Steve Jobs Simple Product Matrix
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I remember hearing Steve Jobs speak about when he returned to Apple, the company was in trouble, and had 350 active projects, and 40 different product lines.
That same year he cut it down to just 10 products.
30 products slashed, and put an extreme focus on the quality of just a few products.
Most businesses try to grow by adding more: more products, more features, more campaigns. The image above shows the opposite strategy: a simple 2x2 grid that saved a giant company. Instead of juggling dozens of random products, they drew one box, picked four clear winners, and killed the rest. Cut the excess, and suddenly your offer becomes obvious to customers and to your own team.
The Power of the 2x2 Grid
Look at the image: just two axes—Consumer vs Pro, Desktop vs Portable. That’s it. Each quadrant gets one product: a desktop for consumers, a desktop for pros, a portable for consumers, and a portable for pros. This forced brutal clarity. If a new idea didn’t fit into a box, it was a distraction. That ruthless focus made it easier to improve each product, explain the lineup, and pour marketing into a few obvious winners.
Why This "Cut to One" Approach Works
- Removes decision overload for customers by giving them one obvious choice per need.
- Lets you pour resources into improving and marketing one product instead of spreading thin.
- Makes your positioning stupid-simple: everyone on the team knows exactly what you sell.
- Forces you to say no to feature creep and side projects that don’t fit the grid.
Real-World Proof
Apple famously went from 40+ scattered product lines to a tight 2x2 grid with just a handful of flagship devices, which helped revive the company.
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