[Playbookjoe]

I really think the lack of RIM marketing in the last while might turn out to be a benefit in disguise. In the general consumer mind blackberry was huge and then just sort of disappeared. I think that they should reshape the quietness that has happened into being something that was done on purpose. This could be used for an epic marketing campaign once bb10 is ready.



For example:

(commercial)



"Remember when a small company created the smartphone and changed the way people communicate forever?"

News clips (real or fake) about explosion of blackberries

"They made billions of dollars and then disappeared - what were they doing?"

Quick Multiple News clips of how blackberry spending more money on R&D than anyone

News clip (probably fake) about how bb10 is a quantum leap or something

Quick flashes of bb10 hardware

"some sort of - something is coming that will change everything - line and done."



By owning the downturn, and reshaping it, I think that RIM has an opportunity to change the conversation completely. Instead of it being a conversation about blunders and failures, the topic should be changed to it being done on purpose in order to change everything again. Doesn't matter if it was on purpose or not - this is how it should be spun from now on.

Stop reacting all the time and start shaping the conversation.

[rdrobinson]

That sounds awesome! That's actually a brilliant way to capitalize on their "invisibilty" in the smart phone market these past few years.

Believe it or not, I was thinking along these same lines just the other day. I can show you my notes to prove it!

Seriously though, I hope RIM has their marketing team fleshing out ideas somewhere in the ballpark of what the OP just demonstrated.

[Deu2e]

That is an awesome idea OP! But I do believe that whether or not they take this topic's idea and run with it or not, marketing has to be addressed. The average consumer only knows about a product because of commercials and ads, etc.

[pythons]

This is great idea and would certainly catch the attention of anyone watching it...
...It's also what RIM needs - a reminder that it WAS the first, was the top.
...And after it's R&D is again on the top.

[gtpointer]

Not a bad idea, but don't use quantum leap. Most irritating wrong bit of science. Quantum leap = very small jump, not a big one.

[sleepngbear]

Love it.

[sputneek]

I think maybe you should try contacting RIM"s advertising dept. Ingenuous concept and brainstorms is how this stuff happens, ya never know. I knew the kid that came up with the Mac the night idea, he went on to be quite successful for at least a while
He was a nobody just outta high school and found a way to approach them.

[ekv]

Timing. Needs to be shown a month before release of bb10. With a specific date mentioned in the ad. Like it.

Sent from my SG-Note

[T�nis]

I like it. Awesome idea, op!

[morlock_man]

They appear to be borrowing on the script from Apple's 1984 commercial...

We are one people, with one will, one resolve, one cause.

Our enemies shall talk themselves to death and we will bury them with their own confusion.

We shall prevail!

[dbollman423]

It sounds like an excellent premise for a marketing campaign. Just a couple of thoughts if you are open to input.

-flashes of world leaders/influential/powerful people on their Blackberry's.
-great tag line like "the revolution will be brought to you by Blackberry" with images of revolutions (recent) and actual news footage of anchormen/women telling how information coming from inside the revolution is being tweeted/posted.
-also,while I am working on it, RIM should work with IBM to make a Siri type app from IBM's WATSON.

[kevinnugent]

Not a bad idea, but don't use quantum leap. Most irritating wrong bit of science. Quantum leap = very small jump, not a big one.

A wise man once said RIM were "leapfrogging" the competition.

[apengue1]

I tweeted this over to blackberry and alec saunders. Maybe they'll take a look

[mthomps07]

I think you can acknowledge the absence in a less direct fashion. OP, I really love your idea, but at the same time I think if you're doing marketing for RIM, it's a fine line and you risk consumer emphasis on the disappearance at the cost of losing emphasis on the return. You need a quick phrase that captures everything- the absence and the resurgence, but paints a picture of confidence about the latter.

I keep coming back to one thing, along the lines of:

"Black is Back."

To flesh out the idea, assume BB10 includes some revolutionary features (coming through on this is an entirely different battle, but right now we're strictly talking marketing). Maybe TAT does some amazing interface work, or RIM changes the game with gestures. I think the new keyboard is a good start, so when I mention "features" below, this is the kind of thing I'm referring to.

The commercial starts out with a black background. The whole thing occurs in a dark environment, showcasing only the relevant features (unless the hardware is so groundbreaking that it is the relevant feature). Super closeups.

At the risk of sounding like Apple, first, start by flashing some text or a voiceover saying,

-"How do you change what changed the world?" Flash to a super closeup of someone typing on a 9000 or 9900 keyboard.

-Next, say something like, "You go back to the drawing board." Flash images of the patent sketches, RIM's design space with papers and images everywhere, maybe a quick pic of a 9900 to show evolution, etc. Then boom, darkness again.

-"And then, you innovate." Flash to someone typing with the great new predictive text feature, or using some crazy intuitive gesture, or pulling up some awesome TAT interface. Fade to darkness again.

-End the commercial with the phrase, "Black is Back". Fade that text out, replace it with a release date. 9.10.12. Fade that text out, replace it with the iconic BB symbol and BlackBerry written underneath.

