Category: Technology

Apple’s Laughing Straight to the Bank

Iphone 5 UnveilingAs an Apple insider and alum, I always have an ear to the ground for what’s going on in their world.  The past month or so for Apple has been almost as eventful as the company’s first big success back in the late 70’s – early 80’s. With a landmark legal victory over Samsung for copyright infringement, the company not only gets awarded $1.05 billion in damages (which Samsung is appealing, of course), but they will also exclusive rights over certain design and software ideas on which they own patents.

While some have slammed Apple’s case as being too broad or overzealous, the decision will surely shape the mobile software and hardware markets from this point on. For the consumer it means two things: First, Apple’s patented designs and features will most likely be cross-licensed for quite a pretty penny to competing developers and manufacturers. Second, this means that in order to competitively price their technology, companies will have to become innovative once again, rather than copy an already successful formula. So you’ll either see iPhone and iOS-esque features on high-end electronics, or innovative new designs may become the way of the future. That chapter has yet to be written.

With so much focus and attention on these two battling giants, what better time for Amazon to announce its new reader / tablet offering, the Kindle Fire. Strategically placed in the same realm as the competing iPad, Nexus, and Galaxy tablets, the Kindle Fire looks to open the floodgates of revenue for its content delivery platform. The three-way race between Apple, Amazon, and Google’s media stores appears well separated for now, but the competition is certainly heating up as the markets and technology change so rapidly. And the solid winner in ALL of this is the pro-sumer.

One would think that the competitive innovation to come from the lawsuit against Samsung, along with the introduction of the rival Kindle Fire would be cause for concern at the Apple HQ here in Cupertino, but that couldn’t be farther from the truth.

On September 12th, Apple announced the iPhone 5 in grandiose Apple fashion, after the project had been shrouded in secrecy for almost a year. (An issue I cover at length in my recent bestseller, “The Magic and Moxie of Apple – An Insider’s View”.)  Thinner, lighter, faster, and overall cooler than its predecessor, the iPhone 4s; the iPhone 5 also boasts a number of new features, such as a new charging interface and new operating system (iOS 6).

Consumers are certainly on board for the new and improved iPhone, as evidenced by the 2 million+ pre-orders within the first 24 hours of its announcement. As a result, the cost of Apple’s stock has risen to over $700 for the first time in company history.

So while rival tech giants are out there trying to copy Apple products or create competitive alternatives in hopes of dethroning them, Apple is simply laughing it’s way straight to the bank.

Kelli Richards, President and CEO
The All Access Group

PS:  On September 25th, I will offer an amazing webinar on the 12 Best Practices of Apple Inc. This webinar is offered at NO cost to you.  I will offer it at a later date for $47 per participant, but for now, I simply want to extend this webinar and my expertise around what makes Apple the global leader it is to my own audience, colleagues and friends.

To save your seat, go tohttps://appleinsidersecrets.com/webinar.php and register.

 

 

Steve Jobs on Privacy and User Experience – An Apple Best Practice

Even for me, as an Apple insider, seeing the Apple “Best Practices” in action is awe inspiring.  No one can deny that one of the most amazing things about Apple is how they embrace secrecy as an asset.  No entity keeps a secret better than Apple – AND the thousands and thousands of employees and alum in their tribe.  Quite simply it’s part of our Apple DNA.  And that idea translates far into how they work with their products, and especially, their users.  For Apple Inc., user experience goes far beyond what the customer can see, feel and touch.  It goes on behind the veil as well.

Steve Jobs talked about this himself when he was interviewed at the All Things D8 Conference in 2010.

“No, silicon valley is not monolithic. We’ve always had a very different view of privacy than some of our colleagues in the valley, we take privacy extremely seriously. As an example, we worry a lot about location in phones and we worry that some 14 year old is going to get stalked and something terrible is going to happen because of our phone, and so as an example, before any app can get location data we don’t make it a rule that they have to put up a panel and ask because they might not follow that rule. They call our location services, and we put up the panel saying this app wants to use your location data, is that okay with you.  Every time they want to use it and we do a lot of things like that to ensure that people understand what these apps are doing. That’s one of the reasons we have the curated app store. We have rejected a lot of apps that want to take a lot of your personal data and suck it up into the cloud, a lot. So we’re really old, a lot of people in the valley think we’re very old fashioned about this and maybe we are, but we worry about stuff like this.

No, privacy means people know what they’re signing up for in plain English and repeatedly. That’s what it means. I’m an optimist, I believe people are smart and some people want to share more data than other people do – ask them. Ask them every time. Make them tell you to stop asking them if they get tired of your asking them. Let them know precisely what you’re going to do with their data.”

