BlackBerry Colt Featuring QNX Brian Bannister Emily Catanzarite Ronald Bonaccorso bdb5814@rit.edu eac5421@rit.edu rlb3524@rit.edu November 3, 2011 Principles of Marketing Table of Contents Page # 5 7 11 13 16 18 19 20 21 22 22 23 25 28 Executive Summary Situation and Industry Analyses Introduction SWOT Products and Corresponding Target Markets Segmentation Marketing Strategy Perceptual Maps Feature Analysis Product Placement Distribution Media Vehicles Guerilla Marketing Strategies Integrated Marketing Communications Slogans Product Lifestyle Curve Pricing Product Release & Measure of Success Conclusion Resources: 3 29 31 2 Executive Summary The BlackBerry phone has always been geared for business users and people who need quick and reliable access to email or the Internet. This reputation has served RIM(Research In Motion) well for many years, but in recent years there has been a surge in the smartphone industry aimed at the casual user more interested in entertainment than serious business. The BlackBerry Colt’s aim is to follow the mission statement of RIM “to provide solutions for the worldwide mobile communications market, including the software that allows the BlackBerry Smartphone to provide mobile access to email, applications, media and the Internet while bringing in the entertainment oriented consumer along with those with serious business needs” (Mission & Vision 2010). The idea is why have to choose between business and play when many consumers want both? The Blackberry Colt fixes this problem by combining these desires to create a phone that is superior to anything on the market. RIM will have its work cut out to shed its “strictly business” reputation. While this reputation is well suited to attract business it has caused many casual consumers to shy away from the company and go with a phone more interested in entertaining them. In the past a couple of BlackBerry phones have tried to appeal to this entertainment market but ultimately these phone have not caught on. The Colt will be the phone that does since the BlackBerry developers have listened to the customers’ complaints. The biggest improvement has to be in the app development. BlackBerry has introduced a way to easily port Android apps to the BlackBerry store. This will 3 increase the number of apps available specifically free and quality apps. The phone has been given a faster processor and a touch screen along with the traditional BlackBerry keyboard. Overall the phone has been geared toward entertainment without forgetting its rich past as a business phone. All of the improvements not only make it easy to enjoy but also improve the business aspects of the phone. Making the phone fast and more apps will allow work to be done even quicker allowing for more free time or more work to be done. The RIM developers have developed a truly unique phone that will meet the needs of anyone and everyone. This phone will be the savior of RIM. The company has been losing market share due to the increase of the media oriented phone. This phone will capture that market and meet their needs better than any other phone can. Through the advertising campaign they will be informed of the benefits and improvements. The phone is planned to be launched during the first quarter of 2012 most likely around Valentine’s Day or Presidents Day. The phone will first be launched in Canada and then brought to the Unites States followed by worldwide distribution. The phone is intended to be on the market for about 18 to 24 months. BlackBerry has developed a distinctive phone that will compete with the best in the smartphone market. The phone will succeed where previous BlackBerry’s have failed by capturing the largest and growing segment of the smartphone market of media and entertainment oriented consumer. The phone has not forgotten its core customer and has made the phone an even better business phone. The Colt will strengthen its reputation as a business phone while improving its position as an entertainment phone. 4 Situation and Industry Analyses Introduction: The evolution of BlackBerry dates back to 1984 when Mike Lazardis founded Research in Motion (RIM). A former student at the University of Waterloo in Ontario Canada, Lazardis was a dropout who had a vision for technology. At the young age of 23, Lazardis’ company was offered a contract by General Motors of Canada. Using his knowledge in electrical engineering RIM focused on industrial technology. Beginning in 1994 RIM expanded their company to include wireless technologies. However RIM could not compete with industry leading Mobitex. Two years later in 1996 RIM released the Inter@ctive Pager (pictured to the right) incorporating both RIM and Mobitex components. This device was primarily a short message communicator that could also store information about contacts. At a cost of nearly $900 this gadget was unaffordable for most users. With features like a black and white screen along with the full QWERTY keyboard, this device was very advanced for the time. Continuing to upgrade this initial version to provide