There are some people who walk into the Apple Store who I can tell just don't "get" why Macs might be good computers.
I don't want to make any sweeping generalizations but they tend to be less educated and have used very little computers in general. Of course, those who are less educated (or should I say, have had less educational opportunities) have generally had less access to computers to begin with. This puts them at even more of an economic and social disadvantage. The term for this is digital divide; I think if Bush could have done one redeeming thing it could have been to help close this gap. But back to the story...
Does that make Macs elitist? No, I don't think so. You just have to have enough experience with computers to know what kind of potential computers have. Which is to say, almost limitless. If you think a computer is just something that you use to browse "the internets," then all the cool stuff that comes with a Mac is pretty useless.
With education and experience using a computer comes the ability to have discriminating taste when deciding what computer to buy. It's like accepting McDonald's as a perfectly good meal when you've never eaten at a fancy shmancy restaurant. Yes, the fancy restaurant costs more, but your body generally doesn't hurt after eating there.
I think this is a good analogy because my brain hurts after using Windows (why do I have to restart after every little update?).
So, once in a while I had a person walk in to the store who I could immediately spot* as someone who a Mac would be *great* for, but they probably wouldn't appreciate why. The trick to being a good salesperson is to show them why. It's not always possible.
You show them how slim the iMac is, how iPhoto can email a picture with a click of a button, and show them exposé, but they just sit there asking where the "Start" button is. It's not really a matter of Macs being elitist, but the customer simply not knowing what they are looking at.
I'm not making any judgments about them as a person here... just some observations about why not everyone runs out to get a Mac. Heck, some people don't use computers at all, which might be fine for them right now, but more and more services are being offered online and some going exclusively online -- I don't have to tell you how important computer literacy will be in the coming years.
I was always honest with my customers, and if I thought they were better off with a PC, I'd say so. Not that they needed me to tell them that.
For example, before Apple switched to Intel chips and running Windows on a Mac required the too-slow-to-be-useful VirtualPC, if a customer had to run MS Access or wanted to play Half-Life 2, they were better off with Windows. I'd always tell them what a Mac would be great for (Internet, Photos, MS Office compatible, etc.), but I make it clear that a Mac wouldn't be able to do everything they needed. It might sound silly that that would need to be explained to people, but you'd be surprised how many people realize that OS X is completely different from Windows, and your Windows software won't run on it. I don't think I deserve a medal for being honest, but I couldn't do it any other way.
Sometimes honesty pays off: a guy came in looking to buy an iSight web cam (when Apple still made them). We were talking about the iSight and he was about to get one until I asked him if he had a digital video camera at home. He said yes. I explained that he can hook his camera into his firewire and it will work the same was as an iSight. He lit up and said thanked me for saving him $150. Of course, now an iSight goes for about $300 on eBay.
Back to Macs being elitist. I don't think it's elitist to say computer illiterate people might not be able to appreciate a Mac. Does that sound harsh? Maybe. But it's true. I think it's realistic that they look at the price of a $400 Windows laptop and a $1000+ Mac laptop and not be able to fathom why it costs more. And for some of those people, they simply might not ever get the extra $600 out of their computer, in which case I think Windows is fine for them. One thing I did try to tell these customers was that in the long run the time you save not having to deal with all the Windows virii, spyware, and crashes might be worth the extra money.
Everyone's money is the same color, but I don't think Apple is trying to take a 50% market share. A strong, smart, and loyal customer base is a good thing even if it's small. Anyone else is just icing on the cake.
Plus, even Windows users can use an iPod.**
* For better or worse, as a salesperson will put people into groups all the time. I could pretty much predict spot on who would pay with a check [rural middle-aged women], cash [kids, scruffy looking guys with tattoos] or credit cards [white collar workers and middle-upper class moms].
**This is only half true. Half of all Windows users bring their iPods in with some sort of problem. I blame Windows.
P.S. Yes, I'm going to keep talking about Apple stuff. I have 3 years of stuff that I have to unload.
Posted by alangage at September 23, 2007 05:56 PM
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I look forward to hearing more about your Apple retail experiences, because, as you know, I considered working there part time (and probably still would if the opportunity presented itself).
I'll post a rebuttal to this post tonight on my site (though I don't know if it's technically a rebuttal, since we agree on most points).
Posted by: Sean at September 24, 2007 01:27 PM
Oh my god! Could everyone I know please litter their blogs with Apple propaganda?! I've already told you I'm ready to commit myself to your cause as soon as I get the scrilla to do so! 'Cause it's not really that Apple makes a better computer, but instead I just want to own the Apple logo as soon as I can afford to so.
I want you all to know that you are making this hard for me to justify my belief that I am not a nerd; after all, all of my blogosphere friends can't quit rapping about Apple... where does that leave me? Huh? You're only as good as the company you keep and the company I keep are Steve Jobs fanboys!
I am human, but also defeated. Are you all happy? So I am really not a human.
Posted by: Cody at September 24, 2007 02:16 PM
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