Best way to convince your friend to buy a Mac?

[vraxtus]

I'm trying to sway my friend over from buying a Dell.

Apparently her 3rd PC has crapped out on her again, so she's got the OK to go ahead and get a new comp. She mentioned she wanted to get a Dell but I pointed out my love for Macs... which she already knew about :D

She actually had a chance to use our friend's 500 TiBook, which she thought was really nice, however she complained she wasn't familiar with the OS.

So at the moment, she wants something that's fast and relatively cheap.

My sense is that an iBook should fit her perfectly, since she won't be gaming, and everything else she's probably going to do (music, movies, AIM), should work fine on current iBooks... however unfortunately I think she's still pretty used to her PCs but I pointed out that Dells are much clunkier and heavy, and even the smaller, more portable ones are not worth it (with their integrated video chips).

She also wants, a "cute" laptop, so that's more of a reason to push.

Feel free to share your suggestions or methods for selling your friends on a Mac. Thanks!

[wdlove]

I agree that the iBook would be the best for her needs. You should take her to a local Apple Store or reseller. Then she could take a test drive. If you are near an Apple Store they offer classes. If not possible then you should try to teach her, it will just mean more face time with her.

If she hasn't seen what a Mac can do like iTunes and iPhoto, that tends to be very impressive.

[dotnina]

When I switched to the Mac, I found these things to be the most impressive:

1. Exposé! I'd come to accept the linear taskbar in Windows as the ONLY way to know what you're running. Exposé just blew my mind. I could leave things open and not have them staring me in the face while I was trying to work.

2. iChat! I thought the bubble dialogs were the neatest thing. (I've since moved on to Proteus (http://www.proteusx.com), though, because I missed the feel / features of AIM.)

3. Konfabulator (even though it didn't come with my Mac)! I know, there's things like this for Windows, but they aren't half as good.

4. iCal! There is NO good calendar out there for Windows. None. Sorry. I've never been an electronic calendar person, but it's actually faster and easier to use iCal than a paper calendar. It's amazing.

5. Freedom! I didn't need a virus scanner. I didn't need to apply a zillion critical updates every week. I could leave a bunch of apps open without compromising performance.


And the last reason, of course, is Macrumors. :) People are willing to help each other out with even the most basic questions -- it's like free tech support. That alone should be reason enough to switch. ;)

[jefhatfield]

I'm trying to sway my friend over from buying a Dell.

Apparently her 3rd PC has crapped out on her again, so she's got the OK to go ahead and get a new comp. She mentioned she wanted to get a Dell but I pointed out my love for Macs... which she already knew about :D

She actually had a chance to use our friend's 500 TiBook, which she thought was really nice, however she complained she wasn't familiar with the OS.

So at the moment, she wants something that's fast and relatively cheap.

My sense is that an iBook should fit her perfectly, since she won't be gaming, and everything else she's probably going to do (music, movies, AIM), should work fine on current iBooks... however unfortunately I think she's still pretty used to her PCs but I pointed out that Dells are much clunkier and heavy, and even the smaller, more portable ones are not worth it (with their integrated video chips).

She also wants, a "cute" laptop, so that's more of a reason to push.

Feel free to share your suggestions or methods for selling your friends on a Mac. Thanks!


ibook, $1099 usd, and it can play most games out there made for the mac os

a few weeks of running around with panther and she will be used to the operating system...he he...where do you think microsoft came up with most of the interface for windows "x"p? ... if microsoft didn't bail apple out 7 years ago and entice investors to help sj, apple would have sued bill's butt ;)

[iLikeMyiMac]

I wasn't familiar with Panther and had never used it until I took a C++ class on my school's emacs. After using it for a week I fell in love with it. I liked it so much better than windows. I'm just wondering how long she got to use your friend's TiBook.

[Doctor Q]

The best way to sell someone on Macs is to let them watch you work/play on yours. Don't click and type so fast that it all looks magic; work at a steady pace, with your usual dozen applications open at once, and they will see the magic at work and want to be able to do the same.

Also, it is human nature, not logic, that makes people admire your Mac if you happen to have a killer desktop picture. It's subliminal. The same applies if they see you treat your Mac as a friend or pet. They will get those good vibes too and associate them with Mac ownership.