the user with a cheaper model was the immediate goal for RIM to grow their brand. With the help of additional features like push email and a reduced cost helped RIM grow their market share. The new model, the RIM 950, led to $47,500,000 of sales and RIM flourished. The following year the BlackBerry name stormed the market with a 5 larger device that at this time could still only communicate with brief messages. However beginning in 2002, the cell phone market forever changed. With the addition of a microphone that enabled voice communication, the pager era had come to an end. Carriers now supported both voice and data forms of communication and BlackBerry quickly acted on this opportunity with the BlackBerry 6710 (pictured to the left). This simplistic design has been the guid for both the BlackBerry Curve and BlackBerry Bold models throughtout the years. This recognizable design has endured for over a decade and remains present in the the company’s new vision for the BlackBerry Colt with the new QNX operating system. After some lackluster operating system upgrades in previous years the users will notice a many significant improvements in the new BlackBerry Colt with the QNX operating system. With a focus towards speed, security, convenience, entertainment the BlackBerry Colt, launching in early 2012, will revolutionize the BlackBerry lineup. The increase in the processor speed, NFC capability, long-­‐lasting battery, liquid graphics touchscreen display, and QNX operating system combine to give the user a state-­‐of-­‐the-­‐art experience. 6 SWOT Analysis: Internal Positive Strengths: •
•
•
•
External Exclusive services including both BlackBerry Enterprise Server (BES) and BlackBerry Messenger (BBM) Security/encryption for business users Near Field Communication (NFC) capable More powerful than previous models 1.2 GHz processor and 1GB RAM Opportunities: •
•
•
Ability to run Android apps Expanding BBM services New device could grow the 42% market share that BlackBerry already has Negative Weaknesses: •
•
•
•
Not many high quality free apps Not supporting 4G data Will not support latest BES version at release No multi-­‐core processor Threats: •
•
•
Lose market share to Android/iOS phones Previously poor devices turning off some users Users wanting large screen devices A significant strength that the BlackBerry Colt offers is that it has one of the most desirable chat clients, BBM. This instant chat app shows the users when the messages are sent, delivered, and received. These messages are not limited to any number of characters so very long messages can be sent from one user to the other. Multiple users can join together and form a group chat. It is possible to share the user’s location with another within the BBM app. With new BBM versions it is possible to share music and play games with other users through BBM supported apps. 7 However the downside of this is that there are not many other desirable apps that users want on a BlackBerry. It doesn’t have a robust app store like the iPhone and Android have, and this limits the user’s selection. The BBM app compatibility within other apps is limited as this is a new feature that developers haven’t had time to incorporate in their apps. The BlackBerry Colt will offer a 1.2 GHz processor. This is a significant upgrade over previous BlackBerry processors. The 1.2 GHz processor clock speed is one of the fastest for all smartphones on the market. However this processor is a single core and not a dual core processor. This is a significant strength as quad core processors are coming out for Android within the next year (expected Q3 2012) and BlackBerry is still using a single core processor. Currently BlackBerry is leading the way with NFC capability. BlackBerry both supports and contains the hardware to use NFC technology. As of now, Android supports NFC but doesn’t contain any hardware in the models on the market to use this technology. As NFC is being introduced to the market this is going to be a very important feature for BlackBerry. Verizon, ATT, and Sprint all have a 4G/LTE advanced speed network. The BlackBerry Colt is not going to support any of these high-­‐speed data technologies. This is a disadvantage as these incredible, near broadband speeds, are becoming the new standard for the smartphone market. These carriers are rapidly deploying new markets that are 4G enabled and by not supporting 4G, the BlackBerry Colt will offer only inferior 8 data speeds. However the BlackBerry Colt offers Wi-­‐Fi that will allows users in most areas to connect to a high-­‐speed network which reduces the need for a 4G modem in the phone. Currently 4G modems are very power intensive and the lack of one will increase the battery life of the BlackBerry Colt. In Canada the BlackBerry currently has a 42% market share and with the addition of the new OS with enhanced capability, BlackBerry looks to increase this market share. This phone with the ability to run Android apps is going to offer less reason to purchase Android smartphones as the BlackBerry runs a very stable and secure operating system. BBM is one of the most popular forms of communication for BlackBerry users. With the latest version of BBM, developers can integrate this service into their apps to allow users to communicate and share information. You can play games with BBM friends, share songs, and countless possibilities exist. With roughly 41 million active BBM users worldwide, this social connectivity is greatly enhancing the BBM experience. BBM is also integrating non-­‐BBM users in the BBM app so that texting these users become easier. 