If you’re a MacHead, everything that Steve says it’s law. If you don’t know what a MacHead is, see here. If you’re not a MacHead, maybe this post is not for you.
Anyway, in this roundup I’ve collected 60 of the most inspiring Steve Jobs quotes.
Enjoy! 
“Sometimes when you innovate, you make mistakes. It is best to admit them quickly, and get on with improving your other innovations.”
“Being the richest man in the cemetery doesn’t matter to me … Going to bed at night saying we’ve done something wonderful… that’s what matters to me.”
“We’ve gone through the operating system and looked at everything and asked how can we simplify this and make it more powerful at the same time.”
“Be a yardstick of quality. Some people aren’t used to an environment where excellence is expected.”
“I want to put a ding in the universe.”
“I was worth over $1,000,000 when I was 23, and over $10,000,000 when I was 24, and over $100,000,000 when I was 25, and it wasn’t that important because I never did it for the money.”
“The Japanese have hit the shores like dead fish. They’re just like dead fish washing up on the shores.”
“Unfortunately, people are not rebelling against Microsoft. They don’t know any better.”
“Bill Gates‘d be a broader guy if he had dropped acid once or gone off to an ashram when he was younger.”
“The only problem with Microsoft is they just have no taste. They have absolutely no taste. And I don’t mean that in a small way, I mean that in a big way, in the sense that they don’t think of original ideas, and they don’t bring much culture into their products.”
“My job is to not be easy on people. My job is to make them better.”
“We made the buttons on the screen look so good you’ll want to lick them.”
“Click. Boom. Amazing!”
“You can’t just ask customers what they want and then try to give that to them. By the time you get it built, they’ll want something new.”
“Design is not just what it looks like and feels like. Design is how it works.”
“Why join the navy if you can be a pirate?”
“A lot of companies have chosen to downsize, and maybe that was the right thing for them. We chose a different path. Our belief was that if we kept putting great products in front of customers, they would continue to open their wallets.”
“Innovation distinguishes between a leader and a follower.”
“Recruiting is hard. It’s just finding the needles in the haystack. You can’t know enough in a one-hour interview.
So, in the end, it’s ultimately based on your gut. How do I feel about this person? What are they like when they’re challenged? I ask everybody that: ‘Why are you here?’ The answers themselves are not what you’re looking for. It’s the meta-data.”
“We’ve had one of these before, when the dot-com bubble burst. What I told our company was that we were just going to invest our way through the downturn, that we weren’t going to lay off people, that we’d taken a tremendous amount of effort to get them into Apple in the first place – the last thing we were going to do is lay them off.”
“I mean, some people say, ‘Oh, God, if [Jobs] got run over by a bus, Apple would be in trouble.’ And, you know, I think it wouldn’t be a party, but there are really capable people at Apple.
My job is to make the whole executive team good enough to be successors, so that’s what I try to do.”
“It’s not about pop culture, and it’s not about fooling people, and it’s not about convincing people that they want something they don’t. We figure out what we want. And I think we’re pretty good at having the right discipline to think through whether a lot of other people are going to want it, too. That’s what we get paid to do.
We just want to make great products. (I think he means “insanely great products!“)”
“So when a good idea comes, you know, part of my job is to move it around, just see what different people think, get people talking about it, argue with people about it, get ideas moving among that group of 100 people, get different people together to explore different aspects of it quietly, and, you know – just explore things.”
“When I hire somebody really senior, competence is the ante. They have to be really smart. But the real issue for me is, Are they going to fall in love with Apple? Because if they fall in love with Apple, everything else will take care of itself.
They’ll want to do what’s best for Apple, not what’s best for them, what’s best for Steve, or anybody else. (this actually reiterates my oft-repeated mantra of “ubiquitous evangelism” in companies)”
“People think focus means saying yes to the thing you’ve got to focus on. But that’s not what it means at all. It means saying no to the hundred other good ideas that there are. You have to pick carefully.”
“Our DNA is as a consumer company – for that inpidual customer who’s voting thumbs up or thumbs down. That’s who we think about. And we think that our job is to take responsibility for the complete user experience. And if it’s not up to par, it’s our fault, plain and simply.”
