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What do you do when your friends won’t use a Mac?

By Grant Brünner Sun, Nov 29, 2009 @ 12:00 PM

2746833785 604539127a b What do you do when your friends wont use a Mac?

The first thing you should do when your friends and family refuse to use a Mac is… Relax. I know you’re excited about using and evangelizing the platform. I know that I am. However, it really isn’t any of your beeswax what computing platform your friends use — provided that they don’t ask you for tech support.

I’m not saying that you shouldn’t share the experience with people who are interested. In fact, a stock MacBook or iMac is my recommendation to almost anybody who asks for a consultation on their purchase. I’ve even turned people around in their negative opinion of the Mac platform by providing objective facts, and keeping zealotry completely out of it. Sometimes our enthusiasm doesn’t translate well to people unfamiliar with this area of technology. Reducing confusion should be the number one goal. Unless you are getting paid by Apple (Which, by the way, I am not), it shouldn’t matter to you if you sell your friends on a Mac. Just enjoy your Mac, and answer any questions they might have. If you want to help them, just provide facts in a manner which they can use to discern the right purchase for them and their family.

Here is my point in a distilled manner: Don’t superimpose your feelings on them. You might have more information than they do. Heck, a Mac might be just what they need, but that is their decision. Keep your emotions out of it.

Photo Credit: lisa_at_home2002

  • Willmill

    For ten years I have told a friend of mine what a great platform Mac offered. He used to work for IBM and always derided whatever I said. He called yesterday and told me he bought the 27 inch iMac with everything upgraded, so he could edit his own videos. I just bit my tongue and congratulated him.

    • http://macgasm.net Joshua Schnell

      Hah, Vindication. It’s a great feeling isn’t it. ;)

  • John Davis

    I live in Okinawa, where the reason many people don’t use a Mac is because they don’t know about it. We only use Macs at home and I had forgotten quite how crappy Windows can be. The other day, I was invited to a friend’s wedding reception. They had a slide show and a “movie.” I don’t know what Windows applications were used to create the slide show and “movie,” but the results were so embarrassing that it was truly painful to watch.

    The best way to tell people about how good Macs are is just to show them. A 24 inch iMac just blows them away.

    • http://macgasm.net Joshua Schnell

      John, that’s a perfect point. I try not to get into the minute details of why my Mac is better in some situations. It seems that people are easier convinced when they actually get some hands on time with it.

  • http://islandinthenet.com/about-island-in-the-net/ Khürt Williams

    I’ve often been guilty of evangelizing Apple products to my friends and family. Still .. over the last 4 years I’ve convinced 6 coworkers, two family members, and two friends to get a Mac.