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SSSSCENE 10CCCEEENNNEEE 111000

Use “Amazingly

Zippy” Words

Plug it in. Wirrrrrr. Done.

STEVE JOBS, DESCRIBING THE SONG TRANSFER FEATURE

OF THE FIRST IPOD, FORTUNE, NOVEMBER 2001

S

teve Jobs introduced an upgrade to the iPhone at Apple’s

Worldwide Developers Conference on June 9, 2008.

The iPhone 3G was twice as fast as the original model,

supporting the speedier third-generation AT&T data

network. A 3G network has a potential transfer speed of 3 Mbps,

versus 144 Kbps on a slower, 2G (second-generation) network.

Simply put, 3G is better for accessing the Internet and down-

loading large multimedia files on a mobile phone. Jobs made it

even simpler. “It’s amazingly zippy,” he said.^1

Jobs speaks in simple, clear, and direct language, free of the

jargon and complexity so common in business communications.

Jobs is one of the few business leaders who could confidently call

a product “amazingly zippy.” In an interview for Fortune maga-

zine, he was asked to describe the interface of Apple’s new OS X

operating system. “We made the buttons on the screen look so

good, you’ll want to lick them,” he said.^2 Even if you think Jobs

is grandstanding from time to time, his choice of words puts a

smile on your face. He chooses words that are fun, tangible, and

uncommon in most professional business presentations.