And…Droid?
Who didn’t see this coming? Apple moving mainstream? Check. Tastemakers want new and shiny? Check. Verizon goes all indie to get some street cred? Check.
Verizon’s first Android phone, Droid, will enter the marketplace on November 6th. Boy Genius has a nice preview if your looking for specs. With minimal effort, Motorola’s Droid has neatly positioned itself as the ‘anti-iPhone’ with its new iDon’t campaign spot.
Pulling directly from Apple’s Brand Styleguides, Verizon uses iPhone typography and music to make the following points:
- iDon’t have a real keyboard
- iDon’t run simultaneous apps
- iDon’t take 5 megapixel pictures
- iDon’t customize
- iDon’t run widgets
- iDon’t allow open development
- iDon’t take pictures in the dark
- iDon’t have interchangeable batteries
At the end of the spot, the copy “Everything iDon’t” fades out and is replaced by ‘DROID DOES’. That’s all, except for two incredibly vague details– “November” and “DroidDoes.com“.
If you head over to the website, you’ll find yet another teaser and a damn form. Enter your email and ANOTHER form pops open asking to you enter name, zip and phone. Ugh.
Seconds later I received my much anticipated follow up email. Much to my dismay…another teaser.
Now, perhaps Verizon is playing up my curiosity, but that’s it? No cool game? Not even a video? Maybe some sweet copy? Nope. Nada. Zip. Zilch. Guess I’ll have to wait with the rest of the suckers who dropped their email.
The guys over at Phandroid gave us a heads up on October 21st, saying that Verizon is holding an invite only press event on October 28th. FYB will be keeping an eye out for pub stunts for sure.
What do you think of the campaign? Does it work?
Beth LaPierre is a Brand + Creative Strategist. When Beth is not helping build brands she’s on her snowboard, spray painting something, or drinking copious amounts of espresso. Follow Beth on Twitter.
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I *love* the iDont spots.
Apple succeeded by pitting itself against Microsoft (when in reality Microsoft owns 90% of the market — Apple shouldn’t even really be considered their competition when the market share they hold is so much smaller). Their ads make it sound like they are just barely #2 to PC, so it builds brand credibility and encourages users to swap to a product with much less of a track record etc.
Droid is facing the same challenge – overtaking a competitor who owns the vast majority of the market on cool, new age, smartphones with apps and other awesomeness. Following the same strategy makes sense.
Unfortunately the web experience they use to back those spots is pretty terrible. Why put users through so much? Develop a cool way for users to preview of the new phone, take their email, and shoot them updates / press releases about it occasionally. Simple right? The site they have up definitely botches it. I just hope the phone’s OS doesn’t share the same user interface problems.
What I don’t understand is why they aren’t pushing the fact its on the Verizon network. Verizon is *huge* compared to AT&T – iPhones main network.
And what about price. PC is still the market leader because they can provide the higher level processors (among other bits and pieces) at a lower cost then Apple. Like it or not the “Apple-Tax” is very real even after taking in to account support and computer longevity. You pay more for the same product from Apple, which is fine if you know that and still prefer OSX and the more-awesome looking hardware design.
I think for Droid to succeed and not just be tossed aside as a passing fad, the price will have to be significantly under that of the iPhones – and from what I seen I don’t think it will.
What do you guys think?
Hey Will- Thanks for your thoughts. Interesting. Gartner predicts that Android will overtake iPhone in 2012. That says nothing about carriers. Verizon has a real chance with Droid and I think the branding campaign falls short. Very short. But hey, we’re talking about it so perhaps they met objective #1: Raising Awareness?
If they are looking to drive brand loyalty amongst their existing customers, then yes it works. The campaign isn’t “cool” enough to attract iPhone users, but is fun enough for the haters. The extra forms and lack of additional content are great examples of why it will only drive loyalty amongst non-iPhone users.
