blackberry ad plan

ADVERTISINGPLAN

SanFranciscoStateUniversity

Fall2010

MKTG434

V.Papyrina

Group3

BlackBerryAdvertisingPlan

2

TABLEOFCONTENTS

1.ProblemDefinition.................................................................................................................................................... 3

2.AdvertisingObjective................................................................................................................................................ 3

3.SituationAnalysis ...................................................................................................................................................... 3

4.TheTargetAudience ................................................................................................................................................. 6

5.Consumers’Perceptions ........................................................................................................................................... 8

6.TheCompetition ....................................................................................................................................................... 8

7.TheCreativeStrategy.............................................................................................................................................. 10

8.TheCreativeBrief ................................................................................................................................................... 12

9.References .............................................................................................................................................................. 14


3

1.ProblemDefinition

BlackBerrydevicesarealineofPDA’sandcellularphonesthathavecommonlybeenusedbybusiness

professionals.BlackBerryfirstlauncheditsfirstcollectionin1999whichincludedalineofwirelessPDAsthat

allowedusertosendemails,providedcorporatedataaccess,anorganizer,acalendar,andseveralotherfeatures

thatmadethisdevicenumberoneforbusinessesaswellasprofessionals(Williams,2008).BlackBerry,whoseuser

interfaceisstilldesignedbybusinessownersandcorporateprofessionals,hasincreaseditsmarketsharegreatly

comparedtoitscompetitors.Intoday’smarket,cellphonemanufacturersarefocusingonmulti‐tasking

capabilities,rich,vibrantscreenresolutions,HDvideoandcameras,thebestmulti‐touchiOSinterfaces,and

hundredsofotherexcitingfeaturesastoday’sconsumersdemandsmartphonesthatcandoliterallyeverything

whileprovidingfeaturesthatalsoofferconveniencetotheirbusylifestyles.BlackBerry,comparedtoother

companies,willcontinuetostrugglewiththeirmarketshareinthecellphoneindustryasleadingcompaniesare

capturingbothbusinessprofessionals,teenagers,aswellconsumerswithvaryinglifestylesandpsychographic

behaviors.

2.AdvertisingObjective

TheadvertisingobjectiveofBlackBerryisnottochangetheviewofitbeingabusinesstoolbuttoenhanceittobe

asocialtoolaswell.Intoday’sbusinessworldthereisahighemergenceofyoungbusinessprofessionalswhowork

duringthedayandsocializeatnight.SinceBlackBerryistheleadingphoneforbusinessprofessionalsitwould

becomemorepopularifithadcapabilitiesthatwouldbeapartofaperson’ssociallife.Creatingawarenessabout

thesocialaspectsofBlackberrywillnotchangethebusinessattitudeithasbutwillmotivatepurchasesbypeople

whodobusinessandsocializeandalsomotivatepeoplewhosocializeandareplanningtodobusiness.Inthecell

phonemarket,BlackBerry’scompetitorssuchasiPhoneandDroidfocusontheirsocialaspectstoattract

customerswhilealsobeingabletomimicBlackBerrybusinessfeatures.GiventhatBlackBerryisnotpopularfor

socializingpotentialcustomerschooseBlackBerrycompetitorsastheyseetheirphonesprovidingfeatures

BlackBerrydoesandmore.Bymarketingitselfasall‐purposebusinessandsocialtoolBlackBerrywillgaingreater

marketshare.

3.SituationAnalysis

ThecurrentsmartphonemarketenvironmentforRIMBlackberryconsistsofthemselves,twoothermajor

competitors(AppleandAndroid),andafewothersmallercompetitors.BlackBerryisthemarketleaderholding

approximately43%ofthemarketshare.Incontrast,AppleandAndroid’scombinedmarketsharedoesnoteven

totalat40%(Cyran,2010).Thesmartphonemarketisgrowingbyleapsandboundsbuttheoldtrendsare

changing.PreviouslythesmartphonewasmarketedasabusinesstoolandBlackBerrycapitalizedonthisfactby

creatingoneoftheworld’smostsecuremobiledevices(Elmer‐DeWitt,2009).Bydoingthistheywereableto


4

acquireavastnumberofB2Baccounts,whichinturnhasfueledtheirgrowth.But,themarkethaschanged.Smart

phonesarebeingtargetedtowardalmosteverysegmentofthemarketandforavarietyofuses.Duetothisfact

BlackBerryisslowlylosingmarketsharetoApple,Android,andothercompetitors.Oneofthemajorcontributing

factorsforthislossofmarketshareisthatBlackBerryhasbeenunwillingtoshareitsOSwithothermanufacturers.