[Coca-Cola]

I think you should allow your friend to use your mac for a couple of days. I hated computers in general until I house sat for a friend and used thier 350 iMac for a few days. It was so cool. I made my decision to buy a mac when I asked my friends if it was worth the money they had spent. They said, "yes." Is your mac worth it, "yes." Would a mac be worth it for your friend, "yes."

[evilgEEk]

You really need to take your friend down to an Apple Store or reseller. I just convinced a co-worker to get a mac and she was very hesitant because she "didn't know what to do on a mac" :rolleyes: I simply took her down to the local reseller and showed her the ibook (which, I agree is perfect for your friend) and then showed her the PC counterparts. She fell in love with the 14" iBook and has since (a mere two weeks) become a huge mac fan.

The 12" iBook is absolutely wonderful, I'm typing this message on one right now. It will be more than enough for what she needs.

When she says things like "I don't know anything about macs..." just show her how easy it is, explain things as compared to windows.

Plus, a powerful (for what it is) and "cute" laptop for only 1,000 bucks?! You just can't beat it.

Oh! And make sure and show her iTunes/iPhoto and maybe iMovie and ask her what PC software could match that for free. A demonstration on iLife alone will blow her away! :D

[DJY]

I agree with all the above!
As a recent switcher - let her play on it!
She will see that they are all amazingly good looking machines...
the OS - very easy to learn...

and it all works seamlessly!
Expose is one of my favourite things!
I'd be lost without it!

[homerjward]

1. Exposé! I'd come to accept the linear taskbar in Windows as the ONLY way to know what you're running. Exposé just blew my mind. I could leave things open and not have them staring me in the face while I was trying to work.


(stupid pc user) what exactly
is expose?

[vraxtus]

I'm just wondering how long she got to use your friend's TiBook.


As of now, 2 weeks. She found it confusing I think, but that's just because she's too used to PCs. Also, yeah, I could let her use mine... but my gf might get a little jealous ;)

Oh I should note I've convinced my gf to buy a Mac when we graduate and she goes to med school :D

[Macmaniac]

(stupid pc user) what exactly
is expose?
Its a feature that allows you to see all open windows at once, then by clicking on a window it comes to the front of your screen, or you can have every window of a certain application come to the front of your screen, its handy if you have a ton of windows open and they are stacked on top of each other.

[Neserk]

Don't. If she gets one and hates it then she'll blame you.

[evilgEEk]

Don't. If she gets one and hates it then she'll blame you.
Of course she won't hate it! ;)

But it's okay if she does hate it because he said he's already got a girlfriend so he has no emotional attachment to this girl.

Before I get flamed, I'm joking here.

[Abstract]

Tell her that either that the pretty looking iBook would complement her well because she's so pretty (even if that's a lie). ;)

If that doesn't do it, tell her you won't help her fix up her new PC if it ever goes bust. :p

[paxtonandrew]

If I could get my work to switch; which is not just one computer, but about 25-30, not including the servers (8 XServe raid 2x2.0 g5) you can easily get your friend to switch. Just start with the no viruses, no spy-ware, no crashes, and instability of windows. Then show her the eye candy of Panther, and finally drag her along to a Mac reseller, or brick and mortar Apple store, and let her try one for her self. If she feels confident, then you have dona a good thing. If she hates it, then at least you know you tried your best!

good luck with the convincing

[solvs]

ibook, $1099 usd.

Even cheaper if she is a college student. Plus she could get an iPod with the $200 rebate if you buy one with a 'Book.

Definitely take her to an Apple Store (or CompUSA, or whatever). Even if she's been using a Mac, you can show her more newer and better stuff. And VPC. That's what I did with a friend who was sick of her PCs dying. Ask her if she wants to deal with another PC messing up on her. Just make sure she gets AppleCare so she doesn't call you all the time for questions.

Unless your gf isn't too much the jealous type. :p

[iMeowbot]

(stupid pc user) what exactly
is expose?
It's, you know, like, this thing, and stuff.

[Perceptes]

I found a good deal of success by threatening them with a gun. I mean, making fun of their PC's when they cause problems.

[vraxtus]

Thanks for the responses guys!

I'm workin on it... I always try to sway over as many as I can from the dark side... but some just aren't able to.

Any other suggestions?