9 Users wanting the latest 4.5-­‐inch touchscreen devices will find this option unattractive. This relatively small screen with the physical keyboard reduces the ability to have a large touchscreen. The BlackBerry Colt is a thin, pocket-­‐sized, cell phone that is not meant to provide an entertainment experience that a 4.5-­‐inch touchscreen would provide. BlackBerry has not produced devices that have been vast improvements over old models in the past. Slight upgrades including the browser, screen pixels, and processor speed haven’t attracted users in the past to upgrade their older model BlackBerry’s. With the OS renovation and introduction of QNX as well as a more powerful model, the combination will provide new and existing BlackBerry users to purchase the BlackBerry Colt. Previously older versions of the OS have always included legacy support so even old devices received an update, however QNX will not offer legacy support. Until more BlackBerry models are produced, the BlackBerry Colt will be the only QNX supported phone. 10 Products and Corresponding Target Markets Segmentation 1. All phone users 2. Existing BB users 3. Existing BB enterprise users 4. Phone users who need encryption 5. BB loyalists 6. BB enterprise businesses BlackBerry’s major market segments are: all phone users, existing BlackBerry users, existing BlackBerry enterprise users, phone users who need encryption, BlackBerry loyalists, and BlackBerry enterprise businesses. These are segments based on phone users and BlackBerry’s features that draw certain consumers. They are variables of psychographic segmentation, which includes personality, motives, lifestyles, and geodemographics. The personality aspect can be seen in the loyalist part of the segmentation (Lamb 2011). People who are loyal in nature will more likely than not remain loyal with their service provider and phone. The motive and lifestyle variables both come into play with BlackBerry users who need the encryption feature as well as enterprise businesses. The first section of the BlackBerry segmentation is all phone users. According to CBS news in 2010 there were 4.6 billion phone users worldwide and it was expected to reach 5 billion before 2011 (Brands 2011). This is obviously a huge number thus, a huge market for BlackBerry to reach. The next segment is all existing BlackBerry users which is roughly 29 million and 60% of them are make up the next segment, BlackBerry enterprise users. The next segment is made up of the 11 BlackBerry users that need the encryption feature. People like business executives and government officials utilize this feature the most. A small segment is BlackBerry loyalists. These are the people who refuse to use any other phone and expect BlackBerry to continue providing phones that meet what they think of as meeting the BlackBerry standards. The final segment is aimed at BlackBerry enterprise users. The users are primarily business execs and government officials. 12 Marketing Strategy Perceptual Maps: This perceptual map shows that the BlackBerry Colt, running on QNX software is the only cell phone in the comparison has a physical keyboard and removable memory, both great features that make the usage of the phone and transfer of data both easy and convenient. The iPhone 4, a large competitor of the BlackBerry Colt, is on the complete opposite quadrant of the map. It does not offer the convenience of the removable memory and users have to rely completely on the touchscreen. The Palm Pixi is the only other cell phone in our comparison that offers a physical keyboard, but it does not have the key feature of removable memory, which limits the amount of flexibility that you have with the device. Users are limited to the 13 amount of music, pictures, and video that can be stored on the phone, and the only way to get more space is to upgrade to a different device. The Windows Phone HD75 and the Droid Charge offer removable memory, but do not have a physical keyboard. So users are able to expand the amount of storage space they have but they are still dependent on the touchscreen to operate their device. BlackBerry phones are the only phones that come with encryption, and the BlackBerry Colt is no exception. This makes BlackBerry great for business use because companies can trust that their important information can be safe. The Advanced Encryption Standard (AES) and Triple Data 14 Encryption (Triple DES) standards are both available forms of encryption on the BlackBerry Colt. The phones must be using the BlackBerry Enterprise Server (BES) to use the encryption services. This will secure their corporate email accounts. The Droid Charge has the ability to be encrypted but does not come that way out of the box. Android phones such as the Droid Charge are mostly used for personal use, as third-­‐party software is needed for total device encryption. Software such as “Good for Enterprise” allows users to encrypt all of their data using the same AES standard that is available on the BlackBerry Colt. This software is an additional cost, and depends on the number of business users that will need encryption and the number of accounts that must be secured. iOS has a 31% market share in Canada and lacks encryption as a standard feature. This device has a large consumer use following and continues to sell well. However if a corporation would like to encrypt this device they must perform similar measure to the Android OS and look into third-­‐party options. Good for Enterprise also offers a package for iOS and performs similar services to that of Android. The Palm Pixi does not offer any encryption. HP WebOS is a dead operating system and as a result development has stopped. This low-­‐end device did not sell well and WebOS only has a 1.3% market share. Third-­‐party support is also not available for this device and remains insecure. Conducting business on this device requires the company to take a large risk. The Windows Phone HD75 also does not offer encryption, but performs more business functions. With the addition of Microsoft Office apps available 15 standard with this phone, casual business users would find this useful. However the lack of encryption is a huge setback for any large corporations that rely heavily on a secure environment. The market share in the business industry is much larger for the BlackBerry than the Windows Phone HD75. Feature Analyses: iPhone 4 Droid Charge Carrier BlackBerry Colt All Carriers ATT & Verizon OS QNX Hackability Feature Removable Memory Encryption App Store Verizon Windows Phone HD75 All Carries All Carriers iOS Android 2.2 Windows Phone 7 WebOS Low Medium Medium High High Yes No Yes Yes No Yes No No No No Android and BlackBerry iOS Android Windows Phone Apps WebOS apps Palm Pixi The BlackBerry Colt comes with the new BlackBerry QNX operating system, which has also been developed for the BlackBerry Playbook. This operating system will allow for both Android and BlackBerry apps to be used on the first QNX phone, the BlackBerry Colt. This is a huge benefit to the BlackBerry Colt since the current BlackBerry market is lacking in the area of quality free apps, and the android market is still growing and already has over 250,000 apps. Developers have been attracted to both markets for different reasons. BlackBerry app developers have higher revenue per app due to the higher prices of the apps than the iOS and Android app stores (Bacon 2011). However both the iOS and Android app stores have a larger market available for the app developer to target. Android developers will have to 16 convert their apps to be able to be usable on the new BlackBerry Colt. BlackBerry has created a repackaging tool for these apps that will be a plug-­‐in for the developer’s software. This process will be very easy for developers to convert apps to the BlackBerry compatible apps. One factor that sets BlackBerry apart from any other phone is its security. BlackBerry is the only company in the cell phone market that natively allows for encryption (Best Smartphones 2010). This means that you can send a message that cannot be stolen or read unless it is on the device the message was sent to. The AES and Triple DES encryption standards ensure the user that their data will not be hacked. The BlackBerry Enterprise Solution (BES) offers the businesses the most convenient form of securing devices (Oliver-­‐Goodwin 2011). With the use of encryption, it is also the most secure smartphone that provides the greatest challenge for users to gain unauthorized access. This security is the main reason BlackBerry has been the phone of choice for many of the top businesses. Removable memory gives the BlackBerry Colt an almost unlimited amount of storage capability. Phones like the iPhone and Palm Pixi do not offer this additional storage. The BlackBerry comes standard with 8 GB on phone memory, but with a card can be expanded to 32 GB. As users want access to more movies, apps, games, and music, the removable storage via micro SD cards is one of the easiest solutions to accommodate the future expansion. The leading carriers in Canada including both Rogers and Telus Mobility will offer the BlackBerry Colt. This adds convenience to business users because it 17 doesn’t require a specific carrier. The company can choose the carrier that provides the best service in that area, at the most affordable cost. This increases the number of potential customers, as everyone with a service provider will have access to the BlackBerry Colt. Product Placement: Product placement is a popular strategy used by marketers to strengthen brand awareness and build a favorable