Just another example of behind-the-scenes USER experiences – one of the best “best practices” that Apple does differently.

If YOU would like to learn more about Apple’s best practices and how those could work in YOUR company or work, sign up at https://AppleInsiderSecrets.com and become part of my own inner circle and get all of my insider, best practice tools and event invitations.

Kelli Richards, President and CEO
The All Access Group, LLC

A Peek Behind the Curtain… The Core Personal Interviews with Kelli Richards (and her Editor) that Became the Apple eBook…

Tune in for this 15-minute interview with Kelli Richards, Apple Alum and author of the Amazon Bestseller, “The Magic and Moxie of Apple – An Insider’s View.” Kelli shares some of her very personal experiences and memories of being at Apple Inc. with her book editor to frame out the book…

 

 

Will we Retain our Confidence in Apple?

The newly launched iBooks Store recently signed on its sixth major U.S. publisher in Random House, the world’s No. 1 English-language producer of books. Is there any doubt that iBooks is set on a course to become the world’s largest digital bookstore?

And then there is the legendary App Store, the heavily curated, tightly guarded walled garden that Steve Jobs envisioned as a parallel Internet. Whether apps have a long-term future is a matter of debate, but there is no doubt that they serve a purpose and are recognized for adding value to the mobile experience. Steve said in 2011 that “Mobile is the key to the post-PC world….We’re in a position now where the majority of our revenue comes from post-PC products.”

Whatever comes next must contain and continue all of this.

Is it possible? Will we as a society retain our confidence in Apple? I would love to hear your thoughts on this…

Kelli Richards, President and CEO
The All Access Group, LLC

PS: My Amazon Bestseller: “The Magic and Moxie of Apple – An Insider’s View” is now available in the iBooks Store at https://itunes.apple.com/book/id543952406?mt=11

Kelli Richards, Leader in Technology and Digital Distribution, Publishes New Book on Apple Inc., “The Magic and Moxie of Apple – An Insider’s View”

Cupertino, CA  

Kelli Richards, CEO of the All Access Group and an alumnus of Apple Inc. (where she launched Apple’s earliest focus on music and drove all music initiatives during her 10 years with the market leader) has just published her long awaited eBook, “The Magic and Moxie of Apple – An Insider’s View.” This book delves into the best practices of Apple Inc. from the inside out and takes a close look at what makes Apple one of the leaders in the tech industry – and a global change agent. Author Kelli Richards saw Apple hit rock bottom from the inside, before Steve Jobs returned to the company and then watched from outside as Apple Inc. began its climb to stardom and became the global leader it is today.  This close study of Apple Inc. and the best practices it employs creates a blueprint for all companies and entrepreneurs to follow. Through interviews with other alums and her own experiences at Apple for over a decade, tech industry thought leader Kelli Richards creates a compelling view of what makes Apple Inc. the company it is today. She looks at its failures, its successes, and the people who will continue its course toward greatness.

Kelli Richards has more than twenty years of senior-level leadership experience in the tech and music industries.  Working with the innovators in technology and creative leaders in entertainment, Richards is a highly sought-after consultant, mentor, speaker, producer, coach and author. Richards and her team facilitate powerful strategic business opportunities in digital distribution between technology companies, established artists and celebrities, film studios, record labels, and consumer brand companies to foster new revenue streams and deliver compelling consumer experiences.

Prior to founding The All Access Group LLC, Kelli served in senior roles at Fortune 100 entertainment and technology companies, including Apple Inc. She also served in senior-level leadership capacities at EMI Music as an A&R exec, and at Silicon Graphics (SGI) where she helped launch Silicon Studio, the company’s entertainment division. She developed PatroNet, the first Internet-based artist subscription service with rocker partner Todd Rundgren in the mid-90s – and helped to launch the entire digital music revolution.

A frequent speaker and panel moderator at digital music and entertainment industry conferences globally, Kelli has also been an acclaimed talent producer of a wide range of award shows, epic concerts, and celebrity fundraiser events for over 25 years.  She co-produced a celebrity fundraiser event to support the UN’s “Adopt-A-Minefield” initiative featuring Paul McCartney, Brian Wilson, Stephen Stills and hosted by Jay Leno.

Kelli Richards has co-authored two other books, including the critically acclaimed “The Art of Digital Music:  56 Artists, Visionaries & Insiders Reveal Their Creative Secrets”  and “Taking the Crowd to the Cloud – Social Media for the Music Industry,” which reached #1 on Amazon in several categories. A true renaissance woman, Kelli is also a Certified Integrative Life Coach trained under best-selling authors and coaches Debbie Ford and Alan Cohen.  She lives inCupertino,CA in the heart of theSilicon Valley.

