes and dreams. If your product can help consumers achieve these things you will win them over. Jobs focused on the consumer and helping the consumer achieve their hopes and dreams and through that built a loyal fan base. Introduce the consumer to a philosophy not just the product. Thinking differently, was Job’s philosophy which has helped Apple cater to an audience that thinks differently.

Image: Wired