The end.

Result:

1. You do what I was talking about before, about acknowledging the absence without explicitly calling it to consumer attention in a negative light, in the way that using the term "disappear" would. At the same time you focus on NOW and the current strength and confidence of the company. With everything in between, you paint an image of progress, a reason for the absence.

2. You create a little bit of hype. By using the super closeups, highlighting the relevant amazing features, and a little bit of creative use of shadowing in commercials, you grab the interest of the consumer while leaving some things in the dark. This sparks curiosity in a brand that currently lacks it. If the features appear great enough, people will want to find out what they're all about. So you put the release date at the end of the commercial. Pure hype move. Drive the hype machine. Control it, because the media won't do it for you. If you're BB, even the blogs that like you will paint you as a recovering alcoholic who you might be able to trust alone in a room with your whiskey stash, but who also might let you down and drink the whole thing. Forget that. Be bold, right? That includes taking control of your image.

I know what you're thinking: BB putting a release date in a commercial? That's dangerous, what if the product gets delayed like normal? Well, newsflash, other companies do it all the time. They're accountable. If BB wants to make the cut, it needs to be accountable too. Maybe the thought that you're openly advertising a release date will light a fire under your to deliver for once. BB can delay all it wants, and it can plan for its own delays by not including release dates in marketing materials. But just remember, every delay loses more market share to Apple, Android, and Windows. Especially when at this point, the iPhone 5 will be released, or just about to be.

3. You don't really depart from what you're already doing. I like the #BeBold idea. Short, simple message, incorporates a BB trademark, etc. "Black is Back" does the same thing. The term Black, keys to the term BlackBerry in your mind, and you have a double B sound, great alliteration, etc.

The bottom line is, BB has an amazing opportunity to make a real statement with their marketing. It's a free for all, a fresh start to the company. They can either shed the weight or reinforce the stereotypes that have been mounting since they were perceived to have fallen off the smartphone map. They're crazy not to grab the media by the balls here and make a statement. The biggest problem with all of this is that the product has to match the campaign. But if that's even a concern at this point, then RIM has bigger issues about their ability to survive in this market. I'm assuming the product will be fabulous, quite simply, because it has to be.

[antheauxny]

I like it. A lot.

[kevinnugent]

It's the winners who re-shape history.

[Eli_B]

OP, I like this idea of yours. I hope RIM execs take notice of it..

[johnrose16666666]

Other then a marketing Campaign for RIM, i believe RIM need to pay more attention towards services available to the users, ultimately the smartphone sales will peak once all the pure 2 G phones users have switch sales will Ceiling and grown will be hard to squeeze, in the long run i am sure BB10 is the right move for RIM. But at the same time RIM should focus on continue to market/promote OS7 for enterprise and simple users, this will give them an edge in the highly established corporate/government/military/industrial/NGO/specialist market.
This is a market that would pay good money for each upgrade or jump in functionality.
A well delivered service partner program would have enhance earning for RIM, its always a good idea to have more cash to pill in the development of the BB10 phone for consumers using the established platform.

[spotlightLQ]

Its got to have more of a emotional statement behind it. The way society is changing these days is that there is no brand loyalty anymore. If u dont like something it sucks....the more people that say it sucks...the more people believe it. The blackberry name has taken a beating. I say stick with bb....stick with bb people do...show the advancements of bb10 and it incorporated with business and family values..and drive the whole key core TIME....
Just my two cents.

[dbollman423]

It's the winners who re-shape history.

I think you mean "It's the winners who write history". After they re-shaped it.

[Guyzer]

I think all the ideas are great! Would be nice if CB offered a free BB or something to make a mock-up of one of the ideas. So we can see what you really mean.

[kennyliu]

"Remember when a small company created the smartphone and changed the way people communicate forever?"

Are you sure that RIM created the smartphone? You may want to do some fact checking.

[apengue1]

"Remember when a small company created the smartphone and changed the way people communicate forever?"

Are you sure that RIM created the smartphone? You may want to do some fact checking.

maybe pioneered would be the right word. It can still be put in excellent context.

[padamssm]

I really like OP's idea too. I've been traveling for the past week seeing friends, family, and new folks. My PlayBook has been used a lot by others, and loved a lot. This was the first time most of them saw a PlayBook - and that includes my Canadian relatives. Exposure generated one, maybe two sales. On the way home from the airport in Washington, DC, our driver asked what we were using and I told him about the PlayBook. He said he's looked into tablets and didn't know that BlackBerry made one. He was very impressed with it. The lack of marketing is killing sales. With almost no PlayBooks displayed, or displayed well, in stores, the only way the average non-techie person can learn about it at this point is word-of-mouth. I think stating the obvious (BB history, lack of advertising, sea change with R&D) as OP suggests will strike a chord and get the ball rolling!

[kennyliu]

maybe pioneered would be the right word. It can still be put in excellent context.

That would also be debatable. Symbian was already there popularizing smartphones. And then there were Palm and WinCE.