1. SEAWARRIOR's Avatar
    i think it's time to discuss the elephant in the room,,, w/ BBs' marketing in an absolutely horrendous state, (almost any reasonable person, fanny or not, can admit this), should Frankie get canned???
    08-09-13 10:10 PM
  2. alimin's Avatar
    Yes

    Posted via CB10
    08-09-13 10:14 PM
  3. Tre Lawrence's Avatar
    Marketing it's not even close to being the biggest issue, IMHO.

    There seems to be this idea that people are not buying BB10 devices because they somehow don't know about them. I don't think that's the case.
    08-09-13 10:20 PM
  4. anon(2757538)'s Avatar
    There are other players I'd rather fired.

    People complain about apps...fire Mallick.
    mathking606 likes this.
    08-09-13 10:21 PM
  5. Bsbudd's Avatar
    i think it's time to discuss the elephant in the room,,, w/ BBs' marketing in an absolutely horrendous state, (almost any reasonable person, fanny or not, can admit this), should Frankie get canned???
    From my experience marketing campaigns go through a lot of channels first for approval. It's easy to point fingers and blame one person. Looking at the recent events, Thorsten Heins is right about restructuring the company but I think he should start at the very top.
    anon(1852343) and SEAWARRIOR like this.
    08-09-13 10:25 PM
  6. amazinglygraceless's Avatar
    i think it's time to discuss the elephant in the room,,, w/ BBs' marketing in an absolutely horrendous state, (almost any reasonable person, fanny or not, can admit this), should Frankie get canned???
    Apparently you have missed the other 16,329 discussions on this.
    08-09-13 10:45 PM
  7. w0lfgang's Avatar
    absolutely....thats why I started a poll on this topic a month ago....

    Posted via CB10
    Houshinto likes this.
    08-09-13 11:40 PM
  8. w0lfgang's Avatar
    Marketing it's not even close to being the biggest issue, IMHO.

    There seems to be this idea that people are not buying BB10 devices because they somehow don't know about them. I don't think that's the case.
    that absolutely is the case in the US. People love my phone until I tell them it's a blackberry...the response is almost always "they're still in business??"

    Posted via CB10
    Stewartj1 and marksthespot60 like this.
    08-09-13 11:42 PM
  9. JasW's Avatar
    that absolutely is the case in the US. People love my phone until I tell them it's a blackberry...the response is almost always "they're still in business??"

    Posted via CB10
    So, what, you walk around with the giant BlackBerry logo on your phone covered up with a strip of black friction tape or something?

    Sent from my Nexus 10 using Tapatalk 4
    Blacklatino likes this.
    08-10-13 01:03 AM
  10. AnandTaipan's Avatar
    i think it's time to discuss the elephant in the room,,, w/ BBs' marketing in an absolutely horrendous state, (almost any reasonable person, fanny or not, can admit this), should Frankie get canned???
    Having been CEO of a large organisation blame cannot be placed entirely on one person. The head of the organisation, the Board of directors, the team responsible for strategy and tactics, resources available and allocated for the activity(ies), availability of capable personnel all add upto decision making, strategising, planning, implementation and follow through. I am not an insider in BlackBerry and hence cannot comment on why publicity campaigns and marketing are lackadaisical and what can be done to improve on these. One major gripe is the way BlackBerry releases it's updates and versions! Piecemeal whereas Apple and others do it across the globe. I understand that this has got to do with the carriers more than BlackBerry, but I haven't accepted this replym. Also the approach to selling a product and making people understand the product's new features! I also have had issues re global warranties attached to BlackBerry units! I was in Singapore and was told by the BlackBerry dedicated team to go to Malaysia (my present home) to get certain things done on my Z10 which to me is ridiculous. Also in Malaysia I had a horrible saleswoman who said she needed me to get another BlackBerry unit to back up my Z10 before she can sort my issues on the unit! I asked her "what happens to those who have gotten a Z10 as their first BlackBerry unit" and the stupid reply I had was "then cannot backup". Thankfully the senior marketing person walked in and overheard my protests and sorted it out the way it could have been - he backed up my unit in his desktop and then sorted the software issue and reloaded the backup! Of course he did ask me sign off a document permitting me to do so. All this goes to show how inadequate training efforts have been and also need to beef up techincal expertise.

