The BIG Kahuna

So Apple screwed up big time huh? You think it’s going to stop people that love Apple from buying the next generation iPhone in 2 years? You know, the one that will probably cost $99.99? Watch this very funny video, then see my suggestions for Apple below.

I love the Apple branding because they’ve been genius. I buy some Apple products but am not a brand ambassador for them. I think owning an Apple iPhone is foolish only because you are stuck with one phone provider…AT & T (yikes). That phone may be the best thing since sliced bread but AT & T, well….they ain’t. At least with another phone you can switch cell providers if they suck, right?

Here’s what I would have done differently with the new iPhone branding?release:

1. Ah, er…How about selling these on the Internet first? I mean aren’t Apple’s core audience online? Don’t they live online? Gamers, graphic artist, students, on and on. Apple could have made a real game of this by hiding Easter Eggs or even making an online scavenger hunt. Then when you complete the task or find whatever it is you’re looking for you get a secret “online code” that can only be used once. How fun and word of mouth spreading would that have been?

2. Number the iPhones like works of art. The first 10,000 are collector editions. Wow, that would have been very cool. And it would have made waiting in those ridiculous long lines worth while for the lucky 10,000. Think of the sales on ebay?

3. Give away a secret prize, shhh-don’t tell anyone. Go back to my suggestion #1, for those that complete the task not only do you get the special “Online Code” but you also get 100 free minutes with the phone when they place the order. Same thing for the people waiting in line. But don’t tell anyone about it. Just give it to all online purchases and day 1 in store purchases. Then let all those people brag about their 100 free minutes to all the other people (like me) who think waiting in line is for knuckleheads.

4. If the iPhone already doesn’t have a blog create one. Have a contest (by developing an iPhone YouTube video). The top 3 videos get to be the exclusive bloggers for the iPhone. Those 3 can write about whatever they want (iPhone related)?knowing that millions will be reading the blog. Wow, that would be cool huh?

But instead Apple just sold their stuff to their minions. Stuff that disappointed because they couldn’t get it working the day they bought it. Stuff that every blogger in the world posted about…negatively. Stuff that people like me laugh at because I don’t wait in foolish lines to buy a product that I could be the day after with no lines.

Apple, get back to your branding?genius. No brand is above pissing off their customers so much that they won’t switch from you.

This entry was posted on Sunday, July 13th, 2008 at 8:57 am and is filed under Branding News, Branding Tips. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.