[stag_intro]I think one thing that people don’t understand about Apple is that they are really trying to solve customer problems.  [/stag_intro]

A lot of people think that Apple is about selling more hardware, creating lust for their products, but deep down, I feel that they are trying to address real problems and pain points for their customers.

It’s remarkably simple, but often times, the tension between business needs and customer needs leads to a blurred product vision.  I’ve seen multiple instances where innovation often lead to more internal friction and customer confusion than addressing a real need for the customer.

That said, a lot of it comes through in execution. Kobo has learned this the hard way; Apple too with their initial maps rollout.  It’s tough when you are required to move fast and the bar for MVP gets higher and higher each month.

Take Apple Pay for instance.  I think it’s genius.  Apple is making payment inherently easier, more accessible, and more secure. While some would argue that it is no easier than using Tap-to-pay, I think it will be a boon for those with physical or visual disabilities.  Moreover, for someone like my mom, who only recently learned to use her debit card, it is way more easier to demonstrate and teach.  These are palpable problems.  Apple is sweating the details.

Things like CVS and Rite Aid disabling their NFC terminals to prevent people using Apple Pay is ludicrous.  I get that retailers don’t like credit cards because of the high exchange fees, but they have an excellent opportunity to work with Apple and change that.  If anybody has enough sway to negotiate on fees, it will be Apple.

Apple Pay has the opportunity to address eCommerce as much physical retail commerce too.  It addresses the biggest issue today with eCommerce on mobile/tablets–difficult text input. Don’t be surprised if you will see Apple Pay and TouchID being used as Single-factor and 2-factor authentication over the Web.  Moreover, I wonder if you’ll see this in their computing hardware.  Imagine the return of the power button on their laptops, but rather than just showing the shutdown prompt, it also acts as a TouchID sensor?  Finger print scanners have been available for more than decade, but now there is finally a framework that makes them useful outside of unlocking your computer.