“That happens more than you think, because this is not just engineering and science. There is art, too. Sometimes when you’re in the middle of one of these crises, you’re not sure you’re going to make it to the other end. But we’ve always made it, and so we have a certain degree of confidence, although sometimes you wonder.
I think the key thing is that we’re not all terrified at the same time. I mean, we do put our heart and soul into these things.”
“We don’t get a chance to do that many things, and every one should be really excellent. Because this is our life.
Life is brief, and then you die, you know?
And we’ve all chosen to do this with our lives. So it better be damn good. It better be worth it.”
“Almost everything–all external expectations, all pride, all fear of embarrassment or failure–these things just fall away in the face of death, leaving only what is truly important. Remembering that you are going to die is the best way I know to avoid the trap of thinking you have something to lose. You are already naked. There is no reason not to follow your heart.”
“Here’s to the crazy ones, the misfits, the rebels, the troublemakers, the round pegs in the square holes… the ones who see things differently — they’re not fond of rules… You can quote them, disagree with them, glorify or vilify them, but the only thing you can’t do is ignore them because they change things… they push the human race forward, and while some may see them as the crazy ones, we see genius, because the ones who are crazy enough to think that they can change the world, are the ones who do.”
“In most people’s vocabularies, design means veneer. It’s interior decorating. It’s the fabric of the curtains of the sofa. But to me, nothing could be further from the meaning of design. Design is the fundamental soul of a human-made creation that ends up expressing itself in successive outer layers of the product or service.”
“So we went to Atari and said, ‘Hey, we’ve got this amazing thing, even built with some of your parts, and what do you think about funding us? Or we’ll give it to you. We just want to do it. Pay our salary, we’ll come work for you.’ And they said, ‘No.’ So then we went to Hewlett-Packard, and they said, ‘Hey, we don’t need you. You haven’t got through college yet.”
“The people who are doing the work are the moving force behind the Macintosh. My job is to create a space for them, to clear out the rest of the organization and keep it at bay.”
“Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life. Don’t be trapped by dogma – which is living with the results of other people’s thinking. Don’t let the noise of other’s opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.”
“I’m the only person I know that’s lost a quarter of a billion dollars in one year…. It’s very character-building.”
“I’m as proud of what we don’t do as I am of what we do.”
“Quality is more important than quantity. One home run is much better than two doubles.”
“I’ve always wanted to own and control the primary technology in everything we do.”
“It comes from saying no to 1,000 things to make sure we don’t get on the wrong track or try to do too much.”
“It’s really hard to design products by focus groups. A lot of times, people don’t know what they want until you show it to them.”
“Innovation has nothing to do with how many R&D dollars you have. When Apple came up with the Mac, IBM was spending at least 100 times more on R&D. It’s not about money. It’s about the people you have, how you’re led, and how much you get it.”
“Insanely Great!”
“I’m convinced that about half of what separates the successful entrepreneurs from the non-successful ones is pure perseverance.”
“It’s rare that you see an artist in his 30s or 40s able to really contribute something amazing.”
“I feel like somebody just punched me in the stomach and knocked all my wind out. I’m only 30 years old and I want to have a chance to continue creating things. I know I’ve got at least one more great computer in me. And Apple is not going to give me a chance to do that.”
“I didn’t see it then, but it turned out that getting fired from Apple was the best thing that could have ever happened to me. The heaviness of being successful was replaced by the lightness of being a beginner again, less sure about everything. It freed me to enter one of the most creative periods of my life.”
“Do you want to spend the rest of your life selling sugared water or do you want a chance to change the world?”
“The products suck! There’s no sex in them anymore!”
“The cure for Apple is not cost-cutting. The cure for Apple is to innovate its way out of its current predicament.”
“If I were running Apple, I would milk the Macintosh for all it’s worth — and get busy on the next great thing. The PC wars are over. Done. Microsoft won a long time ago.”
“You know, I’ve got a plan that could rescue Apple. I can’t say any more than that it’s the perfect product and the perfect strategy for Apple. But nobody there will listen to me.”
