Have you ever read about Apple’s core values?

Even great brands need to invest in meaning if they want to remain great. In this dynamic customer-driven marketplace, no one is safe. Whether you’re Apple, Nike or Coke, you need thoughtful investment into defining your company’s mission if you hope to retain your relevance, value, and vitality.

Only 20% of brands worldwide are seen to meaningfully and positively impact people’s lives, and as social technology continues to drive consumer activism, many companies are waking up to the realization that articulating their values and mission is not a luxury. Instead, articulating how your brand brings its core values to life is now critical for your brand reputation and employee productivity.

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Apple has always been different. A different kind of company with a different view of the world. Steve Jobs had a talent for identifying what was important & what was not, and having the courage to avoid what he felt was the nonessential.

Steve Jobs Philosophy: Think Different Marketing Campaign

Think Different was a marketing campaign launched by Apple under Steve Jobs when he took over as interim CEO of Apple in 1997 and the company was in a pretty bad state.

Think Different Campaign reflected his philosophy behind making the best products in the market. It was a brand image campaign which had an emotional appeal not only for the potential customers but also for Apple’s employees who had forgotten what Apple is about.

His second strategy to make a company last longer was to kill Apple’s own products before somebody else kills them with a new product.

“Marketing is about values. It’s a complicated and noisy world, and we’re not going to get a chance to get people to remember much about us. No company is. So we have to be really clear about what we want them to know about us.” – Steve Jobs

For explanation -Apple launched the iPod in 1997 which killed the Sony Walkman forever but they did not rest and brought the iPhone in 2007 which was termed as an iPod killer .

In 2010 Apple launched the iPad under Steve Jobs and he predicted it will kill the PC market and the same is happening today. These values are reflected in Apple products as Apple products are the most innovative products in the market. They work seamlessly out of the box and Apple provides the best customer service.

Steve Jobs: Apple’s Core Values

Steve Jobs gives an inspiring talk about the core values of Apple, and more importantly himself. Steve Jobs was discussing a new campaign “Think Different” and talked about how Apple needs to change it’s marketing strategy to one which emphasize on it’s core-values. He went on to talk about how Apple’s core value was to honor people who think that they can change the world with their passion.

Apple’s core value is not the Think Different campaign. Its core value is to make the best products in the market and focus on selected products so that they can develop and innovate.

These core values are the reason that Apple products have been so consistently excellent, and they are the reason that you can walk into any Apple store across the world and get the same experience. From sales associates to top executives, Apple is united by a common culture. And it is that culture that ensures that Apple customers enjoy the experience that they have come to expect whenever they interact with Apple.

Apple as a company values: Apple Core Values 1981

In a statement published on September 23, 1981, management defined Apple Values as  “the qualities, customs, standards and principles that the company as a whole regards as desirable. They are the basis for what we do and how we do it. Taken together, they identify Apple as a unique company.”

Below you can find the original Apple core values:

• One person, one computer.
• We are going for it and we will set aggressive goals.
• We are all on the adventure together.
• We build products we believe in.
• We are here to make a positive difference in society, as well as make a profit.
• Each person is important; each has the opportunity and the obligation to make a difference.
• We are all in it together, win or lose.
• We are enthusiastic!
• We are creative; we set the pace.
• We want everyone to enjoy the adventure we are on together.
• We care about what we do.
• We want to create an environment in which Apple values flourish.

Apple’s Core Values According to Tim Cook

The 7 Core Values of Apple under Tim Cook management are already transcending Steve Jobs principles on which Apple brand was originally built on.

Breaking down Apple’s mission statement (business philosophy) and this quote from Tim Cook:

• We believe that we’re on the face of the Earth to make great products.
• We believe in the simple, not the complex.
• We believe that we need to own and control the primary technologies behind the products we make.
• We participate only in markets where we can make a significant contribution.
• We believe in saying no to thousands of projects so that we can really focus on the few that are truly important and meaningful to us.
• We believe in deep collaboration and cross-pollination of our groups, which allow us to innovate in a way that others cannot.
• We don’t settle for anything less than excellence in every group in the company, and we have the self-honesty to admit when we’re wrong and the courage to change.

Core values are what support the vision, shape the culture and reflect what the company values. They are the essence of the company’s identity the principles, beliefs or philosophy of values.

Compensation of Apple’s leadership team, 2011