Google’sAndroidOSisfreetoallmanufacturersandAppleallowsanyonetocreateapplicationsfortheiriPhone.

Advertisingalsoplaysakeyroleinthemarkettrends.Withanadbudgetconsistingof3.6%ofsalesor

approximately$340million,BlackBerry’sshareofvoiceisonthebottomrung.Apple,in2009,spent$500million+

onadvertisingtheiPhonealoneandin2010smartphoneadshavebeendominatedbyphonesusingtheAndroid

OS(Elmer‐DeWitt,2009).Whilethesecompetitorsarecreatingadsthattargetmanydifferentmarketsegments,

BlackBerryisstillfocusedonthebusinesssegment.

Strengths:

• Worldwideleaderincutting‐edgetechnology

• Expandingglobalconsumerbase

• Hasdevelopedanestablishedbrand

• Hasaloyalmarketshare

• Perceivedbyconsumerstobethemostsecuremobiledeviceonthemarket

Weaknesses:

• Canadiancompaniesareperceivedasconservativebusinessesthatcannotventureoutsideoftheir

borders

• Managingthecompany`sexplosivegrowth

Opportunities:

• Theoverallsmartphonemarketisgrowingfasterthanever

• In2013,IDCpredictsthat20%ofthe1.4billionphonessoldwillbesmartphones.The7%growthinsmart

phonesalesisapotentialmarketthatRIMcantapinto.

• Theirmarginis20%,halfofApplesmarginat40%,whichgivesthemtheopportunitytoincreasetheir

margin

Threats:

• Apple`smarketshareisincreasinglygrowing(AccordingtotheChangeWaveResearch,asofMayApple

had20%oftheenterprisemarket,upfrom6%inoneyear)

• Potentialconsumersareboundbycellphonecontractsthatcanlasttwotothreeyears

• AndroidOSisopentoanymanufacturertouseandisgainingmarketshare


5

TopSmartphonePlatforms3MonthAvg.EndingJan.2010vs.3MonthAvg.EndingOct.2009TotalU.S.Age13+Source:comScoreMobiLens

Share(%)ofSmartphoneSubscribers

Oct‐09 Jan‐10 PointChange

TotalSmartphoneSubscribers 100.0% 100.0% N/A

RIM 41.3% 43.0% 1.7

Apple 24.8% 25.1% 0.3

Microsoft 19.7% 15.7% ‐4.0

Google 2.8% 7.1% 4.3

Palm 7.8% 5.7% ‐2.1


6

4.TheTargetAudience

Mostlyperceivedasabusinesstool,BlackBerryhaslostmarketsharetosmartphonesfromcompaniessuchas

Apple,Nokia,andMotorola.TochangetheperceptionthatBlackBerrysareforpeopleinsuits,theadvertisingplan

isaimedatyoungadults,whichisthetargetaudienceforthecampaign.Blackberrydoesnotwanttoabandon

theirexistingaudienceandloyalcustomersthattheyalreadyhave,butratherexpandtoincludeanothermarket

segmentthatcouldbenefitfromBlackberry’snewsmartphonemodelssuchastheTorchandStyle.Toreachthese

people,BlackBerrywillneedtoshowthemthattheirproductsareusedbypeoplejustashipasiPhoneorDroid

users.Itisonlythenthatthenewtargetaudiencewillidentifythemselvesasthetypeofpersonwhousesa

BlackBerry.

Significanttraitsofthetargetaudienceinclude:

Demographics

Theadvertisingcampaignwillbeaimedatyoungerpeoplefrom15to25yearsold.Thiswillincludeyoungadults,

femalesaswellasmales,inhighschool,incollegeandrecentgraduateslookingfororstartingtheirfirstjob.The

campaignisnotintendedtoreachacertaingeographicareaorsocioeconomicgroup,itisratherplannedtoreach

thespecificagegroupoverthewholenation.

