What if Software was advertised as groceries?
Recently I’ve started to notice a lot of products that use a “x-free” as the main marketing strategy. Sulfate-free shampoo, candy with no artificial colouring, unrefined sugar, 0% parabens shower gel, unfiltered craft beer, the list goes on and on.
It looks like the absence of ingredients or skipping a part of the process in production gives a competitive advantage. At least when targeting niche audiences. It makes sense in a lot of cases e.g. nut-free products for those who are allergic to nuts. In some cases it’s just ridiculous. Fat-free (not) Butter and still water suitable for vegetarians. Really?
If enough bizarre things are displayed to you every day, they become normal and we stop noticing them. What if we applied the same marketing strategies in our industry? Would it look funny and awkward, but then become a norm?
Below are some slogans for fictional software products that I hope will not be considered normal in a few years :)
- V1rusK1llah, an anti-virus system with no Microsoft Windows version.
- Moneyz Bank e-banking system. Zero known security vulnerabilities.
- ActvRecrdSql: ActiveRecord adapter. 0% monkey-patching.
- zzz-web, a PHP framework that grew organically with no unit tests.
- BoomOS. An operating system developed without using Waterfall process.
- JavaScript-free carousel library
Oh wait, I’m pretty sure I’ve seen the last one already. I guess it’s happening then…
Have any more funny fictional examples? Tweet them @tadas_t!