attitude toward a brand or product. Recently BlackBerry has not had the best reputation with the service shutting down. Product placement of the BlackBerry Colt is a valuable approach to begin building a better status. BlackBerry has used films including Limitless and Unknown in 2011 for product placement. Major films are a great technique however, there is another channel to consider, the small screen. Many of the television shows with the highest popularity are crime/drama shows such as Criminal Minds, NCIS, CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, and Person of Interest. BlackBerry users are often people like government officials that are portrayed in these shows. If the characters in these shows use the BlackBerry Colt and the phone and some of its features are mentioned within the dialogue causally it will spark the interest of viewers. A hopeful outcome would be that the viewers that admire the characters using the new BlackBerry Colt would be intrigued about the new product and go out and buy it. BlackBerry must also invest in television advertising with a good advertising agency that can put a positive spin on BlackBerry’s image. Starting a television advertising campaign for the new BlackBerry Colt is important to reach as many TV 18 viewers as possible. This can promote the product to new consumers. Another option would be for BlackBerry to sponsor red carpet and sporting events. The BlackBerry Colt could be handed out to celebrities on the red carpet and it could be displayed all over professional stadiums at hockey, football and basketball games. The Internet is also a vital way to appeal to customers. With ads on Yahoo as well as Hulu, YouTube, and other similar sites that our target market would come in contact with our brand can reach more of the market. Roughly 50% of the population comes in contact with these Internet video ads and this reach would greatly help promote the product to both our target market as well as peaking interest in the rest of the population. Facebook and Twitter should also be taken advantage of for the use of product placement. Facebook ads are becoming increasingly more popular and placing ads of the BlackBerry Colt would be seen by thousands of users. It is estimated that 62% of the population would be exposed to these ads (Facebook Advertising 2010). We believe our target market of young adults will be well exposed to the BlackBerry Colt, as they would most likely be Facebook users. On Twitter the BlackBerry Colt could specifically be a promoted trending topic. Distribution: The distribution of the BlackBerry Colt will be handled indirectly through a retailer channel strategy. The use of a retail channel is one of the most popular 19 methods of distributing a consumer product. Due to the cell phone carriers being large companies it will be easy for the carrier to buy a large quantity of phones and sell the phones directly to consumers. These carriers including, Rogers Wireless and Telus Mobility, have many ways to reach the customer. Through the use of their website, direct retail stores, and small kiosks, the carriers have the power to make the distribution of the BlackBerry Colt very successful. As a global company, BlackBerry must reach the global market. By having agreements with other companies that can help distribute, provide support and offer specific business solutions, BlackBerry can increase their global reach. By forming contracts with companies like TechData, BlackBerry can reduce their responsibilities and focus on the product and services rather than distribution (Tampa Bay Business Journal 2011). Media Vehicles The email campaign will be geared for those who are already on a plan and ready for an upgrade. Since BlackBerry is not limited to any specific network anyone will be able to get the Colt without switching carriers. This campaign will focus on the new advantages of the phone over previous models giving the customers a reason to buy the new phone. This outreach will also show the cutting edge technology in the phone to convince the customer that it is better then any competition. Another attempt at reaching the business crowd will be to place advertisements in newspapers and business journals and magazines. These 20 advertisements will have the same feel as the email campaign and will concentrate on the new Android apps and QNX software. Most of these ads will be in magazines like the Wall Street Journal and Business Week. Newspaper ads will be focused on national papers such as the NY Times. The next media vehicle will be commercial advertisements. This effort will focus on the new QNX operating system and that it can support Android apps. This campaign will try to reach the younger crowd who use their phone more for entertainment than business. Up to this point one of the major disadvantages to BlackBerry phones is the lack of quality apps. The ability to use android apps fixes this problem and can makes the phone more appealing. The phone will be made to look fun and entertaining featuring some of the ways it can be used to