Blackberry was once known as the leader of the smartphone market. They were initially the first to “claim” this unique position in the consumer’s mind. According to Al Ries and Jack Trout’s book, Positioning: The Battle for your Mind, being the first brand to position themselves in a certain market will ultimately lead to success. This is because consumers usually keep the market leaders in mind. However, for Blackberry, the outcome did not turn out as desired. Why did Blackberry fail to succeed and maintain it’s leading position in the smartphone market? Is it too late to raise this company from the dead?
To maintain the leadership position, Ries and Trout stated that the brand must be willing to embrace change. This was Blackberry’s mistake that led to their downfall. Blackberry was always known for their convenient keyboard. As Apple Inc.’s iPhones and Google’s Androids began to surface and grow in the smartphone market, Blackberry failed to acknowledge their competitors’ touch-screen design. Blackberry wanted to stay loyal and continued producing with a keyboard. Because of Blackberry’s unwillingness to embrace change, the company began to come crashing down. 
Recently, RIM released the Blackberry Z10, a touch-screen Blackberry. However, the release of the phone was not as successful as they had hoped. Blackberry had finally began to embrace the change in the market, but it was too late. Their previous success blinded Blackberry from acting fast to the changing market and failed to maintain their leadership position. This led to other competitors in the market to become steps ahead of Blackberry, as they gradually fall behind.
Is it too late for Blackberry to replicate their success? Can Blackberry recover from their major downfall or was being first their last impression on this growing market?
Source 2: http://www.quickmba.com/marketing/ries-trout/positioning/
Figure 1: http://www.techknowlogists.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/02/bbz10stevenson.jpg