“Apple has some tremendous assets, but I believe without some attention, the company could, could, could — I’m searching for the right word — could, could die.”
Do you know more quotes? I’d love to hear about it in the comments!
Sunteţi nevoiţi să apelaţi din ce în ce mai des la serviciile companiilor web şi vreţi să înţelegeţi mai bine ce să le cereţi şi ce nu?
Criza economică actuală pune tot mai mulţi antreprenori sub o presiune puternică. Este din ce în ce mai dificil să găseşti noi resurse şi modalităţi de a reduce costurile şi ineficienţa. Ce soluţii au la îndemână antreprenorii pentru eficientizarea afacerilor? Când este cel mai bun moment să vinzi?Speakeri:
Péter Barta — Consultant, Director Executiv al Fundaţiei Post Privatizare (FPP)
Marius Ghenea — Preşedinte PCfun
Todi Pruteanu — Platform strategy manager, Microsoft
Aljosa Jenko — Preşedinte & CEO, HTTPOOL Group
e-Invest, in parteneriat cu Fundatia Post Privatizare (FPP), lanseaza un studiu care-si propune sa raspunda catorva intrebari cheie privind atitudinea IMM-urilor si antreprenorilor fata de proiectele online.
Studiul isi propune sa releve, printre altele, care este gradul actual de interes din partea antreprenorilor si IMM-urilor in legatura cu piata de online din Romania, care sunt sumele pe care IMM-urile sau antreprenorii le-ar investi in zona online sau care sunt zonele catre care s-ar putea indrepta pentru sprijin (logistic, know-how sau financiar), se arata in comunicatul de presa.
Targetat la nivel national, studiul se adreseaza in egala masura IMM-urilor si profesiilor liberale din Romania precum si antreprenorilor si are ca scop contributia activa la dezvoltarea acestui sector, pentru a oferi competitivitate pe piata interna si externa.
Concluziile acestui studiu vor reprezenta baza pe care FPP va putea formula propuneri pentru elaborarea si ajustarea strategiei Ministerului pentru Intreprinderi Mici si Mijlocii si Cooperatie in perioada urmatoare.
Studiul este disponibil pe CercetareOnline.ro, un produs e-Invest Marketing Romania.
Sursa: Startups.ro
Cei care vor sa inceapa o afacere in domeniu pot avea o rata mare de succes oferind servicii premium, in zonele de nisa. Valoarea pietei romanesti de comert electronic este de 250 de milioane de euro, iar rata de crestere este de 50% pe an, potrivit unui studiu comandat de ANC si realizat de publicatia Link 2 eCommerce, la sfarsitul lui 2008.
Potrivit studiului citat, doar 900 de magazine online sunt active (inregistreaza tranzactii). Iar conform estimarilor Link 2 eCommerce, din totalul magazinelor online din Romania, maxim 30 au un rulaj semnificativ.
Primii pasi pentru lansarea afacerii
Un magazin online nu este un website care functioneaza de la sine iar inceperea unei afaceri in domeniu este simliara cu procedura din offline. Primul pas este conceperea planului de afaceri. Urmeaza stabilirea contactelor cu frunizorii, angajarea oamenilor pentru comenzi, achizitionarea platformei, promovarea si inceperea activitatii. Inainte de a lansa business-ul, este importanta studierea pietei.
“Ca in orice afacere, se pleaca de la un plan si un nivel de investitii si costuri pe care antreprenorul este dispus sa le suporte, cel putin in primul an de functionare. Ulterior se trece la executia site-ului, folosind ca termen de comparatie magazinele concurentilor”, spune pentru startups.ro Madalin Durca, director de marketing la Pcfun.ro.
Insa, reprezentantul Pcfun.ro spune ca nu este recomandat sa-i copiezi pe concurenti, pentru ca, desi aparent este mai simplu, in realitate ajungi sa iti suprimi sansa de a fi o alternativa interesanta pentru clienti.