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Kelli Richards, CEO
www.AllAccessgroup.com
Email: 
 Kelli@AllAccessGroup.com

“Our North Star is to make the best product.” Tim Cook Continues Apple’s Best Practices

Over the last few days, I put the finishing touches on a year-long project – to pen an eBook about what made Apple the company it is today – from an insider’s viewpoint.  This is a project I started long before Steve Jobs passed away, and one that I hoped to finish and send to him with a personal note. Obviously that’s not possible any longer, but one thing that has come out of the last six months is a telescopic view of the company and a look at the path it’s charting without Steve at the helm.

On May 29th, at the 10th annual All Things Digital Conference in Rancho Palos Verdes, California, Tim Cook gave us a bird’s eye view of how Apple plans to stay the course and continue their role as tech leader of the world. Asked about the competition many times, Cook responded at one point with a statement that completely embodies one of Apple’s Best Practices. He said, “Our North Star is to make the best product.”

I talk about this best practice in my upcoming eBook at great length. How despite being the richest company in the world, the best practice of “Excellence, not Revenue” IS that North Star – and truly has been since Apple’s rebirth when Steve came back to the company.  Here’s a brief excerpt from the Best Practices Appendix to the book:

Steve Jobs saw a finish line for his products that went far beyond the bottom line. As a reward for that, he reaped a bottom line that is still gaining market share and momentum. He looked beyond the stockholders and the money and built the best stuff out there by the best teams. He then backed it up with a brand that embraced the consumer from beginning to end. It’s hard to say that his prize was even the products. Most of all it is the products in the hands of an army of grateful consumers who have become brand advocates. Let’s face it there are some great products out there in the world that have not had anything near the global impact of those built by Apple….

Obviously Steve laid out a strong roadmap for his company to follow after he passed away, and that started with leaving the right people in place, but the actual journey will unfold, like all journeys, with many twists and turns – completely unforeseen.

One of the most poignant moments of Tim Cook’s discussion was when he talked about what comes next and not wanting Apple to become a Museum…

“I learned a lot from Steve. It was absolutely the saddest days of my life when he passed away… At some point late last year, somebody kind of shook me and said, it’s time to get on. That sadness was replaced by his intense determination to continue the journey. He also taught me the joy is in the journey and that was a revelation for me… I love museums but I don’t want to live in one.”

While I support Tim in his quest to avoid living in a museum – or in the first or second chapter of Apple’s book, we must admit that his is a sequel we’re all lining up to read – and most definitely cheering for.

Kelli Richards
President and CEO
The All Access Group, LLC


PS: My eBook launches on July 12. If you’d like to be part of the launch campaign and be invited to the VIP launch party and receive the audiobook as a thank you bonus for buying the book, please email me at news@allaccessgroup.com, so I may add you to the short list of VIP launch supporters. Thank you.

 

Apple – Building a Brand, Leaving a Legacy

There’s this thing in life that most of us have experienced.  It’s a sort of metaphysical passing of one’s self.  Those moments when you pass a place you know and can almost see your younger self (or maybe your older self), standing right there in a different time.  For me, Cupertino has always held those doorways and windows.  Like most of the kids who grew up in Cupertino, I used to make extra money picking apricots in the orchards.

Obviously, fruit has remained a big theme for Cupertino.  Of course, I’m speaking tongue in cheek – as most of the world knows, Steve Jobs built Apple’s headquarters here (it’s his hometown too; one of many things we share in common).  So, once lush with orchards and wineries, Cupertino is now one of the geek capitals of the world.  I say that with pride and humor, because I am definitely one of them, standing on the thin line between artistry and technology.  In fact, I worked at Apple for many years, and I’m proud to say that I launched the focus on music and led strategic Music and Entertainment initiatives during my 10 years there.

So I am one of the truly lucky ones, with strong roots both in the Cupertino of old – and the Cupertino of now.  The roots of now, the Apple tree, are firmly incontrovertibly implanted in Steve Jobs.  As stock prices have shown, Jobs is absolutely the trunk of Apple and inseparable from where investors put the worth of the company.

And here’s the real crux of what I want to say in this piece:  Seeing Steve Jobs battle through the fight of his life to restore Apple to greatness – a graceful, courageous and obviously successful battle – doesn’t hold a candle to seeing him fight for his life now.  He’s obviously ill.  But what he’s creating, despite (or because of) that illness is mind blowing.  Naysayers can address the iCloud any way they want, but what we all know is that it’s pretty damned likely to be successful.  Apple is ending the war on clouds and lockers and legitimizing what the consumer wants, whether the music industry agrees or not.

