Inside the Subtle Marketing Shift That Changed Roomba's FortunesHow lowering expectations and downplaying its own technology helped a cutting-edge company reach a whole new customer.

Let a robot replace you.多年来,这是iRobot'spitchfor the Roomba, its robotic vacuum cleaner. And for years it worked well, generating strong annual sales growth for the Massachusetts firm. There was only one problem: A sizable cohort of potential consumers didn't believe it. These were people who valued an immaculate home. They worked hard at it. They didn't think a robotcouldreplace them. And they were right. It probably couldn't.

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Dwight Brown, senior VP of global marketing at iRobot, had been here before. His previous employer, Keurig, had a similar pitch: ""You need a single-serve coffeemaker because it's an easier way to make coffee,'" Brown recalls. This made technology the centerpiece of the pitch. Which made a certain sense -- the tech was cool, and people who lovedgadgetswere into it. The thing was: Not everyone loves gadgets.