Google and its subsidiary, Motorola, recently announced that their new Moto X smartphone is “first smartphone ever to be designed and assembled in the U.S.A”. [1] This statement is clearly an attempt to attract consumers towards purchasing the phone.
From an American consumer’s perspective, the words “Made in America” may create a sense of patriotism or evoke images of American workers being treated and paid fairly. The consumer is now given the opportunity to support their people with the purchase of this phone. From an outsider’s perspective, this is a brilliant marketing campaign because Google has capitalized on a perceived notion and is profiting from it. The market for smartphones is extremely competitive, so what better way to differentiate your product than to give people a sense of empowerment that they may not necessarily receive from purchasing an iPhone or an Android device. Despite being assembled in the United States, a breakdown of the Moto X shows that it only costs 9% more to produce than Apple’s iPhone 5. [2] From an accounting perspective, a 9% increase is massive, but consider how many more units Google is able to sell and the strategy seems to pay off.
Original Article: Bloomberg
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[1] Motorola’s Moto X Product Page
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