Thetargetaudience’sparentsarelikelytobepayingfortheBlackBerry,sincethismarketsegmentdoesnothavea

vastamountofmonetaryresourcesontheirown.Theyoungadultsarealsolikelytobeenrolledinthefamilyplan,

sharingminutesandtextmessageswithotherfamilymembers.Toconvinceparentstopayforthenewcellphone,

advertisingshouldincludeelementsthatappealtobothkidsandparents.Forexample,anadvertisementcanshow

howeasyitisto“Like”somethingonFacebookandalsowhatagreattoolitisfororganizinghomework.

Psychographics/lifestyleinformation

ThetargetaudienceisthetypicalGenerationYindividual.Traitsofthismarketsegmentincludeasavvinessfor

technology(Armour,2005).GenerationYwasthefirstgrouptocomeofagewhentheInternetbegantoflourish.

SincechildhoodtheyareveryfamiliarwithtechnologysuchastheInternetandcellphones.Asgreatmultitaskers,

theytextastheywatchTVandsendinstantmessagestofriendswhiledoinghomework.Theseyoungadults’cell

phonesarebasicallytheirliveswheretheyinteractwithfriendsandkeepupwithwhatiscoolornot.

Surroundedby“helicopterparents,”GenerationYhasbeenpamperedtheirwholelives,whichhasmadethem

bothhigh‐performanceandhigh‐maintenance.Theyquestiontheirparentsandemployers,andarenotafraidto

speaktheirminds.Thiscancreateacultureclashwhentheyenterthejobmarketandworkwitholdercoworkers.

GenerationYvaluestheirfamiliesandpersonallivesandappreciatesjobswithplentyofflexibilityandoptionssuch


7

asworkingfromhomeandparttimealternatives.Theybelieveinchangeanddonotexpecttoworkforthesame

companytheirwholelivesandbelieveinspeakingtheirmindsiftheythinkthecompanyneedsimprovements.

Theywantemployerswhoareengagedwiththemandtheircareerdevelopment.

GenerationYkidsandyoungadultscanoftenbehardonthemselvesandverygoal‐oriented.Theyaimtowork

harderandbetterthanotherworkers,butseetheircoworkersasresourcestogainknowledgefrom.

AnothercharacteristicforGenerationYistheirstrongbeliefinsocialandenvironmentalmovementsand

neoliberalism(Phillips,2009),aspartoftheirbeliefinchange.Theyalsobelievein“self‐activism,”meaningthat

theirlivesarecausesthemselvesandbythewayGenerationYchoosetolivetheirlivestheycanmakechanges.

Theybuybrandsthattheybelieveinandthatrepresentalifestyle.IfBlackBerryshowsGenerationYhowthe

companycontributestosustainabilityandpositivesocialdevelopment,theteensandyoungadultsaremorelikely

tolookfavorablyuponBlackBerry’sproducts.

Profileofthetypicaltargetconsumer

CharacteristicsofthetypicalGenerationYindividuals:

Jessica Michael

• 18yearsold • 22yearsold

• livesinBoston • livesinSanFrancisco

• seniorinhighschool • justgothisfirstjob


8

• volunteersattheY • believesinchange

• hasstraightAs • doesnotexpecttoworkforthesamecompany

hiswholelife

• familyoriented • goaloriented

• helpsatherdad’sbakery • recyclesandcomposts

• hasafashionblog • usesIM

• watchesSoYouThinkYouCanDanceand

Glee

• likestotravel

5.Consumers’Perceptions

ItseemsasthoughthenewsocialperceptionoftheBlackBerrynamebrandhasshiftedwithinthelastfewyears.

BlackBerrywasonceseenastheindustrystandardinwhichallothersmartdevicemanufacturershadtofollow.

Thiswasattainedbytheirabilitytonotonlymaintaintheirstableplatformforcorporateandworkneeds,buttheir

abilitytoadapttoemergingnon‐workbaseduser.ForthosewhowantedInternetfeaturesfornotonlye‐mail,but

socialnetworkingandefficientwebbrowsing,devicesliketheBlackberryCurveandPearlmadethenotionthat

smartphonedeviceswereonlyforthosewithbusinessneedsanantiquatedideal.

