Product Behavior

The key to a successful product is its story: the reason it exists, where it comes from, why anyone should care about it. If we want to foster a real relationship between consumer and product, we must think of products as partners. Not “What is the product?” but “Who is the product?”
The three archetypes in [...]

The third product archetype is the product with a new approach. Genius products rethink the world and solve a problem in a new way. You buy a Genius and think, “I can’t believe no one thought of that before.”
Example of Genius products and services:

iPod
George Foreman Grill
Walkman
Swiffer
Amazon
Trader Joe’s

None of these products invented anything, but instead [...]

The second archetype in the mythology of products is The Hero. Hero products stand for something. You buy a hero because you buy in to its philosophy.
Here are some Hero products and services:

Prius
iBook (the original tangerine one)
BMW
Hummer
Ben & Jerry’s
Working Assets Long Distance
L. L. Bean
Target
Whole Foods
Columbia Sportswear

A Hero doesn’t even have to perform all that well; [...]

The Star, our first archetype, is a product that does something better than its competitors. Nobody cares how well a star baseball pitcher fields, drives, or sings as long has he can throw the ball better than anyone else.
Here are some star products and services:

RAZR mobile phone
Verizon Wireless mobiile phone service
Pay-per-view tv
Design Within Reach home [...]

Products, like brands, must have a handle for the consumer to grab. This product is the _____ product. If you can’t fill in that blank with a word or two, you’ll have a hard time getting anyone’s attention.
Sometimes, clients will tell me their product will be, basically, everything to everyone. But claiming such broad appeal [...]