Do you remember when telephones used to be those things connected to your house walls? With that spiral cord that always got tangled up and twisted around? What happened to the days when we were still fascinated with non-tape recording voice mail systems, caller ID, and call waiting?
Cell phones started out as bricks, to say the least. Now I’m not the most tech-savvy individual, but I just got my hands on this brand new Nokia N8 and I think to myself, it does everything I need in a phone: Symbian smartphone, Wi-Fi connection, tons of applications, text messaging, 12-megapixel camera, HD video recording, TV out via HDMI, touch screen, music player, video player, scratch resistant screen – oh yeah, and it even makes phone calls!!!
In this day in age, we are always on the go. So why not take our lives with us in the form of our cell phones? We have become so dependent on our cell phones to the point where we think we feel it vibrate, even when its not, or you think you hear it ringing when a similar pitch goes off in the background. Obsessed? Maybe. But maybe it’s not our fault. What I’m saying is that these cell phone companies market their products to create this need for consumers to own their product. That we need a 12-megapixel camera on our phone, that we need Wi-Fi connection on our phones, or that we need it to stay in contact with our friends (Blackberry Messenger). I remember when all I wanted was a cell phone, then I wanted the new “flip” phones, then the slider phones came out and I needed to have that, then the touch phones came out. Marketers create value for their products and target it towards males and females of my generation. My generation is obsessed with technology and gets bored with things very easily. Hence I don’t see a better target market for the cell phone companies. They keep bringing out new editions of phones, enhance their specs, and ultimately creating a high value on them. Not only do they come out with new editions, they have new features, and new technologies – something they advertise that you must have in order to stay in the loop with your friends and social life.
The development of cell phones would not be successful on its own. It’s up to the marketers of the cellphone brands and cellular providers to show what the phone has to offer. Personally, I love getting new cell phones – that’s something my parents don’t understand because they can’t see how I could possibly enjoy getting to learn an entire new interface, new texting style, new applications, etc. when they’re just getting used to texting on a T9 basis. But that’s their generation. They’re a little (and by a little, I mean a lot) slower at adjusting to technology. So yes, I believe that cellphone marketers have definitely found and unveiled the needs and wants of consumers, such as myself, that they didn’t even know existed. For example, 3 years ago, I would not have thought I’d be surfing the web, via Wi-Fi on my touch screen cellphone. But now, it has become a need/want of mine. To be able to have that accessibility and availability all in something that fits in my hand.
It’s truly a marketer’s world, we’re all just living in it.
Thanks for reading!
T