Most people, if not everyone, knew Steve Jobs as the charismatic face of Apple. The man had an “it” factor when presenting at those seasonal Apple keynotes, showing off the company’s latest product releases. After his death, bold tales of his deeds in the planning room have been making their way on to the web and book shelves. One such story involves his Willy Wonka fantasy as a way to promote the all-in-one iMac desktop machines.
That’s right, Jobs wanted to not only package an iMac product with a golden ticket inside for a lucky individual (and family) to visit the Cupertino office–he wanted to greet them in full-Wonka garb. Ken Segall’s book, Insanely Simple: The Obsession that Drives Apple’s Success, details the playful marketing pitch Jobs entertained to executives. The ticket was designed to celebrate the millionth iMac sold and, of course, give Apple some added press coverage.
Jobs had the plan in motion, having already instructed the creative team to design the golden ticket prototype. You can probably guess that this vision never came to fruition, as none of us have heard of the legendary moment Jobs cosplayed as Willy Wonka. It was a California law that ended up throwing a wrench into the entire plot.
You see, the Golden State requires that all sweepstake contests allow anyone to enter without requiring purchase of a product. Meaning, the likelihood of the winner actually being an iMac purchaser, or an Apple fan for that matter, would be very slim. So, the project was canned and consumers never had the delight of hearing the story about the time Steve Jobs dressed up as Willy Wonka, guiding a lucky Apple fan through his technology wonderland.
via MacRumors