However,therehasnowbeenadynamicshiftintheculture,whereworkrelatedneedsforasmartphonearenow

secondarytotheneedsofsocialnetworkingandconstantattainmentofuptotheminutedata.Blackberrybecame

avictimofitsownsuccess.BeingthattheBlackBerrynamehasbeenaroundsolong,thecurrentwaveofnon‐work

relatedsmartphoneusers,(especiallynewdatausers)seethenameinanarchaicfashion.Itsstabilityand

longevityinthemarketisadoubleedgedsword,wherepeopleunderstandthedeviceisreliableandwell

designed,butitdoesnothavetheflashor“wowfactor”thatnew,morepowerfulprocessingdeviceslikethe

Apple’siPhoneortheGoogleAndroidseriesnowpossess.Blackberryisnowseenasyourboss’phone,something

fitforthesoccermom,notasmuchforthehipurbango‐getter.

6.TheCompetition

AppleiPhone

Strengths:

• Theiphonehasaninnovativetouchscreenthatispatentedandunlikeanyothermobiledevice


9

• It’scompatibilityworkswithavarietyofoperatingsystems,allowingitgreatflexibility

• It’suserfriendlyinterfacemadeoperatingthedevicepossibleforvirtuallyanybody

• Thedeviceissetatareasonableprice,offeringmultiplefunctionsthatishardtocomebyinacellular

telephone

• Ithasoneofthebrightest,mostscratchresistantscreensthatmostdeviceslack

Weaknesses:

• Theiphoneisnottargetedtowardsbusinesspeople,whichmostsmartphoneshavetargeted(low

reputationinthecorporateworld)

• Someconsumersdonotfavorthe“gorillaarm”effect,preventingthemfromuseastylusorpento

navigatethroughtheinterface

• Oldergenerationsdonotcomewithvideocapture

Opportunities:

• Applecontinuestotargetthebusinessproductivitymarket,attemptingtogiveanall‐in‐onedevice.

Continualsoftware‐upgradeavailabilityallowsuserstostayexcitedwiththeirpurchase

• Applehastheprivilegetocollaboratewithotherpowerfulcompanies,floodingthemarkettheirproducts

(thismayalsoreducemarketingandadvertisingcosts)

Threats:

• Theincreasedcompetitionofsmartphonesmeansthatother,moreinexpensive,devicesmayenterthe

market.Theiphoneismarketedatahigherpricepoint,makingitexclusivetosomeconsumers

HTCDROID

Strengths:

• Highresolution3.7”displayscreen

• Extremelyfastwebbrowsingwithits1gprocessor

• Hasbothatouchscreenkeyboardandaphysicalkeyboard

• Functionsmuchfasterthanothersmartphones

• Videocapture

Weaknesses:

• Thephysicalkeyboardisdifficulttotypewith

• Somecameraimagesmaycomeoutgrainy,evenwithan8megapixelcamera/flash

• Knowntohaveweaksignalstrength


10

• Emailmalfunctionssuchasforwardingattacheddocuments

• Targetedtoeveryone,butisbasedatahigherpricepoint

• Limitedmemoryforapplications

Opportunities:

• Hasanalargenumberofdownloadableapplications

• Hastheabilitytoworkwithallwirelessprovidersinsteadofjustone/limited

Threats:

• Theincreasedcompetitionofsmartphonesmeansthatother,moreinexpensive,devicesmayenterthe

market.Thedroidismarketedatahigherpricepoint,makingitexclusivetosomeconsumers.

(Elmer‐DeWitt,2009)

7.TheCreativeStrategy

A. TheSingleMostCompellingBenefitOurBrandCanProvidetoOurTargetCustomers

Thesingle,mostcompellingbenefitthattheBlackBerrywillprovidetoitstargetcustomerswill

includeanewcollectionofphonesthatwillallowitscustomerstobothworkhard,andplayhardall

inonedevice.ThephoneswillincludetraditionalfeaturesoftheBlackBerrythathaveestablished

themasbeingthepreferreddevicetouseasabusinesstool,butwillalsoincludenewfeaturessotit

willalsobeperceivedasasocialornetworkingtool.Withthesenewfeatures,BlackBerrywillnotonly

beperceivedaprofessionaltoolforbusinessconsumers,butalsoasafunsocialnetworkingdevice

thatwillattracthighschoolandearlycollegestudents,tech‐savvyindividuals,andregularuserswho

enjoythelatestsmartphonewiththenewest,mostinnovativefeatures.