It is the new digital age, and like it or not we’re not going to stop access.  We’re not even going to control access. Steve Jobs has literally put all his apples into one basket in agreement. Why does it matter?  It matters because, like Bob Lefsetz said recently, Apple is EASY.  The huge base of consumers out there trust that if they get an iPad or iPod or iTunes … whatever, it will work.  Apple has not only galvanized a brand, but it has built a huge, vocal community of brand advocates.  No amount of advertising money could have busted the iPad out of the gate the way the users themselves did.

The second part of a brand is always fulfilling the promise you set forth (this is straight from branding queen Libby Gill’s rulebook).  And, quite simply, Apple delivers on their promise day in and day out.  They listen to their constituency and they build a better mousetrap, make better stuff, and address issues like the cloud – maybe a little later than the creative disruptors, but without a doubt, they’re putting their weight (and their money) where their mouth is.

Which brings me to the issue of legacy:  Apple is a big deal – not just to the world, that’s obvious – but here, in Cupertino (my hometown).  Legacy is a lot like a brand, in its truest form, it delivers on a promise made. The new Steve Jobs’ Cupertino Apple Campus Mothership is absolutely part of that promise.  One day after the WWDC conference, Jobs put forth his new campus proposal to the Cupertino City Counsel, ripe with more than apples.  Steve Jobs has designated acres and acres of his campus for apricot orchards – honoring the tradition of the Valley; that’s roots.  And it’s deeper than I can convey.

I could go on and on about Apple’s commitment to its future and to the ever growing employee base (I was part of that once, and I retain a strong, golden thread to those people and the work they do), but the commitment from Steve Jobs is bigger than even that.  I think I should come clean here and say that obviously I admire Steve Jobs.  I don’t agree with him all the time, obviously – or with Apple for that matter.  But I’ve seen him renovate more than a company or a product line.  I’ve seen him refresh the people around him.  I’ve watched him galvanize thousands of employees to get laser focused on success and build something meaningful.  I’ve witnessed the grace, elegance, and simplicity with which the products have sparked a revolutionary embrace among consumers.  I’ve watched his address at Stanford’s graduation a dozen times and brought that message into my own life – which brings me back to that metaphysical doorway I mentioned earlier.  To that glimpse of one’s self coming and going.

You see, we’re all creating a legacy all the time.  We are ALL in the process of going, like it or not.

A brand, well that’s for now.  But a legacy… what we build that will outlast us, that’s huge.  There are 3,700 trees in what will be the new Apple campus as of today.  According to initial specs, Apple hopes to have 6,000 trees when the mothership is built. In fact, Steve Jobs hired experts from Stanford to consult on indigenous trees to make this come to “fruition” (sorry, I couldn’t resist).  To me, no matter what my life has become – working with industry leaders and entrepreneurs, innovators and influencers, celebrities and musicians, I often look through one of those doorways and see myself picking fuzzy apricots from the tress here in Cupertino.  I remember where I come from and, like Steve Jobs, that my legacy has to be bigger than my brand.

And just my humble opinion, whatever those trees are, whatever fruit they bear, in my book they’re all Apple trees.

Kelli Richards

CEO of The All Access Group

The Next Big Thing: Apple WWDC


It’s no surprise to see Apple race on, barely missing a beat since Steve’s passing – leading global innovation as it has this new millennium.

In just a few hours the next Apple WWDC (Apple WorldWide Developers Conference) will take place. A stage that has announced true global game changers, like the iPhone and the iPad.

In the end, right now it’s still about the App store.  With 600,000 downloadable games, magazines and productivity tools, Apple is the application leader.  But the others are not far behind. As quoted in Bloomberg earlier today, “The success of Apple’s App Store has helped create an economy for downloading mobile applications that will reach $58 billion in sales in 2014.”

Surely, Apple will continue App dominance – and its track record of suspense and big announcements at WWDC. Will we see the next iPhone? News on OSX Mountain Mountain Lion?A new social platform? The next “Big Thing” that none of us have even contemplated before?  It’s hard not to wonder where Apple goes from here, without Steve Jobs at the helm… but we’ll find out in just a few short hours.

This is, in fact, a question I ask over and over in my upcoming eBook on Apple, The Magic and Moxie of Apple – An Insider’s View.