Liviu Taloi, consultant in domeniul eCommerce, considera ca un antreprenor ar trebui sa intre pe segmentul pe care il stie cel mai bine sau sa se inconjoare de specialisti din acel domeniu si, de asemenea, sa tina cont de marje sau adaosuri si sa pastreze o relatie buna cu furnizorii locali.
“Daca marja nu-i permite o dezvoltare sanatoasa, atunci sa aleaga alt domeniu. Nimeni nu face un magazin online pentru alt motiv in afara de a castiga bani”, mai spune Liviu Taloi.
Consultantul considera ca in prezent nicio nisa nu este acoperita in intregime. El spune ca domeniul IT&C este putin aglomerat, insa cel mai performant sector este cel al turismului.
Investitia initiala intr-un magazin online depinde de nisa abordata, dar si de experienta intreprinzatorului, de nivelul lui de cunostinte, de relatia pe care o are cu furnizorii de produse si servicii.
“Un magazin online poate sa coste de la 3.000 de euro pana la cateva sute de mii de euro, in functie de infrastructura din spatele lui si de cerintele carora trebuie sa le faca fata”, spune Mircea Scarlatescu, proprietarul magazinului online FloriLaBucuresti.ro.
Liviu Taloi spune ca recuperarea investitiei poate fi facuta chiar si intr-un an, insa exista magazine online care nici dupa doi ani de activitate nu au intrat pe profit.
Realizarea site-ului
Din punct de vedere tehnic, antreprenorii au de ales intre utilizarea gratuita sau achizitia unei platforme existente de magazin online sau realizarea acesteia de la zero. Madalin Durca spune ca riscurile sunt mai mari daca antreprenorul nu detine o experienta anterioara in domeniu si externalizeaza realizarea platformei catre o firma specializata.
Si Liviu Taloi, spune ca cel mai bine este sa pornesti de la ceva deja creat, ce functioneaza. El considera ca unul dintre punctele cheie de urmarit in lansarea unui start-up in domeniu, pe langa finantare, este momentul lansarii.
“Cu cat astepti mai mult sa lansezi ceva, cu atat ai sansa sa pierzi trenul. De aceea, cumpararea unei platforme iti ofera avantajul de a fi primul pe un anumit domeniu”, explica Taloi.
In plus, realizarea de la zero a unei platforme dedicate este mai scumpa decat achizitia si costurile de personalizare ale unei platforme existente.
Madalin Durca spune ca investitia tehnica depinde de suma pe care antreprenorul este dispus sa o investeasca - intre cateva sute de euro pentru cumpararea unei platforme cu functionalitati simple, pana la cateva mii sau chiar zeci de mii de euro, pentru platformele mai avansate.
In 2004, cand a lansat firma AppleNet si magazinul online aferent, Sebastian Cochinescu, directorul mar.ro, a folosit o platforma gratuita. Din cauza ca aceasta s-a stricat si pentru ca nici el nu avea suficient timp, antreprenorul a abandonat ideea unui magazin online pana anul acesta, cand a ales sa foloseaca o platforma comerciala.
Insa, de multe ori, cei care lanseaza magazine online au deja experienta in dezvoltarea software si pot sa realizeze singuri platforma de care au nevoie. De exemplu, asa a fost in cazul FloriLaBucuresti.ro, unde solutia necesara a fost creata in-house, firma care il detine, FYB, dezvoltans solutii eCommerce pentru clientii sai.
Relatia cu furnizorii
Specialistii in domeniu spun ca relatia buna cu furnizorii este primordiala. In cazul in care exista un buget disponibil, ideal este ca antreprenorul sa lucreze cu produse pe stoc, sa plateasca rapid furnizorii si sa incaseze la fel de rapid banii de la clienti. Perioada pentru care se pot face stocuri depinde insa de politica de vanzari, de natura produselor sau de termenele de plata impuse.
Totusi, in contextul perioadei de criza, o analiza de piata este utila pentru a nu ramane cu produsele blocate. Pentru ca vanzarea online are o dispersie foarte mare, asigurarea stocurilor potrivite este dificila.
“Multi jucatori online care lucreaza pe stoc au pierderi mari din cauza produselor nevandabile din stoc”, precizeaza Madalin Durca.