entertain. Radio and Internet advertising is cheap and will be taken advantage of. Advertisements via the Internet will be geared toward the people who use their phone for mainly entertainment. The ads will show the phone featuring both Android apps and BlackBerry apps along with the new operating system. Radio will be used to keep the phone in the forefront of people mind so that when it is time for them to get a new phone the last thing they will hear on their way to the store is about how awesome the new BlackBerry phone is. Guerilla Marketing Strategies BlackBerry could set up a stand in the mall and allow customers to test the product and all of its new features. After they try out the phone they could enter a 21 drawing to win a free BlackBerry Colt. This strategy should stir up a buzz for the product and get people interested. It will also show people the capabilities of the new phone. This strategy will be geared to the average mall shopper. It has been shown that mall demonstrations are generally very effective at generating interest. Integrated Marketing Communications BlackBerry should use the AIDA model in its IMC efforts. The plan is to gain the attention of the media and potential customers by advertising as a new phone with new features that everyone can use and wants. Interest will be gained after the consumer sees the advancements new to the phone combined with the reputation of BlackBerry’s messenger and security. Telling businessmen that the new phone is just as great as the previous BlackBerry’s except it comes with more features and is the first BlackBerry, which will feature Android apps, will make a desire for the phone. Action will come through various forms of advertising through both the phone carrier and guerilla marketing. Slogans The first slogan we are going to use is “Where working hard and playing hard come together seamlessly” This is the message we want to get across that although BlackBerry does make a phone that is very practical for businesses and businessmen it can still be used for entertainment and with the new upgrades has made entertainment a priority. 22 Product Lifestyle Curve Development The BlackBerry Colt has already passed through the development stage and is entering the introduction stage. During the development stage the phone was produced and tested. The features that would be in the phone were decided. In the end the BlackBerry Colt was approved and is now in its final stages of development. Introduction The phone will have a starting price of $100 with a two-­‐year contract with data plan or $599 without a contract. The introduction period will last for about a month. During this time the highest amount of advertising will be done along with guerilla marketing. The goal here is to let the phone be seen and tested. Growth Stage After the product has been introduced promotions will start. The first promotion will be in the form of a rebate making the phone $50. The goal will be to 23 get as many customers to buy the phone as possible so that the company can start making money. There will still be a fair amount of advertising done to keep the public aware of the product and to keep it in the forefront of their minds. This advertising will mostly focus on the benefits of the BlackBerry Colt over other brands of smartphones. The positives will be focused on and the negatives of the competitors will be brought to attention making the BlackBerry appear as the leader that it is. The promotion will run straight through the first month of the growth stage after that there will be two weeks of no promotion followed by two weeks of promotion. This pattern of promotional selling will continue through until the maturity stage with interruptions during the holiday seasons. During holiday seasons the phone will go on a buy one get one free promotion. Promotions running during the Christmas season will also be accompanied with considerable advertising since this is the time when the most spending it done (Consumer Trend Data n.d.). The other big holidays will be Valentine’s Day, Mother’s Day and Father’s Day. Graduation and back to school events will also be held to encourage sales. Maturity Stage At this point of the phone BlackBerry will be planning the launch of its next phone or replacement phone since the market will be saturated and the phone will begin to be out of date. To combat this the promotion will be 50% off every two weeks. The rotational sequence of promotion for two weeks followed by two weeks of full price will continue to give the feeling of a good deal. Advertising will so decrease through this point and advertising for the next phone will begin taking its 24 place. This will be its planned obsolescence since its profitability will continue to decrease as competitors make newer phones with advanced technology. Decline The phone is no longer profitable so the inventory should be sold off at reduced pricing. Promotions will be run offering the phone as free with a two-­‐year agreement. This will bring in new customers who might not have bought a BlackBerry