    But then I enjoy both my BlackBerry units. They are serving me well. No product can be 100% there as we live in a dynamic world. But then I would like to see BlackBerry last and that requires surviving this market which is severe and highly competitive. For that the operations/technical/marketing teams in BlackBerry need to form a think-tank, come up with issues which are faced by the Company itself/its people/developers/marketeers/most of all users of products and then speedily come up with solutions with targets for implementation!

    Posted via CB10
    08-10-13 02:02 AM
  11. STV0726's Avatar
    No. That's cockamamie. He's just getting started basically.

    ~STV on Z10STL100-3/10.1.0.2025 TMO US
    08-10-13 02:24 AM
  12. MarsupilamiX's Avatar
    We have at least one thread with the exact same question here:
    http://forums.crackberry.com/showthread.php?t=825035

    And yes, Boulben has to go immediately.
    It may be simplistic to put the blame only on him, but he is leading the marketing department. And how good that worked in the US, is definitely no secret.

    If a CMO can't fulfill the obligation he was enlisted to fulfill, it's no secret what the CEO should do.

    Posted via CB10
    Stewartj1 and keypad like this.
    08-10-13 04:47 AM
  13. Joy1980's Avatar
    Besides Frank becoming the CMO, what restructuring has been done in the marketing department? If there was none done, it is quite unfair to blame just him. Yes, he is the boss of the division but he is as good as the people he is working with. Maybe they should let him restructure the department.

    Posted via CB10
    08-10-13 05:55 AM
  14. MarsupilamiX's Avatar
    Besides Frank becoming the CMO, what restructuring has been done in the marketing department? If there was none done, it is quite unfair to blame just him. Yes, he is the boss of the division but he is as good as the people he is working with. Maybe they should let him restructure the department.

    Posted via CB10
    And keeping incompetent employees is a sign of incompetent leadership...

    Posted via CB10
    SEAWARRIOR, aming63 and jegs2 like this.
    08-10-13 06:08 AM
  15. sexybabe88's Avatar
    Marketing it's not even close to being the biggest issue, IMHO.

    There seems to be this idea that people are not buying BB10 devices because they somehow don't know about them. I don't think that's the case.
    exactly. It's a cumulation of factors from this to apps to pricing to battery life etc that are just far below what the competition can do. Sure, blackberry excels in things like security but is security the highest priority on the market's list? I don't think so.
    keypad likes this.
    08-10-13 06:26 AM
  16. West Coast Flavor's Avatar
    What feature do you suggest he highlight in his marketing campaigns?

    I really don't see anything to market. I mean, who's going to believe the commercial anyway? This is the same company who lied about putting bb10 on the playbook. Plenty of blame to go around pal!

    It's like giving him a bag a rocks and telling him to make it look like Rome.
    08-10-13 07:56 AM
  17. Stewartj1's Avatar
    Companies pay billions of dollars a year on marketing worldwide. I can't imagine they're doing that unless it delivers big results.

    In of Apple, Coca-Cola, etc their products are an unqualified success and yet they constantly market and market hard. They never let up. Why? Because marketing is *very*.

    In BlackBerry's case in the US, most consumers think the company has gone out of business, have no idea what BB10 has to offer and/or think it's still exactly like it was 3 or 4 years ago.

    It takes tons of effective marketing to turn these mindsets around.

    I don't believe the 'build it and they will buy' philosophy is in the least bit realistic.

    People need to be educated and enticed to believe they need /want your product and the way to do that is strong, effective marketing not the feeble, ineffective effort we've seen so far.

    While Boulben's approach may be spot on in Europe, it's useless in North America but so far no one at BBRY has caught on so sales languish.

    Posted from my Z10 using the CB10 app
    SEAWARRIOR, keypad, TDSWIM and 1 others like this.
    08-10-13 08:16 AM
  18. berklon's Avatar
    A couple years ago on this forum, marketing was the blame for BB7 devices not selling - totally ignoring how incredibly inferior the product was compared to the competition.

    The same thing is happening here, but to a lesser degree.

    Marketing can only do so much. It can't lessen the huge headstart the competition had. It doesn't give BB10 significant features that the competition doesn't have. It wont magically make apps appear. It won't make BB10 devices cheaper.

    Blackberry did a tremendous amount of marketing in Canada, and it was done decently too. Yet even in their home country, people were exposed to it - and they still yawned. If it's not impressing loyal consumers in their home turf, what chance does it have in the US?
    SEAWARRIOR, JeepBB, JasW and 4 others like this.
    08-10-13 08:19 AM
  19. dehdude's Avatar
    May not be entirely his fault, but as he is head of that department it's easy to put the blame on him.

