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Christmas “So What” Benefit
One of the techniques I use and suggest to customers is to ask the question "so what?" to get to the true value of a suggested benefit. The concept is that when a benefit is suggested, the question "so what?" is asked. If there is an answer to the question then the true benefit has not been reached.
For example; if somone says that you should buy their product for use in your IT shop because it is easy to use, ask the question; "so what?" the progression might go like this; users can support themselves..."so what?"....there are fewer support calls..."so what?"....it requires fewer support people..."so what?"....it SAVES MONEY...so it is a COST SAVINGS. If this technique is applied across enterprise IT purchases, there emerge three reasons to buy things; it saves money, it increases revenue, or it meets a regulatory requirement.
While I will not dwell on the differences (or similarities) to individual purchases, there are other reasons for purchases that are not generally justified in a true business sense. Often personal purchases are made based on how they make the buyer feel or how he or she believes they will be perceived after the purchase. Obviously these reasons are valid, but they do not have direct business validity.
So, in Christmas 2007, here in California, the hot item is some type of cellular earphone. Whether wired or Bluetooth, choosing the right earphone for your cell has become the hot topic. Over the last week, I have had three or four conversations about the right earphone choice; wired versus wireless, the superiority of jaw-bone versus open microphones, etc. I also have made repeated trips to CNET and other review sites to determine which is the best purchase.
What drove this flurry of activity? Not a perceived "cool factor", not a cost savings or revenue increase, rather it is driven by the impending 2008 law that makes non-earphone cellular use in a car a crime in California. So we are all now driven by needing to meet a regulation, the benefit is not ease of use or better quality or.....but meeting the regulation.
I wonder how many earphones will be given this holiday season in California. If you miss it, though it is OK as the law does not go into effect until July 1, 2008, so there is still Valentines Day. With the fines starting at $20 for the first violation and going up to $50 after that, not using an earphone will be an expensive proposition. And you can be sure that many more states will follow California and be setting up to have cell phone earphones at the top of their citizens 2008 Christmas list.
While I agree with the law, I think this is the right answer, not banning cellular phones altogether in cars. For more commentary on that subject, please see this previous post.
Next law...banning texting in cars....