otherwise and hopefully make customers for life out of them. The replacement will be in almost full effect minimizing the BlackBerry colt leaving it as only a cheaper alternative for customers who want a BlackBerry or smartphone but don’t have the money to buy a “latest and greatest model.” Pricing: While developing a price strategy for the BlackBerry Colt it is important to consider many different factors. It is vital to have an understanding of who the target consumer for the product is. The target markets for the BlackBerry Colt are young adults in Canada and BlackBerry business users in Canada. These two target markets are broken up into six subcategories: all phone users in Canada, existing BlackBerry users, existing BlackBerry enterprise users, phone users who need encryption, BlackBerry loyalists, and BlackBerry enterprise businesses. Overall the target is to reach the two main groups, but within the main categories are sub-­‐
groups. Another aspect of price strategy taken into consideration is the competition. It does not benefit any manager or entrepreneur to exist in a market that they know 25 nothing about. For this reason, it is important to follow trends, know who the market leaders are and why they are the leaders in the market, as well as have a general understanding of their strategies. Knowing the prices of competing phones is necessary to set a price for a new product. Currently phones in the market with similar features as the BlackBerry Colt are the Palm Pixi, iPhone 4, Droid Charge, and Windows HD75. The Palm Pixi sells for $75, iPhone 4 from $199 to $399, the Droid Charge for $299, and Windows HD75 for $199 (Verizon Smartphones 2011). Considering the competing phone prices it would be beneficial to follow the patronage-­‐oriented pricing performance objective. This objective tries to maximize the number of customers using the product and the prices vary with different market segments’ ability to pay and methods of payment are offered that increase the likelihood of purchase. To keep up with the competition the BlackBerry Colt must be priced similarity to its competition yet low enough to reach more customers. Setting the price for the BlackBerry Colt at $100 with a two-­‐year contract would be significantly cheaper than BlackBerry’s competitors as well as offer a low price for a BlackBerry since the average cost of a BlackBerry is generally $150 to $250. Also, it would be suggested with the price of $100 that the BlackBerry Colt includes a premium app suite from BlackBerry developed apps along with a $20 credit in the BlackBerry marketplace to purchase other premium apps that best fit the users needs. This would be included with every BlackBerry Colt as long as they are being sold. These promotions allow for the BlackBerry Colt to stand out compared to competitors in the market. The price of the device along with the promotions make the price seem much more reasonable. The BlackBerry Colt’s 26 reasonable price can improve BlackBerry’s bottom line as a whole because the net growth will increase the more the product is sold. It is important when setting the price to also think of over and under pricing. The immediate effect of under pricing is that it does not allow the company to recover the costs it invest to produce what they are selling. However given the success of the recently free iPhone 3GS with a two-­‐year contract, we are willing to try a lower price to combat the $300 pricing of the 4G/LTE enabled devices. There is also another danger; market items that are priced extremely low are sometimes perceived as cheap, poor quality items rather than good quality bargains. While it may be the goal to sell a high volume of items because the price has been lowered to a significantly lower price, the customer base may not be willing to sacrifice quality to get a good deal. There are many ethical reasons to avoid over pricing, but the main reason should be that with more business sense than anything else is the fact that overinflated prices drive both existing and potential customers right into the sales outlets of your competitors. Too many customer losses result in a product that will not move. There are many BlackBerry carriers, but the main carriers are Rogers and Telus. When launching the BlackBerry Colt it is imperative that BlackBerry has good relationships with its two largest carriers so that they show just as much enthusiasm about selling the BlackBerry Colt as they would their own company. Since many competing phones are sold through the carriers BlackBerry must maintain good relations or the carriers could refuse to promote the new product all together. BlackBerry should push the carriers to promote the BlackBerry Colt to the best of their abilities. One 27 way to do this would to have a certain section of the stores, preferably the front, dedicated to the new BlackBerry Colt. Since the BlackBerry is mostly geared toward businessmen and businesses a lot of the marketing will be done in the form of business websites and television networks. The BlackBerry Colt is different than most