BlackBerry is on the verge of dying

           

The world we live in is full of products with incredibly recognizable brands. Brand is something that we can all instinctually understand and relate and well-known brands are synonymous with all sorts of positive feelings and activities in our lives. Branding has become more important in the handset space too. Despite the innumerable technical variations between the products, the lack of practical differences between smartphones that consumers can understand creates a situation where the perception of the brand is of utmost important. Right before the iPhone was announced, BlackBerry phones were the most popular mobile devices on the market. They truly dominated in the "cool" factor, with every celebrity owning one. But now this brand is one of the surprising brands that could actually be on the verge of dying. Last year, in 2013 BlackBerry’s brand value took a huge slide off the top 100 list for global brands. BlackBerry is at risk at becoming a victim of the commoditization of smartphones, where branding and perception dominate the marketplace. Two new phones appeared: iPhones and Droids, a popular line of phones that helped popularize Google's Android operating system. These revolutionary touchscreen smartphones turned the Blackberry into a stale and antiquated device. BlackBerry thought that their phone with a keyboard would still attract more professional and business-oriented people, but they were mistaken. Most people, regardless of whether they used their phone for business or pleasure, switched over to the iPhone or the Android-operated smartphones and BlackBerry seriously lost its momentum. In January 2013, BlackBerry released its latest device -- a touchscreen smartphone. Even with popular integrated apps, the product failed to take off. Their sales have crumbled, and in September 2013, the company pre-announced second quarter earnings, reporting that they'd missed estimates by nearly 50 percent. They also announced they were cutting 4,500 workers and getting out of the consumer business, sparking up rumors that they would merge or sell the company. The biggest issue for BlackBerry is not the tech specs, smartphone design, the apps, or the operating system.  They have that under control.  What really sells smartphones, which are very personal consumer commodities, is perception of the brand and effective marketing to consumers. BlackBerry’s brand is damaged because of their inability to properly communicate with consumers. The issue is their lack of effective marketing to repair the negative perception of their brand. With young teens and adults dictating the market trends, asking any young person about BlackBerry and you’re bound to find evidence of their negative perception. One of the challenges BlackBerry faces with building its brand is that it needs to move away from its older image, which is as a more enterprise and professional focused brand. One of the biggest challenges that BlackBerry facing is building a brand that resonates with consumers and enterprises at a time when both Apple and Samsung have already won the hearts and wallets of users. Their marketing should not be business-as-usual marketing; should be damage-control and rebuilding-the-brand kind of marketing.

The following steps can save the Blackberry Brand:

Improving the ‘Sausage’ (the core product):

Ø  Introduce touchscreens for all phones

Ø  Move to Android or Windows Mobile operating systems – allows more apps to be downloaded

Ø  Ditch the keyboard – makes the device more portable/allows larger screen depending on the phone design.

‘Sizzle’ (branding and advertising):

Ø  Replace teenagers with business people, as personifiers of the brad

Ø  Use opinion leaders as the target market segment, create opinion leaders, use opinion leaders in marketing communications

Ø  For using word-of-mouth communications can bring out a new brand name with Premium price

 Potential acquisition could give BlackBerry a chance to give its brand a much-needed makeover, out of the public eye. If they don't reshape their business models, we just might have to say goodbye to these big brand names sometime soon.

References

BlackBerry's Biggest Problem Is Not Its Phone.(2013,October 27).Retrieved from

          http://n4bb.com/blackberrys-biggest-problem-phones/

Blatchford, J., R. (2012, April 6). Research in Motion – How Branding Can Save BlackBerry.

  Manifested Marketing. Retrieved from September 26,2014 from.http://manifestedmarketing.com/2012/04/06/research-in-motion-how-branding-can-save-blackberry/

Gallagher, C. (2013, October 11). Brand Marketing Challenges & How to Overcome Them.
      Retrieved September 26, 2014 from http://www.3dissue.com/brand-marketing/

Jacques, R. (2014, January 22). 9 Iconic Brands That Could Soon Be Dead.The Huffing Post.
      Retrieved September 26, 2014 from http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/01/22/failing-brands-                      2014_n_4604534.html

Tode, C. (2013, March 26). BlackBerry's biggest challenge is building a brand that respnates.
   Retrieved September 26, 2014 from                                                         http://www.mobilemarketer.com/cms/news/manufacturers/15033.html