B.Support:WhyShouldOurConsumersBelieveIt?

OurcustomerswillpreferthisnewcollectionofBlackBerrydevicesoverthecompetitionbecauseof

allofthebenefitssomeofthefeaturesofthedevicewillprovidethem:

• SurePresstouchscreen‐thenextleveloftouchscreenwithSurePress™touchscreentechnology

offeringanew,pressabletouchscreenthatallowsforsupereasynavigation,precisetyping,fastand

accuratetyping,andmore(ResearchInMotion,2010)!

• Stayingsocial‐everysocialnetworkingsiteisincluded!Allowsusertoupdatetheirstatus

whenevertheyplease,tagafriendinafunnyphoto,andstayintouchonpracticallyanysocial

networkingsiteincludeFacebook,Twitter,LinkedIn,Myspace,Flikr,Tumblr,Foursquare&more!

• IntegratedRSSfeeds‐Allowsuserstogatherandfilteralloftheirinformationinoneview!

IncludesaplatformthatwillallowstudentstopushoutselectedwebcontenttotheBlackBerry


11

devices,includingcoursework,admissions,etc.Anewwaytokeepstudentsengagedandactivein

eventsassignments,sports,etc.atschool.

• HD8MPcamerawithflashandvideorecording‐Continuousflash,professionalimageediting

featuresandvideorecordingmakethisattractivetoallkindsofconsumers.Imageslookcrisp,clean,

andprofessional.Withacontinuousflashfeaturesandthefastestauto‐focus,it'seasytocapture

spontaneousmoments.

• Multi‐taking‐Userscanaccessseveralopenapplicationsandwebpagesatonce.Perfectfeature

forthebusyindividual.

• Superbbatterylife‐8hoursoftalktime!Customerscantalkbusiness,talkeveningplans,talk

aboutthelatestgossipwithouthavingtoworryaboutthebatterylifecomparedtoothercompeting

brands.

• MAXimizedmultimedia‐12GBofmemoryavailableandupto32GBwithamicroSDcard!

• Morebusinessapps‐featuresallthetraditionaltoolsforbusinessesandbusinessprofessionals

butthenewphoneswillfeaturesnewtoolsthatwillmakeiteasiertoaccesscorporateemail,access

corporatedatabases,organize,plan,andcontrolallfromtheirmobiledevice!

• RichPCwebbrowsing‐includesafullHTMLwebkitbrowser

• Eco‐friendlydesign‐Small,compactbutwillallthepowerofagenius,smartphone,madeinpart

with25%recycledplastic

• Includedphonetrackingandlocater‐neverloseyourpreciousphoneagain,justdownloadthe

softwareontoyourPCorMac!

C.ToneofAdvertising

Thetoneoftheadvertisinghastomatchtheobjective,whichisnottochangetheviewofBlackberry

buttoenhanceitsothetonehastobebusinessandsocialatthesametimesothebestfitinthis

situationwouldbeabusinesscasualtone.ThiswillstillappealtothetraditionalBlackberrycustomers

whileattractingtheyoungermoresocialprofessionals.Thebestpersontoportraythisadwouldbea

youngbusinessprofessionalgivingapresentationduringameetingandusinghisBlackberryfor

businessandsocialneeds(Findingarestaurantfordinnerwithapotentialclient).Thiswillbe

particularlysuccessfulasthisshowstraditionalcustomersthespeedtomakeappointmentsandgives

youngercustomersanideaofhowtheymayusethefeatureintheirsociallife.Theadvertisingappeal

shouldbebothrationalandemotionalbecauseBlackberryistryingtoshowthatitcandoboth.The

Blackberrywilldisplayfeaturesthatwillmakedoingbusinessfasterandsimplerandwillalso

showcasehowthatsamefeaturecanbeusedwhensocialization.


12

8.TheCreativeBrief

A.Whyareweadvertisingatall?

BlackBerryismostlyperceivedasabusinesstoolusedbybusinessprofessionals.Thecompanydoesnotwantto

abandontheirexistingaudienceandtheloyalcustomersthattheyalreadyhave,butratherexpandtoinclude

anothermarketsegmentthatcouldbenefitfromBlackberry’snewsmartphonemodels.BlackBerrywillcontinue

tostrugglewiththeirmarketshareinthecellphoneindustryasleadingcompaniesarecapturingbothbusiness

professionals,teenagers,aswellconsumerswithvaryinglifestylesandpsychographicbehaviors,iftheydonottry

toexpandandreachmoremarketsegments.Throughtheadvertisingcampaign,BlackBerrycouldincreasetheir

marketshareandreachmoremarketsegments.

