[Superfly_FR]

Boulben said RIM would use social networking channels to show the capabilities of BlackBerry 10 and let its millions of still-loyal users spread the word.
"The most natural thing to do from a marketing standpoint is to put that experience in the hands of our fans and let them do the marketing job, so to speak," he said.

They finally got it !

So, guys and girls, be there.
Starting with a like on BB FB page : https://www.facebook.com/BlackBerry
Follow @Blackberry on twitter
Hash your tweets with #blackberrybychoice or #blackberrybynature

You thought once "how can I help" ? Here you go
BTW, if you need some Avis for your on-line "activists" profiles : http://forums.crackberry.com/general...holder-719239/



(reference : RIM marketing boss sees silver lining in BlackBerry delay - Yahoo! Finance)

[kdna]

#################winning

[otacon]

Finally... A fresh breath of marketing genius...

[lnichols]

I hope there is more to the marketing strategy than that. Also the getting it into peoples hands part is the issue. I really wanted it by Thanksgiving or Christmas to show off to family but coming out in January will make it so I can't show it to my parents until after their next upgrade cycle in person (probably won't visit again until Memorial Day). Selling phones outside of NA with this strategy will work, but I don't think the loyal base size in NA is enough. They need to offer plenty of incentives to the idiots working behind the counter of the carrier stores.

[ColdFistOfTruth]

I hope there is more to the marketing strategy than that.

Amen! RIM can't REALLY think social media will solve their marketing problems, can it?

I'd normally trust that it would only be a component of a more comprehensive marketing strategy but we've seen time after time how RIM can *&^%$# up a free lunch so I've got a whole lot of doubt...

-CFOT

[Sith_Apprentice]

RIM needs to START with social media, there is an enormous amount of potential there. They need to do some sort of referral program, get 5 friends to upgrade/buy new BlackBerry device and get something free type of deal. Once you have even a small amount of buy in there, start the actual media campaign, blitz the airwaves, get people into stores to TRY the device. etc etc

[Sith_Apprentice]

Shouldn't you start by identifying your target consumers - for instance, corporate or general consumer or both, and then put together an appropriate marketing campaign based on who you want to sell your products to? Using social media is fine - if that covers your primary buyer. For corporate buyers - not so sure. As someone else posted - hope there's a lot more to the marketing campaign.

Using your existing customer base as marketing tools is a great way to not only keep your customers (and build loyalty if you reward them as such), but also word of mouth advertising is far and away the best form of advertising. Yes this is only one piece but it is a VERY important piece of the puzzle. If you dont keep your current customers happy you will lose them. RIM cannot ignore their current users and just assume they will keep buying BlackBerry, because they wont. (overall)

[OMGitworks]

Two biggest places they need to influence is the corp/govt buyer and the kid behind the counter at the Verizon/ATT/Sprint/Rogers whatever store. This will help but I hope they devote many more resources to these channels.

[Superfly_FR]

Shouldn't you start by identifying your target consumers - for instance, corporate or general consumer or both, and then put together an appropriate marketing campaign based on who you want to sell your products to? Using social media is fine - if that covers your primary buyer. For corporate buyers - not so sure. As someone else posted - hope there's a lot more to the marketing campaign.

It was clearly a missing part of on-line marketing so far. I remember Kevin's talk @ Amsterdam Devcon. Every minute I wondered "why is RIM so far away of such important matters ?", I even ranted here about it. Reading this is one of the communication tools they now promote is a great news to me.

It is mandatory but not sufficient, I agree.

[playbookster]

I would love a bb10 device to show off to my friends. They all think the playbook is awesome even though they are apple users. I got a few people to buy playbooks, it wasnt hard.

[cynicalreader]

"to show the capabilities of BB10" ....

Isn't the timing sort of weird? Don't you do this when you actually have a product or at least hard specs? How do you use social media to tout a future product, months away, where there is no hard list of specs, features, functions, etc., (not to give away anything to the competition). Would think you do this later, when you actually have something more or less concrete to get excited about.

[amazinglygraceless]

If this is anything more than a MINOR component to their strategy it is the
dumbest thing ever.

How about this, have the Marketing / Advertising department(s) do the job they
were hired for.

Farming even a portion of their marketing out to loyal users as a strategy
is not a plan. It is a destined to fail hail Mary. I am constantly amazed at
how intellectually vacant the people in RIM marketing appear to be.

[cynicalreader]

In today's Financial Post Boulben says:

“BB10 is the perfect opportunity to do marketing at RIM in a unified manner across geographies, countries and regions. This unified approach will allow us to leverage our scale and scope, to leverage the best practices and to leverage relationships with partners, agencies and media owners.”

He says the problem is every country had their own marketing department, the marketing effort was fractured.

OK, I get that, but there is something to be said for taking into account both locality - individual countries, developed, emerging, and type of consumer, general, corporate etc.

He needs to figure out how to strike the proper balance. The all-unified approach has its limits.

Here's the interview
RIM marketing officer faces tough task of restoring BlackBerry's lustre | FP Tech Desk | Financial Post

[amazinglygraceless]

RIM needs to START with social media, there is an enormous amount of potential there. They need to do some sort of referral program, get 5 friends to upgrade/buy new BlackBerry device and get something free type of deal. Once you have even a small amount of buy in there, start the actual media campaign, blitz the airwaves, get people into stores to TRY the device. etc etc

I think they need to do this but in the reverse. Advertise like there is no tomorrow
and THEN hit social media hard.

It will be much easier to make the case AFTER the airwaves have been flooded,
the products are at the top of peoples minds and most importantly, in their hands
than it will be to market via word of mouth on a "promise"

The referral program would be genius.

