On par with John McCain’s vetting of Sarah Palin or my due diligence into the calorie count of a Nature’s Valley Peanut Bar (WARNING: “Nature” isn’t always synonymous with “healthy”), Apple’s naming effort for its revolutionary new tablet product has got to be one of the biggest brand-naming blunders of all time.
At the risk of sounding like a know-it-all MBA, this is basic … BASIC … marketing 101 strategy and management. It is impossible to believe that an entire company full of bright, talented engineers and marketers could miss the feminine-hygiene connection. (This just in … the AP is reporting that something called a “Google Search” is transforming the trademark-verification process.)
This leads one to believe that they knew this fallout might rear its ugly head at least in the near-term. Was the name “iPad” really worth the risk? Will it have the enduring power big enough to define an entirely new and innovative generation of personal media devices? The more times I hear the nickname “Max-iPad,” the more my answer skews towards a resounding “NO.”
That said, very cool device.
The Vanderbilt Entrepreneurs Association (VEA) at the Owen Graduate School of Management is excited to host a panel discussion titled “Emerging Media – Mobile, Social, & More” this Wednesday, 11/18, at 5:30pm in room 222. The event will be one of several the school is organizing as a part Global Entrepreneurship Week – an initiative launched to help “connect young people everywhere through local, national and global activities designed to help them explore their potential as self-starters and innovators.” (