B.Whoarewetalkingto?

Inordertoincreasemarketshareandreachanothermarketsegment,theadvertisingcampaignisaimedatyoung

adults,alsoknownasGenerationY.

1.Factsaboutthem.

Theadvertisingcampaignwillbeaimedatyoungerpeoplefrom15to25yearsold.Thiswillincludeyoungadults,

femalesaswellasmales,inhighschool,incollegeandrecentgraduateslookingfororstartingtheirfirstjob.The

campaigniswillcoverthewholenationandallsocioeconomicgroups.Traitsofthismarketsegmentincludea

savvinessfortechnology,multitaskingabilities,“self‐activism”,andabeliefinsustainabilityandsocial

development.GenerationYishigh‐performing,notafraidtospeaktheirminds,valuestheirfamiliesandpersonal

livesandappreciatesjobswithplentyofflexibilityandoptionssuchasworkingfromhomeandparttime

alternatives.Theseyoungadultscanoftenbehardonthemselvesandareverygoal‐oriented.

2.Theirattitudesandhowtheycurrentlyviewthebrand.

GenerationYcurrentlyviewsBlackBerryastheirboss’phoneandnotasmuchforthehipurbango‐getter.

BlackBerrywasonceseenastheindustrystandardinwhichallothersmartdevicemanufacturershadtofollow.

Thiswasattainedbytheirabilitytonotonlymaintaintheirstableplatformforcorporateandworkneedsand

devicesliketheBlackBerryCurveandPearlmadethenotionthatsmartphonedeviceswereonlyforthosewith

businessneedsanantiquatedideal.BlackBerry’sstabilityandlongevityinthemarketisadoubleedgedsword,

wherethetargetaudienceunderstandsthedeviceisreliableandwelldesigned,butitdoesnothavetheflashor

“wowfactor”thatnew,morepowerfulprocessingdevicesliketheApple’siPhoneortheGoogleAndroidseries

nowpossess.


13

C.Whatisthesinglemostcompellingideaweneedtocommunicatetothem?

UsingaBlackberrymeansyouarecool,youngandhip.

D.Whyshouldtheybelievethis?

Thenewerversionsoftheproductreflectthesinglemostcompellingideathatwearetryingtocommunicateto

them.Throughpeertestimonials,andexpertreviewswecanconveyproductefficacyandsynergywithour

advertisingefforts.

E.Desiredbrandpersonality/tone?

Thedesiredbrandpersonalitywehopetoachieveisyoungprofessionalismwithfunandutility.


14

9.References

Armour,S.(November6,2005).GenerationY:They'vearrivedatworkwithanewattitude.USATODAY.com.Retrievedfromhttp://www.usatoday.com/money/workplace/2005‐11‐06‐gen‐y_x.htm

Cyran,R.(2010,July26).BusinessDay:Blackberry'sEraMaybeEnding.RetrievedNovember20,2010,from

NewYorkTimes.com:http://www.nytimes.com/2010/07/26/business/26views.htmlElmer‐DeWitt,P.(2009,October28).Fortune:Apples2009AdBudget:HalfaBillion.RetrievedNovember20,

2010,fromCNNMoney.com:http://tech.fortune.cnn.com/2009/10/28/apples‐2009‐ad‐budget‐half‐a‐billion/

Phillips,C.(April6,2009).GenYCoreValue:FightforWhatYouBelieveIn.MillennialMarketing.Retrievedfrom:

http://millennialmarketing.com/2009/04/gen‐y‐core‐value‐fight‐for‐what‐you‐believe‐in/ResearchInMotion(2008).Blackberrysurepresstouchscreen.Retrievedfrom:

http://us.blackberry.com/smartphones/features/surepress.jspWilliams,J.(2008,April28).Thehistoryofblackberry[Weblogmessage].Retrievedfrom:

http://www.bbgeeks.com/blackberry‐guides/the‐history‐of‐the‐blackberry‐88296

blackberry ad plan

Technology