of the other BlackBerry phones because it can also be used for entertainment. With this there should be a decent amount of advertising to promote market development while still maintaining BlackBerry’s core customers. There will also be a campaign of paper ads in media outlets such as newspapers and magazines. A decent amount of the advertising will be done via the Internet and television. The first place to start would be the existing BlackBerry customers who are due for a phone upgrade. This group of people will be reached by an email campaign. Product Release & Measure of Success The timing and location that the BlackBerry Colt will be released is important. BlackBerry plans to release the new Colt featuring QNX in early 2012. Releasing the Colt in the first quarter is a smart move because three major United States and Canadian holidays will be affected by this including: Valentines day, Mother’s day, and Father’s day. Marketing the Colt around these holidays can boost sales because gifts are often bought for these occasions. Those in the target market will more likely buy the BlackBerry Colt for them self or loved ones during the height of the gift-­‐giving season. The locations where the Colt is released are specific yet substantial. The major target markets are in Canada and the United States 28 therefore locations picked within the countries will be based on how well each location will sell the BlackBerry product. Every carrier that sells BlackBerry will be major locations that consumers will be able to buy the Colt, which can be located within shopping centers, large retailers such as Walmart and Target, and online through service providers and the BlackBerry site. Shopping malls and centers, large retailers, and websites attract people who are going out to buy products. If these places carry the new product then the Colt will have more exposure to consumers willing to buy it. In order to measure the success of the marketing plan there are two different steps to take. The first step is to look at the amount of BlackBerry Colt’s sold within the first quarter it is released. Comparing that number to previously launched BlackBerry’s and their success it will be easy to see how accurate the plan was and if new BlackBerry customers were reached. The second step is to get the feedback of buyers. Sending out surveys online to people who buy the BlackBerry Colt will allow for detailed feedback on the new product. It is an efficient way to get quick answers from BlackBerry users on what they like about the phone and its features. Conclusion Starting in 1984 with a passion for engineering Mike Lazardis established RIM. After decades of consistent innovation RIM has remained among the leaders in the smartphone market. With the BlackBerry Colt featuring the new QNX operating system, BlackBerry looks to extend its market share and solidify its strong brand. By keeping a familiar design that offers many both software and hardware upgrades, 29 users will have high expectations that will be met by this new device. 30 Resources: Bacon, J. (2011, February 28). BlackBerry App World Generates Highest Revenue Per App. BlackBerry Cool. Retrieved October 16, 2011, from http://www.blackberrycool.com/2011/02/28/blackberry-­‐app-­‐world-­‐ generates-­‐highest-­‐revenue-­‐per-­‐app/ Best Smartphone for Business in 2010. (2010, May 7). Cell Phone Plans. Retrieved October 27, 2011, from http://www.icellphoneplans.com/best-­‐smartphone-­‐ for-­‐business-­‐2010/ Brands. (2011). Brand cameo. Retrieved October 20, 2011, from http://www.brandchannel.com/brandcameo_brands.asp Consumer Trend Data. (n.d.). National Retail Federation. Retrieved October 20, 2011, from http://www.nrf.com/modules.php?name=Pages&sp_id=449 Facebook Advertising Reaches 62% of On-­‐Line Americans. (2010, October 28). Bay E-­‐Solutions & Technology. Retrieved November 5, 2011, from http://bayest.com/blog/facebook-­‐advertising-­‐reaches-­‐62-­‐of-­‐online-­‐ americans/ Kyle, B. (2011). 7 pricing strategies. Retrieved October 18, 2011, from http://www.websitemarketingplan.com/techniques/pricing2.htm/ Lamb, C. W., Hair, J. F., & McDaniel, C. (2011). MKTG (5th ed.). Mason, OH: South-­‐Western, Cengage Learning. Mission & Vision Statement. (2010, October 1). RIM’s Mission, Vision, and Value Statements. Retrieved October 25, 2011, from http://www.getblackberry.in fo/rims-­‐mission-­‐vision-­‐and-­‐value-­‐statements/ Oliver-­‐Goodwin, M. (2011, February 9). Which smartphones are the most secure?. Focus. Retrieved October 25, 2011, from http://www.focus.com/ questions/ which-­‐smartphones-­‐are-­‐most-­‐secure/ Tampa Bay Business Journal. (2011, October 3). Tech Data inks distribution deal with BlackBerry. Business News. Retrieved October 27, 2011, from http://www.bizjournals.com/tampabay/news/2011/10/03/tech-­‐data-­‐inks-­‐ distribution-­‐deal-­‐with.html Verizon Smartphones. (2011). Retrieved October 18, 2011, from Verizon Wireless website: http://www.verizonwireless.com/b2c/store/controller?&&item=p honeFirst&action=viewPhoneOverviewB yDevice&deviceCategoryId=1 31