Recently, I watched Rory Sutherland, the brilliant Ogilvy advertising guru, discuss the Meta (Facebook) Portal TV on Lenny's Podcast. Rory, whose insights I greatly admire, described it as:
"...one of the best products I've ever worked on in a professional capacity..."
Meta Portal (also known as Portal) was a line of smart displays and videophones released in 2018: Portal, Portal+, Portal TV, and Portal Go. These devices provide video chat via Messenger and WhatsApp.
Rory seemed perplexed as to why the Portal never took off.
As the creator of Mindings, a light-touch telecare photo frame, this got me thinking. I believe that the failure of Portal goes beyond issues of sales or trust in Meta. For me, it touches on a fundamental misunderstanding of family dynamics and the nature of meaningful connection.
The Promise and the Problem
The Portal seemed like a perfect solution on paper - a device designed to bring families closer together through easy video calling. But during my years working on Mindings, we discovered a harsh truth: even getting family members to take 10 seconds to send their granny a photo was a challenge. People are busy, and family dynamics are complicated.
Here's a question I've posed at numerous conferences, often to uncomfortable silence:
"It's a weekday. Granny's home alone, feeling sad and lonely. She wants to call you on her video phone. When - and be really honest - would it be okay for granny to, unplanned and unannounced, just video call you?"
I walked them through their day and repeatedly ask them if during breakfast, lunch, meetings, the commute home, making dinner, kids' bath time etc - when can granny call, and you be happy to drop what you’re doing and even just voice chat. The reality is, for most people, there isn't a convenient time for an unplanned call, from, frankly anyone, it’s often more of a disruption than a joy. (Phone a teenager to find this out!)
Simple Solutions to Complex Problems
This is where I think Rory Sutherland's brilliance in identifying simple solutions to complex problems comes into play. Rory often talks about how we tend to overcomplicate things. His famous example involves the Eurostar train: instead of spending billions to make the train faster, he suggested having supermodels serving champagne and canapés to passengers. They'd soon be asking for longer journeys.
Inspired by this approach, we at Mindings considered a simple yet effective solution: instead of creating a complex video chat system (as we were often asked to), why not just integrate a Doodle poll? This straightforward idea would allow the user to instigate a call, which family members could all agree to around their schedules, then join the call on whatever device they preferred. It's a much simpler and less expensive solution, and one that would remove the biggest problem - unwelcome interruptions - as everyone would have collaboratively agreed on a time that suited everyone, and Mindings would stick it everyone's calendar, and remind and chase everyone up.
A Lesson for Tech Companies
The failure of Portal, despite its technical excellence, holds an important lesson for tech companies venturing into the telecare space. It's not enough to create a product that works well technically; you need to create a product that works within the complex web of human relationships and daily routines.
Sometimes, the simplest solutions can have the most profound impact. By focusing on facilitating better coordination rather than providing constant accessibility, we can create tools that truly enhance family connections without becoming a burden.
As we continue to innovate in the telecare space, let's remember that our goal isn't just to connect people technically, but to foster genuine, sustainable connections that enhance people's lives. That's the true promise of kind telecare - and it's a challenge that goes far beyond what any single device can achieve.
"Kind Telecare: Kindness in every feature, dignity in every interaction, independence with support."
I'd hope that Rory, with his understanding of human psychology in advertising and his knack for identifying elegantly simple solutions, would appreciate this observation. The best technology in the world can't overcome fundamental human behaviours and social dynamics, but thoughtful, human-centered design can work wonders.
In the end, it's not about creating the most advanced video calling device. It's about understanding the rhythms of family life and finding simple ways to help people connect meaningfully, on their own terms.
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