Here’s the video if you’re interested : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dPYM-XTqcec
I agree it builds existing customers’ brand loyalty but that makes me wonder whether going for the “iPhone Haters” is a smart move. My knee-jerk reaction is that its a terrible idea.
However, Verizon as a carrier is still like 10+ million subscribers in the lead of AT&T (last I checked) so that lends itself to Verizon having a larger internal market to push the Droid on. Pushing it further they have a broader current customer base outside of the wireless industry because they provide broadband, wired solutions etc. All of these folks may be brand loyal already.
What would *really* be interesting to learn is what market share Apple holds on SmartPhone Users – instead of the wireless market on the whole.
I guess what sums it up for me (and why I think the campaign is a relative success) is the fact that their goal with the Droid was to curb the “future purchase rates” that they have been losing to AT&T because of the iPhone phenomenon. There really hasn’t been anything that can equate to the iPhone yet – and these ads push the idea that there is another option now. If they can back it up with a lower price on release, then folks who’ve been with Verizon for a while can stay there, and still have something as cool as the iPhone. (or at least comparably as cool).
My T-Mobile contract is up early next year – so I won’t be an iPhone user or Droid user any time soon – but I can’t wait for the reviews.
I think this campaign misses the mark and I really can’t see who this is reaching out to.
Is this dark and gritty or whimsical and snarky? Is this cute (eyes under the ‘R’) or foreboding (giant red eye)? Are you trying to say I’ll get a pocket full of chaos or was Chris Cunningham just free one afternoon?
People put a lot of trust into their phones — they need stability, reliability, order, and accessibility — which I’m not really feeling from this. I think the campaign might be better suited for a gaming console. (iDon’t is even derivative of the Nintendon’t campaign of the early 90s, but Sega was able to connect the “don’t” and “does” much better).
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Dan has it right. This won’t impact the people that would become iPhone users, but it might convince people that have negative feelings towards the iPhone to buy a Droid so they can feel superior to them.
I think it does affect would-be iPhone users. I’ve been waiting for my contract to expire so I could buy an iPhone for a while – and now that there is competition I’ll be taking the extra time to learn which I should go after. I’m not saying I’ll buy a Droid, but it will at least be considered – where in the past there really haven’t been other options to iPhone worth considering at all.
As for the “feel superior to them”. Thats Apple’s forte as well… buy an Apple product and be superior/cooler to folks who use PC / Blackberry / etc.
Despite Apple’s marketing, my general experience with iPhone users is that they enjoy what they have without feeling superior to anyone.
On the other hand, once people that have a Palm Pre or any of the other recent “iPhone killers” see that I have an iPhone, they feel compelled to tell me at great length why their phone is superior.
The dynamic seems to be that some people refuse to buy anything Apple branded, and those people feel like Apple’s marketing is denigrating them, so they leap at any chance to “show those Apple snobs.”
That seems to be exactly the sort of person this ad campaign is targeting.
There are some great thoughts on here! I still feel that the results that they will get will be amongst their current market, but the mention that the marketing move is very “Apple-esque” is great.
While normally, Apple would wait until there was a confirmed release date and run the ad right before it, this move seems to be directly defending against the iPhone-Verizon deal talks. The future purchase rates are a big factor if a deal is made. Imagine the market share that iPhones will pick up on the Verizon network. It could all be moot, though, since to really fit the network, the iPhone hardware has to change. (The latest speculation is that they will hit the network with the next release, June-July 2010).
Oh, and as an iPhone user I personally do not feel superior, but I definitely feel that I have the superior product on the market.
The iPhone becoming available on the verizon network would be huge. This whole discussion would be overrun with the cries of joy from iPhone users and folks loyal to Verizon. Everyone would buy an iPhone on their preferred networks and live happily ever after. Too awesome – lets just pray AT&T doesn’t get in the way.
On the other note:
I’m not sure the word “superior” is articulating the concept I was thinking about the best way – I used it more in reference to perceived quality of product and in turn the perceived quality of any given user’s “taste”.
