If you would like more info on the new iMac including how its packaged, first impressions, etc. engadget recently did a feature on the 4th generation iMac which includes a 35 photo iMac gallery as well.
Mark Cuban recently reminisced on his blog about founding Broadcast.com and taking the company public 8 years ago. Cuban and his partner had YouTube-like vision before the Internet had truly come into its own.
Ever wonder about how Mark Cuban made his billions? No one really knows. We all know about the founders of EBAY, YAHOO, & AMAZON becoming mega-millionaires/billionaires from their company’s successes…but when it comes to Mark Cuban you always hear him described as an “Internet Billionaire”. But what does “Internet Billionaire” mean in Cuban’s case. What exactly was Broadcast.com? Well the mystery is finally cleared up in Cuban’s most recent blog post.
For those of you who have always wondered exactly how Mark Cuban made those billions, the video below is must watch TV.
YouTube should thank Cuban and Co. for laying the foundation for the success they are enjoying today.
The launch of the iPhone created a frenzy that gripped every gadget fan in the country. When it comes to spreading the gospel about a new product or service, there is none better than Apple CEO and Chief Evangelist Steve Jobs. Business Week’s Carmine Gallo recently reported that the hype, started with what he considers Jobs’ best presentation to date—the introduction of the iPhone at the annual Macworld trade show in January.
After watching and analyzing the presentation, BW’s Gallo came up with five ways to distill Jobs’ speaking techniques to help anyone craft and deliver a highly impactful and overwhelmingly persuasive pitch.
CEO SMACK has analyzed Gallo’s tips and we agree:
The 5 techniques listed below should be studied by anyone out there looking to create epidemic like interest in a new product, service, business, or Internet venture. Who better than the master himself, Steve Jobs to give us a lesson in how to pitch a tech product.
A good novelist doesn’t lay out the entire plot and conclusion on the first page of the book. He builds up to it. Jobs begins his presentation by reviewing the “revolutionary” products Apple has introduced. According to Jobs, “every once in a while a revolutionary product comes along that changes everything…Apple has been fortunate to introduce a few things into the world.” Jobs continues by describing the 1984 launch of the Macintosh as an event that “changed the entire computer industry.” The same goes for the introduction of the first iPod in 2001, a product that he says “changed the entire music industry.”
After laying the groundwork, Jobs builds up to the new device by teasing the audience: “Today, we are introducing three revolutionary products. The first is a wide-screen iPod with touch controls. The second is a revolutionary new mobile phone. And the third is a breakthrough Internet communications device.” Jobs continues to build tension. He repeats the three devices several times then says, “Are you getting it? These are not three separate devices. This is one device…today Apple is going to reinvent the phone!” The crowd goes wild.
Jobs conducts a presentation like a symphony, with ebbs and flows, buildups and climaxes. It leaves his listeners wildly excited. The takeaway? Build up to something unexpected in your presentations.
When Jobs introduced the “three revolutionary products” in the description above, he didn’t show one slide with three devices. When he spoke about each feature (a widescreen iPod, a mobile phone, and an Internet communicator), a slide would appear with an image of each feature.
Jobs also makes the slides highly visual. At no place in his presentation does the audience see slides with bullet points or mind-numbing data. An image is all he needs. The simplicity of the slides keeps the audience’s attention on the speaker, where it should be. Images are memorable, and more important, can complement the speaker. Too much text on a slide distracts from the speaker’s words. Prepare slides that are visually stimulating and focused on one key point.
Jobs modulates his vocal delivery to build up the excitement. When he opens his presentation by describing the revolutionary products Apple created in the past, his volume is low and he speaks slowly, almost in a reverential tone. His volume continues to build until his line, “Today Apple is going to reinvent the phone.” Be an electrifying speaker by varying the speed at which you speak and by raising and lowering your voice at the appropriate times.
Jobs makes presentations look effortless because he takes nothing for granted. Jobs is known to rehearse demonstrations for hours prior to launch events. I can name many high-profile chief executives who decide to wing it. It shows. It always amazes me that many business leaders spend tens of thousands of dollars on designing presentations, but next to no time actually rehearsing. I usually get the call after the speaker bombs. Don’t lose your audience. Rehearse a presentation out loud until you’ve nailed it.
If you believe that your particular product or service will change the world, then say so. Have fun with the content. During the iPhone launch, Jobs uses many adjectives to describe the new product, including “remarkable,” “revolutionary,” and “cool.” He jokes that the touch-screen features of the phone “work like magic…and boy have we patented it.”
View the video below to watch Steve Jobs deliver his “Greatest Presentation Ever” at the MacWorld Conference using the 5 techniques from above.
CEO Kevin McClatchy said Friday he will step down after the end of the season, ending an 11-year tenure as leader of a baseball team that hasn’t had a winning season since 1992.
44-year-old McClatchy had been principal owner until January, when that title was assumed by Robert Nutting, the team’s chairman of the board. McClatchy took on the CEO title, but has been the face of the team since 1996, when he was part of a group that purchased the Pirates.
”A decision of this personal and professional magnitude is not the type you make overnight. It was something Bob (Nutting) and I have discussed even before the change of control took place in January and something I decided upon a few months ago,” McClatchy said in a statement. “It was a difficult decision, but in the end I felt the time was right to step down as the day-to-day leader so the organization can move forward with a fresh perspective.”
In a statement, Nutting said the decision was announced Friday to allow for a “thorough” search for a successor.
Click on the video below to view news coverage of McClatchy’s tenure as CEO of the Pirates.
Satirist and humorist Bill Stockton of Satirium.com asseses the likelihood that Paris Hilton will someday become CEO of Hilton Hotels Corporation.