“… So where does Apple – a company that started out as two guys making and selling circuit boards out of their garage, which transformed into one of the biggest international technology companies in the world – go from here? Following the loss of Steve, that question seems challenging to answer. As we know all too well, Apple has seen itself rise and fall from grace before and reinvent itself more than once, and the company is counting on the fact that it’s cemented its place at the top so profoundly that nothing will stop it from continuing to grow. Continually releasing new products (and upgrading the old) may do this, but fundamentally, what direction does it take next? The iPhone, iPad, and iPod have already seen several generations of upgrades. What groundbreaking innovations will propel Apple in the same way that the iPod, iPhone, MacBook Air and iPad did? The answer to that question isn’t what new product will they come out with, but rather who will be dream it up without Steve? … ”

Like many of you, I’m eagerly awaiting iOS 6 and Mountain Lion – which brings some of the most popular features found on other Apple products to the MAC, such asGameCenter, notes, etc. A personal favorite is that Mountain Lion will send messages to anyone on an Apple product – so you’ll be able to begin a message on your MAC and pick it back up on your iPhone or iPad later on. We’ll see today what else Apple has in store for us – the world of believers, creators and brand advocates.

And although the race continues without Steve to lead the pack – only his company to carry on the dream – it will not be easy to watch WWDC without him taking the stage.

Kelli Richards, President and CEO
The All Access Group, LLC

PS: If you’d like to pre-order a copy of my book, The Magic and Moxie of Apple – An Insider’s View,” please go to https://allaccessgroup.com/?p=2287.

 

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Press Release: Kelli Richards, Expert in Music, Technology and Digital Distribution to Speak at Capital Club

Kelli Richards, Expert in Music, Technology and Digital Distribution to Speak at Capital Club

Cupertino, CA  Kelli Richards, a thought leader in digital music and entertainment, and one of only a few select members of The Futures Agency and Alan Weiss’ Master Mentor Program and Thought Leadership Summit, has been invited to be an esteemed guest and presenter at the Silicon Valley Capital Club.

Located in beautifulSan Jose,California, the Silicon Valley Capital Club is a private business, social and dining club that is truly without rival inSilicon Valley and the surrounding Bay Area. With its spectacular 360-degree views from the pinnacle of theKnightRidderBuilding in the heart of downtownSan Jose, the Silicon Valley Club offers the perfect ambience and well-equipped facilities for both business and social gather.  The Women’s Luncheon Series at the Capital Club highlights women speakers from a variety of backgrounds and industries.  It also provides the opportunity for top business leaders to build strong relationships and develop a network of connections.

Kelli Richards is a true trailblazer in the digital music, entertainment and technology worlds with more than twenty years of senior-level leadership experience.  With a unique talent for connecting innovators in technology with creative leaders in entertainment, Richards is a highly sought-after consultant, mentor, speaker, producer, coach and author, As the CEO of The All Access Group, Richards and her team facilitate powerful strategic business opportunities in digital distribution between technology companies, established artists and celebrities, film studios, record labels, and consumer brand companies to foster new revenue streams and deliver compelling consumer experiences.

Prior to founding The All Access Group, Kelli served in senior roles at Fortune 100 entertainment and technology companies, including Apple Inc., where she launched Apple’s earliest focus on music and drove all music initiatives during her 10 years with the market leader. She also served in senior-level leadership capacities at EMI Music as an A&R exec, and at Silicon Graphics (SGI) where she helped launch Silicon Studio, the company’s entertainment division. She developed PatroNet, the first Internet-based artist subscription service with rocker partner Todd Rundgren in the mid-90s – and helped to launch the entire digital music revolution.

A frequent speaker and panel moderator at digital music and entertainment industry conferences globally, Kelli has also been an acclaimed talent producer of a wide range of award shows, epic concerts, and celebrity fundraiser events for over 25 years.  She co-produced a celebrity fundraiser event to support the UN’s “Adopt-A-Minefield” initiative featuring Paul McCartney, Brian Wilson, Stephen Stills and hosted by Jay Leno. Additionally, she was a 20-year talent producer behind the BAMMIES, and remains a long-time talent executive and co-producer of the annual Pollstar Concert Industry Awards.

Kelli Richards has co-authored two books, including the critically acclaimed “The Art of Digital Music:  56 Artists, Visionaries & Insiders Reveal Their Creative Secrets.”  Her newest eBook, “Taking the Crowd to the Cloud – Social Media for the Music Industry,” reached #1 on Amazon in several categories. A true renaissance woman, Kelli is also a Certified Integrative Life Coach trained under best-selling authors and coaches Debbie Ford and Alan Cohen.  She lives inCupertino,CA in the heart of theSilicon Valley.

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Kelli Richards, CEO
www.AllAccessgroup.com
Email:  Kelli@AllAccessGroup.com

 

 

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