Liviu Taloi considera ca reducerea cheltuielilor, un avantaj din principiu al magazinelor online, se poate obtine printr-o logistica buna, prin rulajul stocului furnizorilor.
De asemenea, exista si situatii cand clientii ar fi dispusi sa accepte termene de livrare mai mari.
In ceea ce priveste comisioanele, “acestea se platesc pe baza unor contracte cu furnizorii si firmele de transport. Clientul nu trebuie sa plateasca aceste comisioane”, spune Cochinescu.
Alegerea niselor de piata
Reprezentantii companiilor din domeniu spun ca focalizarea pe un anumit segment de piata ramane varianta ideala in acest moment, insa profitabilitatea nu este neaparat garantata.
Madalin Durca spune ca nu este o idee buna sa iti setezi ca obiectv sa vinzi de toate. Exista segmente care cer o atentie speciala iar un magazin cu foarte multe categorii de produse fara legatura intre ele va avea si o structura de costuri ceva mai mare. Acesta este si motivul pentru care Sebastian Cochinescu s-a rezumat la comercializarea de produse Apple.
“Noi am mizat pe o piata de nisa. Cred ca acest lucru ne va face sa rezistam”, explica antreprenorul.
Si FloriLaBucuresti.ro a fost gandit ca un magazin de nisa. Mircea Scarlatescu spune ca volumele de vanzare ale unui start-up de nisa sunt mici, deci rata de profit trebuie sa fie mai mare, ceea ce inseamna ca lupta pentru pretul cel mai mic este pierduta de la inceput. De accea, cofondatorul FYB recomanda oferirea de servicii de calitate, chiar la un pret mai mare.
Avantaje si probleme
“Experienta este un avantaj, iar practica preturilor mici ne-a demonstrat recent ca nu este o strategie castigatoare. Conteaza foarte mult relatia clientilor cu magazinul. Ei sunt cei care te vor promova sau descalifica”, spune Durca.
Liviu Taloi apreciza ca important intr-un asemenea business este “sa stii sa fii lider si sa aduni in jurul tau oameni la fel de pasionati ca si tine sau chiar mai pasionati”.
Directorul de marketing al Pcfun.ro spune ca sunt foarte importante preturile practicate, gama de produse si serviciile oferite. Iar pentru atragerea potentialilor clienti nu conteaza design-ul site-ului, ci functionalitatea si uzabilitatea acestuia. Este important si sa livrezi produsele in ziua in care ai promis.
“Serviciile de calitate si follow-up-ul comenzilor sunt foarte importante pentru fidelizarea clientilor si atragerea altora noi prin referinte. Promovarea trebuie facuta cu atentie, iar calitatea serviciilor sa fie la nivelul promisiunilor promotiilor”, spune si Mircea Scarlatescu.
Problemele unui start-up in domeniu sunt legate de concurentii mai vechi pe piata care au deja experienta cu furnizorii si clientii. De asemenea, multe dintre magazinele online nu au o strategie corecta de construire a imaginii si de promovare online. Potrivit reprezentantei Gecad ePayment, aceasta strategie trebuie sa acopere trei etape principale.
“Acestea sunt atragerea traficului, prin instrumente precum optimizarea pentru motoarele de cautare, cresterea ratei de conversie, prin utilizabilitate, teste cu utilizatori reali sau analytics, precum si mentinerea imaginii printr-un management al reputatiei online corect”, precizeaza Carmen Sebe.
Ea considera ca punctul sensibil al magazinelor online romanesti este uzabilitatea, dar o parte dintre magazinele online care au deja experienta in acest domeniu si-au optimizat site-ul astfel incat clientul sa gaseasca rapid toate informatiile de care are nevoie si sa creasca rata de conversie.
Alegerea modalitatii de plata
Plata ramburs este inca cea mai folosita modalitate de plata printre utilizatorii de comert electronic din Romania, iar plata online continua sa ocupe o pondere scazuta (10% - 15%) intre tranzactiile pe acest segment.
