tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7879107.post3116993429275153808..comments2023-12-08T01:42:31.590-06:00Comments on Cauvin: Henry Ford's "Faster Horse" QuoteRoger L. Cauvinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08969779835314260680noreply@blogger.comBlogger11125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7879107.post-30501169842799499182013-10-27T15:15:42.894-05:002013-10-27T15:15:42.894-05:00Great blog entry (not surprisingly), Teresa! The p...Great blog entry (not surprisingly), Teresa! The problem isn't talking to prospects; it's asking the wrong questions and expecting to get reliable information that most prospects can't provide.<br /><br />The quote (apocryphal or not) teaches a vital lesson to product managers, but is definitely subject to misinterpretation.Roger L. Cauvinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08969779835314260680noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7879107.post-47178838804317227782013-10-24T15:56:11.114-05:002013-10-24T15:56:11.114-05:00I feel like it's a product blogger's rite ...I feel like it's a product blogger's rite of passage to write about the "faster horse" quote. Here's mine: <br /><br /><a href="http://teresatorres.com/producttalk/2011/12/how-talk-to-your-customers-despite-henry-ford-and-steve-jobs/" rel="nofollow">How to Talk to Customers Despite Henry Ford and Steve Jobs</a><br /><br />I do agree the quote is useful for combatting so and so asked for it, we have to build it. But the dark side is people use it to argue that customers don't know what they want. And while that may be true, we still need to talk to them to learn what their needs are. We just have to ask the right questions.Teresa Torreshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13454627005502253267noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7879107.post-21221658228223492792012-04-19T23:01:57.334-05:002012-04-19T23:01:57.334-05:00On the launch of Macintosh computer, Steve was ask...On the launch of Macintosh computer, Steve was asked if he has done any research on if there is any market for this computer. In a nearly offended tone he replied “Did Alexander Graham Bell do any market research before he invented the telephone?<br /><br />Asked how much research and focus groups are done to guide apple when he introduced the iPad, jobs famously quipped, “None, it isn’t the consumer’s job to know what they want. It’s hard for consumer to tell you what they want when they have never seen anything remotely like it”.<br /><br />-- Steve Jobs, Company-Apple, Sales-$108 billion, Market value-$546 billioniqrajahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02839940902853779733noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7879107.post-87471207299256360682011-12-11T11:52:55.392-06:002011-12-11T11:52:55.392-06:00Klaus, I disagree it's as simple as you portra...Klaus, I disagree it's as simple as you portray. Customers suggest ideas and features they will never buy or use. To know what they will actually buy and use, you must probe more deeply into the problems they face, design experts must think creatively about the best ways to address these problems, and you must run experiments to validate your hypotheses.Roger L. Cauvinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08969779835314260680noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7879107.post-62824716671215752172011-12-11T09:44:28.431-06:002011-12-11T09:44:28.431-06:00It's simple. If you want yo make money ask you...It's simple. If you want yo make money ask your customer. If you want to change the world, then don't.Klaushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01911037546364678540noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7879107.post-26966591817115108242011-08-21T00:38:21.901-05:002011-08-21T00:38:21.901-05:00This is a great sentence, but it is only applicabl...This is a great sentence, but it is only applicable to certain group of people. These people are visionaries in charge of creation and innovation and understand the product in much greater detail compare to an average consumer or middle manage. If Steve Job wanted to create double folding iPhone and slider keypad and pen for touch screen, then he listened to customer. All great people like Henry Ford, Steve Jobs,... observed the market instead of listing to the noises and offer something that the customer could not think of. Well obviously this does not apply to retail shop, assembly factories or service sector which must listen and obey the customer.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7879107.post-81103417607524335322010-07-15T17:16:31.321-05:002010-07-15T17:16:31.321-05:00I think this is a great example of how great produ...I think this is a great example of how great product management cannot be formulaic. It will never be so simple as: "Listen to your customers and do what they say". Or, "don't do what they say, they don't know what they need."<br /><br />It will always require human discernment based on the situation, the problem, and the market. That's why product managers will never be replaced by robots. I hope.Jeremy Gorrhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12712780487054037321noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7879107.post-11806517382383252242010-07-02T08:21:03.244-05:002010-07-02T08:21:03.244-05:00All so true. As Scott Sehlhorst at Tyner Blain sai...All so true. As Scott Sehlhorst at Tyner Blain said, "We don't want customers to DEFINE our products; we want customers to INSPIRE our products." Instead of talking about features, discuss PROBLEMS.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12580476890121296151noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7879107.post-54009424374192354332010-07-01T15:09:44.234-05:002010-07-01T15:09:44.234-05:00I recall that blog entry you wrote, Jeffrey. In f...I recall that blog entry you wrote, Jeffrey. In fact, left a couple of comments on it.Roger L. Cauvinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08969779835314260680noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7879107.post-45467240003482673592010-07-01T15:00:04.602-05:002010-07-01T15:00:04.602-05:00Well, to quote Ford, "History is more or less...Well, to quote Ford, "History is more or less bunk." :-) But I definitely agree with your post, as I've written about here:<br /><a href="http://blog.vovici.com/blog/bid/25609/Henry-Ford-on-Market-Research" rel="nofollow">Henry Ford on Market Research</a>Jeffrey Henninghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06189664781549163756noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7879107.post-49653509029619657952010-07-01T11:27:08.117-05:002010-07-01T11:27:08.117-05:00Great post.Great post.Mohithttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11582343235938476031noreply@blogger.com