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with their quotes. Here are the endorsements, along with their
sources:
“In my view, Leopard is better and faster than Vista.”—Walt
Mossberg, Wall Street Journal “Leopard is powerful, polished, and carefully conceived.“
—David Pogue, New York Times “With Leopard, Apple’s operating system widens its lead
esthetically and technologically.”—Ed Baig, USA Today “It’s by far the best operating system ever written for the vast
majority of consumers.”—Ed Mendelson, PC magazineThe last quote drew laughs. The irony of PC magazine’s favorably
reviewing a Mac gave the audience a chuckle. Reading favorable
reviews is a common technique in a Steve Jobs presentation.
Although Americans rate journalists among the least trustwor-
thy professionals (only one step above politicians), a favorable
endorsement from a top-tier media outlet or blogger still carries
weight, giving buyers confidence that they are making a wise
choice.
Successful companies that launch a splashy new product usu-
ally have tested it with a group of partners who have agreed to
endorse it publicly or distribute review copies to the media and
influencers. This arrangement gives those companies instant
references, endorsements, and testimonials. Your customers
need a reason to believe in you, and they want to minimize the
risk associated with a new product or service. Having experts,
customers, or partners testify to the effectiveness of your
product will help you overcome the psychological barrier to
participation.
Give Credit Where Credit’s Due
Employees also get top billing in a Steve Jobs presentation. At
the conclusion of Macworld 2007, Jobs said, “I want to high-
light the folks who worked on these products. Would all of the
folks who worked on today’s products please stand up? Let’s give
them a round of applause. Thank you so much. I also can’t leave