Why Do Apple Have Record Revenues?

Apple are on pace for their highest annual profit since 2012. Quarterly profit is up 33% and their revenue rose 27% to a cool $58 Billion. Yep, they’re doing something right…

At it’s core, a product is a valuable insight or an idea that has been packaged up so that people can access it easily, repeatedly and in a way that people really want it.

The businesses that make boatloads of moollah can’t always put their finger on exactly which product makes them the dosh. Some (usually digital) products they give away for free, other things they sell cheaply, and then there’s the high value products and services. The key, however is that they only ever sell to warm prospects who had the free product initially.

Fact: your business will take off when you have a mix of products and services that all work together to maximise the value exchange in every customer relationship. This is what creating an ecosystem of products looks like…

Create digital products.

One of the best ways to share your ideas with a huge number of people in an effective way is to create a digital product; things like downloads or online tools. This flips the conversation from old-hat interruption marketing to a means of communication that consumers chose to participate in.

When packaged correctly these products have a high perceived value, even though the cost to reproduce them is almost nothing. Win.

If someone takes an hour to listen to your podcast, they feel rapport with you and really start to understand what makes you unique. If someone joins your membership, books into your webinar or takes your online test, they are effectively getting to know you. You start becoming the person they MUST do business with rather than a person they could do business with.

Productise your services.

A service can be packaged up like a product. You can give your service a name, it can have a method, it can have a brochure, it can be delivered by other trained professionals. This productised service could include elements that are standardised and elements that are bespoke.

Don’t fall into the trap of thinking you deliver a service and this step doesn’t apply to you. Treat your service like a product and you’ll see an uplift.

One of our clients, a plastic surgeon, thought he would struggle with product creation – it doesn’t get more bespoke than performing surgery. He’s now given his method a name, created brochures, compiled testimonials and added additional products into the overall bundle. As a result, his value has boomed and his waiting list grown.

Your service is part of the product ecosystem, so be sure to make it as productised as you can, and to surround it with other products that help educate, inspire or relate to more people.

Share your secrets.

Here’s a big secret. Don’t keep secrets. Share your best ideas with everyone. Consider that the most famous chefs share their recipes every week. The more they share, the more their value goes through the roof.

You don’t hear people saying, ‘Now I have Jamie Oliver’s recipe, I will never visit any of his restaurants again’. Instead, people attend Jamie’s cooking classes to find out how they can use the recipe to cook a delicious meal. The more people have, the more they want, so share your ideas freely.

An added bonus – this makes room in your mind for even better ideas. When you share powerful ideas, people come to you to implement them – this is where you can have a valuable service offering that does that.

Next month, (can’t believe it’s freakin’ July already) myself and 4 of Australia’s most talked about business leaders will be sharing the recipe for ensuring demand outstrips supply for your product or service, outlining the key strategies to grow your brand and showing you how to position your product or service to charge a premium.

If you’re interested, tap here.