    Regardless of what it is something needs to change.

    They seem to have a decent presence in Canada where I am, but it really needs to be 100% assault on the US. This is the biggest market, and where all the media is.

    They must know they have terrible marketing by now, it's always been a weakness and still is.. fix it!

    Posted via CB10
    SEAWARRIOR and keypad like this.
    08-10-13 08:37 AM
  20. Joy1980's Avatar
    And keeping incompetent employees is a sign of incompetent leadership...

    Posted via CB10
    And it's not that easy being an outsider, when you can be damn sure that there are people who believe it should have gone to someone already in the company.



    Posted via CB10
    08-10-13 09:06 AM
  21. Stewartj1's Avatar
    True re. Bb7 and true marketing isn't the only issue BUT it IS a very important aspect of success.

    Re. Marketing in Canada, I live here and was very disappointed by the feeble effort.

    As for uptake in Canada, I see lots of BB10 devices around and keep hearing BBRY has overtaken Samsung in terms of Canadian market share.

    Bottom line for me is marketing has to be done very well for BBRY especially since so many Americans don't even know they are still in business.

    Posted from my Z10 using the CB10 app
    08-10-13 09:45 AM
  22. the_sleuth's Avatar
    In N.A., carriers control the sales channels to customers. Both BB executives and carriers have failed to rebuild BlackBerry brand around BB10. Yes, Mr. Boulben is accountable for the muddled marketing message. But also the sales reps responsible for each carrier. BB management did not fully appreciate how much BlackBerry brand has diminished in the U.S. Also BB management misinterpreted the carriers ability to sell the devices.
    It's a new platform. Most BB7 users are either taking a wait and see or switch to another platform. This tells me there is not enough wow factor in the product. But ultimately its the ecosystem that sells devices. Just look at Apple as an example of this phenomena. Frank did not understand the full gravity of the challenge and was unprepared. I see him pushed out by Spring of 2014.
    Stewartj1 and keypad like this.
    08-10-13 10:01 AM
  23. SEAWARRIOR's Avatar
    absolutely....thats why I started a poll on this topic a month ago....

    Posted via CB10
    heh,,, where would cb be without duplicate threads??? honestly tho, never saw it,,, might've been during my p!ssed off, disgruntled, anti-everything BB days, post no "10" for pb...
    Blacklatino likes this.
    08-10-13 10:02 AM
  24. elmatatan184's Avatar
    Yes, he has to go!

    Posted via CB10
    08-10-13 10:10 AM
  25. randall2580's Avatar
    In N.A., carriers control the sales channels to customers. Both BB executives and carriers have failed to rebuild BlackBerry brand around BB10. Yes, Mr. Boulben is accountable for the muddled marketing message. But also the sales reps responsible for each carrier. BB management did not fully appreciate how much BlackBerry brand has diminished in the U.S. Also BB management misinterpreted the carriers ability to sell the devices.
    It's a new platform. Most BB7 users are either taking a wait and see or switch to another platform. This tells me there is not enough wow factor in the product. But ultimately its the ecosystem that sells devices. Just look at Apple as an example of this phenomena. Frank did not understand the full gravity of the challenge and was unprepared. I see him pushed out by Spring of 2014.
    This is true and when Mr Boulben was brought into his position his previous carrier experience was highlighted. It was supposed to be now BlackBerry would have someone who spoke their language. How many times did we hear that BlackBerry was doing this or that because of requests of their carrier partners. How carriers were 100% on board with what they were doing and when they were doing it.

    Watching execution seems to belie some of the rhetoric as we "keep moving".

    I agree BlackBerry has completely lost mind share here in the USA but who's job is it to get it back but marketing? Isn't it their job, not only to speak to the carriers and the customers, but also back to the company on whats expected and where they should be headed so the message is clearly communicated to all? That doesn't seem to be happening at all here.

    I think this is moot because I think to fire Mr Boulben after such a relatively short tenure would send ripples though out the company that would in the end not be good, and I think Thorsten for whatever reason, believes in the message however flawed.

    They need better advice all around that they aren't getting. Like many here, they believe all is well and it's just a matter of time before the world sees the beauty that is BB10. Time will tell. BlackBerry seem to think they have more of it than some here do.

    I think Frank should be fired. I doubt it will happen anytime soon.
    08-10-13 10:19 AM
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