I’m a Graphic Designer / Front-End Web Developer / and office IT guy (I used to repair laptops for extra cash during college.) I work on a Mac, but have a PC at home because when I started freelancing (before getting hired at my current agency) I was broke and I needed to purchase a computer with a decent processor / decent ram / etc but had an almost non-existent budget. So I did research and found that I could get just as much power as some of the higher level Macs for less in a PC. That being said I do prefer OSX for design work – and now that I’m not so strapped for cash I’d more apt to spending the extra cash for it – but its a matter of preference not quality.
Whats interesting though is if I tell anyone I still have a PC at home, I get weird looks because all the “cool” designers/developers work exclusively on Apple products. “Perceived Quality” plays a huge role here. I know that my PC has just as much juice as the Mac equivalent but folks assume it doesn’t. I could see folks taking that kind of response in a negative way and getting defensive – then bragging about their non-Apple product in an attempt to show that the perceived quality difference is just that… perceived, not actual.
And regarding Jeffrye’s point about non-iPhone users bragging about their gear etc – The sheer numbers mean you’ll run across more jerks that use PC etc then jerks that use Apple – not that the ratio is any different. Apple is still a fraction of the market so you’re less likely to run across them. I get blasted with “Why don’t you have an iPhone! They’re so cool, look at this, look at that! See! You need to ditch the pc and the reg phone for this asap!” – same thing just flipped reverse.
It’s funny, I’m the opposite of Will. I’m a front-end designer/developer, animator, illustrator and UX guy, and I only use Windows machines. I’d love to get a Mac, but I do a lot of .NET work, which doesn’t work on a Mac.
And I do get the weird looks about working on Windows. I run a very large design networking group, the crowds always get weird when I talk about using Windows.
On the other hand, I do have an iPhone.
Around here, non-iPhone phones are a definite minority, I don’t run into them often. Though that might fuel the persecution complex their owners have.
The one and ONLY reason I don’t have an iPhone sitting next to me on my desk right now is because of AT&T. I have been with Verizon over the past 2 years and their coverage is excellent. Even when our contract expired this past August, I opted to stay with them instead of running over to AT&T just to have myself an iPhone. But I guess it comes down to what you value most in a mobile provider. For me it’s reliable coverage and excellent customer service. Ok, enough about providers.
I’m excited about the DROID being released next week. From all the reviews and specs I’ve read on it, it looks to be one of the best phones put out by Verizon. I remember going to look at the G-1 at T-Mobile when it first came out and was impressed, but now that they’ve upgraded the OS to Android 2.0 I think the DROID is going to blow all other phones Verizon offers out of the water (especially WhackBerry). But I’m no “smart” phone expert. My only hint of concern is that Verizon would try and inject their own crappy software in to this phone, but I’ve been told that’s not the case here. So keeping my fingers crossed.
Consumer Reports did a head to head match-up between the Droid & iPhone. iPhone won, 5-3-2 in 10 categories. AND THE IPHONE 3G IS A YEAR OLD! I switched from Verizon to AT&T just for the iPhone 3G. Man, does the network suck compared to Verizon. However, I wouldn’t change my decision for the world. The phone is that good. The applications available actually end up saving me money! The iPhone software is constantly updated, 100,000 apps to Droids 10,000, and oh yeah; Apple makes it! Steve Jobs…that guy! All of the Apple accessories and iTunes make it worth the switch. Anybody who questions the iPhone should buy an iTouch. I give you six months before you consider the switch. Verizon Wireless won’t get the iPhone because AT&T allows Apple to control the iPhone. If I have a problem with my phone I go to Apple. I wish they would get it like everybody else, but I see AT&T’s coverage getting better before Verizon gets the iPhone.
That’s unacceptable. The iPhone never used to be anywhere like that. I’m seasoned enough to remember the very first one that even had mouse recognition