[berklon]

"to show the capabilities of BB10" ....

Isn't the timing sort of weird? Don't you do this when you actually have a product or at least hard specs? How do you use social media to tout a future product, months away, where there is no hard list of specs, features, functions, etc., (not to give away anything to the competition). Would think you do this later, when you actually have something more or less concrete to get excited about.

This is what I was wondering.

What's there to show off? We've seen so very little of BB10, and it wasn't anything to brag about anyway. We don't even know what the devices will look like and don't even have a final spec sheet.

"Hey everybody... we've got BB10 coming out... just imagine a great device. Yeah, we'll have that at some point. Spread the word!"

[scalemaster34]

Wonder what Apple spends marketing the iPhone each year? Can RIM afford to spend any less?

Don't really believe that they can afford to beat Apple when it comes to marketing, but they need to do something to let people know that BB10 is NOT the same OLD Blackberry!

[Sith_Apprentice]

Wonder what Apple spends marketing the iPhone each year? Can RIM afford to spend any less?

Don't really believe that they can afford to beat Apple when it comes to marketing, but they need to do something to let people know that BB10 is NOT the same OLD Blackberry!

You would have to remove all Apple marketing related to ANYTHING other than the iPhone or Apps. That would be a far more apt comparison.

[avt123]

I really see this as more of a validation for current users posting this on twitter than anything else. If I read these comments on twitter and see the hashtags, not one of those comments are going to make me want to switch to BB just because #blackberrybynature was posted.

I like BB 7 devices, but no one I know IRL that has an iPhone, Android or WP7 device see owning a BB as a "good thing". I can't see this twitter campaign having any influence on them. I can't see this twitter campaign having any major influence on the United States either.

RIM needs BB10 to have any type of influence on the public. Not a twitter campaign when the only devices RIM have available to buy are the ones people seem to not want.

[ADozenEggs@aol.com]

They finally got it !

So, guys and girls, be there.
Starting with a like on BB FB page : https://www.facebook.com/BlackBerry
Follow @Blackberry on twitter
Hash your tweets with #blackberrybychoice or #blackberrybynature

You thought once "how can I help" ? Here you go
BTW, if you need some Avis for your on-line "activists" profiles : http://forums.crackberry.com/general...holder-719239/



(reference : RIM marketing boss sees silver lining in BlackBerry delay - Yahoo! Finance)

So this means that the marketing campaign kicks off in January when people can actually purchase the phones?

I'm confused. How do you market something that won't be on the market for another 6 months? These aren't cars.

The loyal fans can't push what they can't show.

Did I miss something?

[addicted44]

I think RIM is being smart by leveraging the loyal user base. That being said, I think it is too early. They cannot keep asking users to evangelize for them, and I would have thought the best time to start would have been with the release of BB10. What will users evangelize until Jan 2013? I fear that this will be a waste of an awesome marketing force (the BB fan base), which could be better used to establish BB10.

I wonder if the marketing dept came up with the plan before they knew of the BB10 delay and decided to roll with it anyways?

[cynicalreader]

I think Boulben has something to prove. His hire, coming from the bankrupt Lighsqaured, left a lot of people scratching their heads. Of all the people RIM could have hired, why him? But after that near death experience maybe he will go all out to try and prove the critics wrong.

So maybe this is just him saying, see, I'm here, I'm thinking, I am doing stuff. I am not invisible.

[chr1sny]

"to show the capabilities of BB10" ....

Isn't the timing sort of weird? Don't you do this when you actually have a product or at least hard specs? How do you use social media to tout a future product, months away, where there is no hard list of specs, features, functions, etc., (not to give away anything to the competition). Would think you do this later, when you actually have something more or less concrete to get excited about.

Agreed. What exactly are people supposed to tweet about other than a few concept videos?

[Superfly_FR]

Agreed. What exactly are people supposed to tweet about other than a few concept videos?

Quoted yours, could be others

I believe this is an action plan, and all below the quote is mine, not his.
We don't know the timing, but I believe this is a mandatory "word of the mouth" support.
Now, what to show ? Well, the same leaks than other brands usually distribute
They have started hands-on sessions with messaging and keyboard (ok, we all know it's a limited thing, no need to rant again) but could extend this to some selected blogs/sites with a more enhanced BB10 version. Also there are a large amount of BB10 alpha devices, and the closer the release date is, the most likely a beta to drop. Add videos and popular features list (as BBM+video) or apps support and you've got a ton of material to spread the world with.

[Superfly_FR]

I really see this as more of a validation for current users posting this on twitter than anything else. If I read these comments on twitter and see the hashtags, not one of those comments are going to make me want to switch to BB just because #blackberrybynature was posted.

I like BB 7 devices, but no one I know IRL that has an iPhone, Android or WP7 device see owning a BB as a "good thing". I can't see this twitter campaign having any influence on them. I can't see this twitter campaign having any major influence on the United States either.

RIM needs BB10 to have any type of influence on the public. Not a twitter campaign when the only devices RIM have available to buy are the ones people seem to not want.

In short : exposition in a friendly context.
Yet I do agree this won't make people buy; I don't believe it's intended to do it directly.

[scalemaster34]

You would have to remove all Apple marketing related to ANYTHING other than the iPhone or Apps. That would be a far more apt comparison.

Unfortunately that isn't really true... when Apple markets a device, they are marketing their Brand just as much as they do the device. And let face it today, there is probably no better known brand out there. But yet they are still spending close to a BILLION dollars a year on marketing.

Whereas RIM's Brand is well know, it has to be admitted that their has come to be some negativity associated with their name. So I have to wonder when everyone says that RIM has a huge cash reserve... is it really big enough to do ALL the thing that RIM will need to do in the coming year?