“In mare parte, cauza este o educatie destul de modesta privind plata cu cardul. In plus, exista un numar mare de magazine care nu accepta plata cu cardul direct pe internet”, spune Madalin Durca.
Insa, pentru a-si creste sansele de reusita, antreprenorii trebuie sa inlesneasca clientilor accesul la toate modalitatile de plata.
“Ca proprietar de magazin online, incearca sa nu ignori nicio modalitate de plata. Pune pe site si plata cu cardul (daca poti suporta de la inceput comisionul), si plata ramburs, si plata prin ordin de plata, si plata prin SMS. Nu obliga clientii sa foloseasca doar un singur mod de plata al produselor si serviciilor comercializate”, explica Liviu Taloi.
Alegerea de a plati cu cardul depinde de tipul achizitiei. In cazul produselor IT, ponderea platii online prin card este redusa, in jur de 5%, pentru ca este vorba despre produse pe care multi dintre cumparatori vor sa le vada, inainte de a le achizitiona.
“Situatia se schimba in cazul biletelor de avion, unde nu este nimic de vazut, iar livrarea se face electronic. In acest caz, probabil ca 90% dintre plati sunt efectuate cu cardul, pe internet. Acesta este si cazul altor produse cu livrare electronica sau al serviciilor, precum asigurarile online sau plata facturilor”, precizeaza Carmen Sebe.
Avantajele si dezavantajele sistemului de plata prin card
Nu toti antreprenorii utilizeaza toate modalitatile de plata. De exemplu, Sebastian Cochinescu spune ca pentru inceput apeleaza la ramburs si la ordinul de plata, iar plata cu cardul o va implementa in functie de cerintele clientilor. Dimpotriva, in cazul FloriLaBucuresti.ro, rata de plata prin card depaseste 80%.
“Evident este mai usor pentru clienti si rapid pentru noi sa fim platiti prin card, desi comisioanele retinute de procesatori sunt inca prea mari”, spune Mircea Scarlatescu.
Chiar daca plata prin card ar trebui implementata pentru a nu pierde segmentul de clienti care prefera aceasta modalitate, sistemul are si dezavantaje.
“Din pacate, multe magazine se plang de nivelul ridicat al comisioanelor de procesare, drept pentru care ignora implementarea unui sistem de plata online si prefera modalitatea ramburs. Pe de o parte, castigi din marja de adaos, avand in vedere ca nu mai platesti comision catre procesator, pe de alta parte, pierzi un segment de clienti”, spune pentru startups.ro Andrei Radu, Director General Link 2 eCommerce si Presedinte ANEC.
El spune ca avantajul platii prin card este legat de siguranta vanzarii.
“Multe magazine s-au lovit de faptul ca au livrat produsul la domiciliul clientului, dar acesta l-a refuzat pe motiv ca l-a gasit in alta parte. Acest lucru se traduce prin pierderi la nivel de magazin, fapt care nu se intampla in cazul unei tranzactii online cu cardul, in urma careia, de cele mai multe ori clientul nu se mai razgandeste”, adauga Andrei Radu.
Reprezentantii RomCard spun ca solutia de plata online prin card este avantajoasa pentru toate tipurile de magazine si, in contextul economic actual, tot mai multi comercianti isi vor indrepta atentia catre mediul online.
“Daca esti magazin online si nu accepti plati online cu cardul inseamna ca esti in urma evenimentelor. Acesta ar putea sa fie
Potrivit unei cercetari RomCard, citate de Link2Ecommerce, tranzactiile online din luna ianuarie 2009 urmeaza un trend ascendent. Daca in decembrie 2008 s-au inregistrat aproximativ 68.000 de tranzactii, ianuarie 2009 s-a incheiat cu aproape 78.000 de tranzactii.
Redactor: Lidia Ionita
Un material startups.ro.
Sursa: http://www.startups.ro/tutoriale/cum-sa-iti-faci-magazin-online
Seedmoney, fond de investitii romanesc in domeniul online, si-a alocat un buget de 600.000 - 800.000 de euro in acest an, fata de suma de 500.000 de euro de anul trecut.
