Mozilla marketing (follow-up)
October 25, 2006 1:03 pm marketingI got some interesting responses to my post yesterday, most of which missed my point.
Talking about freedom, choice and community does not equate to preaching. Nor does it necessarily equate to talking about Open Source or Free software. When I say we should be talking about freedom & choice, I’m talking about the *user’s* freedom & choice, not the developer’s.
My favourite Firefox Flicks entry was “Daredevil”. Whee was fun, all the ones talking about spyware and privacy or viruses were OK, but the one that got me was the one that concentrated on a value – user freedom.
Think of all the car ads which associate their product with freedom. Even Microsoft use the concept of freedom with their “realize your potential” ad campaign.
Ignoring such a powerful concept, which we *own*, seems to me like suicide. “We’re the nicer browser to use” will work for a while, but one day that may well not be the case (especially since it’s a subjective question, and Microsoft has a bigger marketing budget). And when that day comes, Mozilla will start losing share, unless people have established an emotional link with Firefox.
Are we really not smart enough to come up with a good way to make a free software user feel free? Or to present ourselves as the champions of choice? Is there really no value in trying to make a Firefox user feel like part of a greater community?
October 25th, 2006 at 11:21 pm
It is clear misunderstanding what is what in this scenario.
I _think_ that opinions about Firefox varies when we change user group, just like this:
1. Developers, Power users who believe in freedom – Firefox is free, small, stylish app, but what is best – it’s free as speech.
2. Power users who don’t care about nothing, just want to get stuff done – Firefox is stylish, with good features, secure and..oohh…yes, free as beer. And it works.
3. Users who are clueless, just want to get stuff done, but are not very ignorant about ideas as power users, who will to get a job done overrides EVERYTHING – ohhh, you say Firefox is that app? Where I can get that? Ok, now what? Install, yes….launch it. Hummmm, doesn’t look different. Ohh, it is more secure? Ohhhhhh, it is about freedom of speech? How? You can change internals? You can improve? Huh, it must be good. Nice. Does Java games works? Ohh, good. I will call you if I will have questions.
Just like that. It is question what group Firefox wants to reach – power users at all costs? freedom lovers? clueless users, who just want to get job done, but if you will tell them more, they will listen?
Personally I think that Firefox message always have been not about open source, but about features, stability and security. Or I’m wrong? Why not have TWO messages. It is secure and feature rich. It supports standards and it’s secure. And it is product of freedom philosophy.
October 26th, 2006 at 1:28 am
“How should Firefox make me feel? Free, and part of a community.”
But most people are not interested in that. They just aren’t. Sure, they might want to belong to communities, but I have a suspicion that most people are simply not that interested in software to really care, let alone web-browsers. I use Firefox, and I love it. But I don’t feel like I’m part of a “Firefox-community”. I don’t spend time discussing Firefox with other users, I just use it.
To most people, IE is just as free as Firefox is. It came with their computer and they are free to use it. Since they are not developers, they do not care about it being open source or not.
“we should be thinking about what Firefox *allows its users to do*”
If you ask Joe Sixpack that question, his answer would be “it allows me to browse the web”. How is that different from IE?
What we should do is to pick the low-hanging fruit first. talking about details of the software-licenses are way way up there. People just don’t care. But when you show them tangible features that Firefox lets them do, they will “get it”.
October 26th, 2006 at 3:02 am
Janne: Let me put it another way… can you have an emotional experience with a car? If you ask someone “what doesn your car allow you to do”, the answer is “to drive around the place” – and yet, many people have an emotional link with their car. Why? Because of memories, no doubt. But also because of associations they make. Jaguar – sleek, black, sexy, feline. Twingo – fun, flighty. Volvo – safe, reliable. And so on.
So the question is – can you have an emotional relationship with a web browser? If so, what kind of emotional relationship? What associations do we need to make for that?
My second favourite firefox flicks was “Discover fun” – Firefox is the browser that makes browsing the web fun again. Emotional relationship.
See what I’m getting at?
October 26th, 2006 at 5:31 am
When we can figure out how to let you have sex with your girlfriend in the back seat of a Firefox, we’ll be all set. 🙂
October 26th, 2006 at 5:46 am
Closed source software beats us, and beats us hard in every other aspect than the freedom aspect. I agree with you Dave, we need to focus more on the freedom. That not said we should ignore the fact that we’re quite good at interface design and providing stuff that just works.
October 26th, 2006 at 6:43 am
And when that day comes, Mozilla will start losing share, unless people have established an emotional link with Firefox.
You hit the nail on the head here. I work for a market research company (as a sysadmin) and we are constantly talking about how emotional connections and emotional responses are the most powerful drivers of consumer choice. That is what needs to be tapped into if wide appeal is the goal.
October 26th, 2006 at 7:32 pm
You must admit that your first post was easy to misunderstand: it did indeed sound as if you were proposing the “Free-as-in-Free-Software” route.
So, you’re talking about an emotional campaign such as the one used by Marlboro, for example? Generally speaking, a campaign like those often used for cigarettes, perfumes, or expensive design goods (clothing, furniture, etc.)? That’s of course something completely different.
Well, I can only guess why Mozilla is not going this route. However, if they considered the option, they probably wondered how they could do it. For an emotional campaign, you need images or any other sort of visual material. And you need consistent style. And you need space to show these ads to people. So this is a little bit more expensive than Firefox’ usual public relations campaigns.
October 26th, 2006 at 7:43 pm
I’ve always looked at Free Software as a competitive advantage for a person/company, but I’ve really enjoyed reading your last two posts about the marketing advantage that Free Software gives us. That we own “Free” and can encourage an emotional response is genuine insight. Furthermore you have the ability to state your insight in such clear and understandable language. I’d love to hear more on this.
October 26th, 2006 at 12:19 am
I think I have figured out why I’m having trouble getting this point across.
Let’s take as a given that Firefox needs to be good to get new users. It is good, and will get technically better. But it also needs to appear more attractive a proposition than IE.
Everyone is obsessed with talking about what Firefox *is*. When I say we should communicate freedom, people think “saying Firefox is Free Software isn’t going to get us anywhere”.
But we shouldn’t even be thinking about what Firefox *is* – we should be thinking about what Firefox *allows its users to do* and how it makes its users *feel*.
Talking about usability speaks to the first bit – but not the whole way. Practicality and usability are all about what the user can do with the software (and, in part, what the software is). But they don’t go for emotions at all.
How should Firefox make me feel? Free, and part of a community.
When I think of community, I think warm fuzzy feelings – I’m part of something more important than me, a movement. I’m not just a consumer, I’m a participant in change. A member of an extended family.
When I think of freedom, I also get warm fuzzy feelings – a world without limits, fewer constraints, less hassle, the web as a limitless realm of discovery, with Firefox as my mentor, guide, and shepherd, fending off anything which gets in the way of my exploration. Firefox makes the web secure, and safe – what does that buy me? It means I can explore, without fear. I am more free.