In “Goin’ Mobile,” the ethnographic study about smartphones that we put together with Arbitron, we got a great deal of feedback about how consumers feel about their mobile gadgets.
An interesting sidebar is the way in which specific smartphones make them feel – about themselves and others. To a great degree, smartphones make more than a fashion statement. They can define one’s identity, as well as those who carry a different brand or use a different platform.
In much the same way that the vehicle that you drive may be a reflection of who you are, as well as who you think you are, smartphones have many of these same characteristics.
While we were in the process of pulling together this story based on more than a hundred hours of videotaped segments, Keith ran across a cartoon on the Internet that might just save us the trouble.
First, the 360° view of the iPhone:
Then there’s the same perspective from the POV about Android phones:
With both of these platforms, that’s how we saw it in our ethnographic interviews, too. iPhone customers feel pretty damn cool, while Android devotees think they’re really smart. And yet others don’t share that perspective.
And then there’s BlackBerry, the platform that both Apple and Android loyalists view disdainfully:
If you carry an iPhone or an Android device, chances are that you see the BlackBerry guy as old, out of touch, and not having a whole lot of smartphone fun.
As Joe, a businessman in Cleveland, told us when he traded in his Treo for his iPhone, it was like a pass to “Coolsville.”
And that’s part of the essence of why these gadgets have leapfrogged other media devices along the way. Each platform has a distinct image that reflects the wisdom and approach to life of its owner.
That’s branding at its best, and it is a reminder for us in radio that a sense of cool has to be present in our stations, our gadgets (HD Radios and others), and our brands as a whole.
It has less to do with features and utilities, and a great deal more about how devices and stations make us feel.
The phone mavens – starting with Apple – have that figured out from A to Z.
Radio can learn from these consumer electronics giants, yet another reason why Gary Shapiro is booked for Summit 15.
By the way, there's still time to sign up for our "Goin' Mobile" webinar, courtesy of Arbitron. It's Monday, 11/15 at 2pm ET. Register here.
Had a chance to sit in on "Goin Mobile". Some great insight into what light and heavy mobile users are thinking...is the presentation achived somewhere?
Posted by: Radio Syndication Talk | Monday, November 15, 2010 at 03:38 PM