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BLOG 2 | “RIM still thinks Marketing is Advertising”

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The video below demonstrates RIM’s recent marketing strategy to reposition it’s products to become a social device instead of just a strong business phone, which has been Blackberry’s key image earlier in this past decade.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pX5YsU8sir4

However, according to this Globe and Mail article, Research in Motion clearly needs to rethink it’s marketing strategy to survive.

RIM has recently suffered major criticism from not only the press, but also the investors as it’s value has fallen 74% over the past year on the stock exchange. This is a reflection of both the investor and consumer’s lack of faith in the Blackberry product. A result of stagnating innovative prowess in a market now dominated by Apple, untimely service blackouts, and faulty hardware, RIM has become a victim of falling behind in a rapidly moving technological age.

With a newly appointed CEO, and now a newly appointed Chief Marketing Officer, RIM is now attempting to restore faith in it’s consumers. RIM will attempt to re-deliver the once lethal dependance on the “Crackberry” to it’s loyal customer base once again. With a “focus more on consumer marketing”, RIM’s new marketing strategy, and destiny, will depend on it’s “ability to turn around the consumers’ perceptions of the brand” – in hopes of not only retaining their current user-base, but also gain market share against the many dominant players in the marketplace.

However, not only does RIM need to redefine it’s marketing strategy, they also need to refocus it’s position within the consumer’s perception of the brand. Currently, as mentioned earlier, RIM is trying to portray the Blackberry as a social device. Although the Blackberry Messenger platform holds many users to the product, it is not a strong enough point of differentiation as other platforms similar to BBM has been created and adopted by other phone operating systems. RIM needs to focus on the Blackberry’s strengths – the physical keyboard, efficient emailing, and a reputable network – of the blackberry product, and leverage them in it’s new marketing strategy.

 

Written by David Huynh

January 25th, 2012 at 7:41 pm

Posted in Uncategorized

One Response to 'BLOG 2 | “RIM still thinks Marketing is Advertising”'

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  1. I agree David, “Research in Motion clearly needs to rethink it’s marketing strategy to survive” and they have not been doing a very good job with their newest Marketing Strategy and their utterly wierd Mascots that look similar to “Kim Possible” with a mix of the “2010 Olympic Mascots”. I’m glad that they are trying to reposition their marketing strategy to target the social community as well as the business community. I think its all great that they’re doing that but many of the Fortune 500 companies have already switched from Blackberry to iphone, so maybe RIM, its a little too late, but we never know what technological advance’s are in store for the future.

    celinegrootes

    7 Feb 12 at 11:50 pm

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