I Salute You, iPhone

For my second “free” blog topic, I decided to focus on something that I use constantly in my life: my iPhone. The topic may be pretty popular considering how many people have iPhones now, but I’m going to focus on how I think the iPhone provides consumers with the ultimate experience.

Apple's iPhone

I’ve broken my ideas down into different categories so my reasoning is easier to understand:

Everything You Need in One Place
I never really thought that I’d want access to the Internet 24/7, but let me tell you, now that I have my iPhone, I’m not sure what I used to do before it. Sure, sure, I would probably be fine if I never gotten the phone to begin with, but it just makes everything so convenient and accessible, which is always appreciated.

Since I’m able to check my email at any time, it’s easier to coordinate with friends, family, group members, and job recruiters, especially when deadlines are involved. Having the ability to look up directions or the weather at any time is really convenient, and of course, the ability to have my iPod built into my phone is great because that’s one less thing I have to constantly be carrying around.

This feature to me is probably the most important aspect of the iPhone that makes the customer experience so fantastic. Nowadays, consumers are always looking for the easiest way to access information, and I think Apple hit the nail on the head with this one. This feature, I think, is important because it’s universal and practical. No matter what type of iPhone user you are, you have the constant ability to check your email, access the Internet, or listen to your music.

The iPhone's Many Uses

Fun, but Completely Unnecessary, Gadgets
There is really an iPhone app for everything. And I mean EVERYTHING. There are the typical apps, such as Facebook or Google Mobile. But then there are apps like the Whoopie Cushion or BubbleWrap, which really serve no purpose in life. But when you’re bored one day and these apps are being offered for free from the App Store, why not download them? They’re ridiculous, yes. But yet again, there are at least a few apps for every single iPhone user, no matter who they are. Maybe somebody secretly loves popping bubble wrap. Now he or she doesn’t have to go through old boxes to find an old stash of wrap. Instead, he/she can download this app and enjoy the popping noise at any time.

BubbleWrap Application

In Your Face, Interface
Although the first aspect I mentioned may be the most practical to consumers, I really think the iPhone interface has catapulted Apple to the top when it comes to touch screen phones. The iPhone’s competitors don’t stand a chance when it comes to their product’s interfaces.

First, the fact that a touch screen phone can be so much fun and easy to use boggles my mind. The keyboard does take a little getting used to (by little, I mean about a week, which really isn’t anything in the grand scheme of things). But more importantly, the actual screen itself displays every single thing in such a great way. My personal favorite is text messaging because the conversation looks like an instant messaging conversation online.

Text messaging on the iPhone

With Love, from Apple
Let’s face it. If you’re an Apple user, you feel a certain type of pride that PC users just don’t understand. In addition to my iPhone, I’ve been a MacBook user for about a year now, and I can’t explain to you how glad I am that I made the transition to the brighter side. The same goes for owning an iPhone. Apple consumers are seen as being cooler and more fun and hip than any other PC or phone company. Consumers LOVE feeling like they’re part of a community, and Apple is probably one of the best neighborhoods to live in.

That’s probably because going into an Apple store is such a great experience. Whether you’re browsing, buying accessories, or going in for a maintenance appointment, it’s so much fun to be in an Apple environment because everything is so customer friendly. When you enter an Apple store, Apple employees make you feel incredibly welcome and comfortable. On top of that, convenience is really valued: users can make appointments online from anywhere so they don’t have to waste time waiting in line at the store.

Apple Store in New York City

For all of these reasons, I think Apple has really created a one-of-a-kind customer experience with the iPhone.

A Song for Rapaille

Overall, I enjoyed watching The Persuaders. Even though I thought the content was a little outdated (since Song aircrafts have already been absorbed by Delta), it was still interesting to learn how marketing plays such an integral part in almost every industry, including politics. It’s funny how the wording of a certain topic can make citizens gravitate towards voting for or against a certain candidate.

One of the more interesting parts of the documentary was the interview with Dr. Rapaille, which I have to talk about for this blog assignment anyway. Basically, Dr. Rapaille has a three stage process that ultimately discovers what a consumer expects from a certain type of product, even if the product differs from company to company. For example, the documentary examined Dr. Rapaille’s work with the word luxury, and what people associated with that word.

His three stage psychic process includes (1) past reason (2) through emotion (3) to the primal core.

The first stage, past reason, Rapaille just asks people bluntly what their opinions are regarding a certain topic. At this point, people can answer easily and quickly. They want to show how intelligent they are, and are very happy because they can answer all of his questions.

After a short break, the second stage, through emotion, occurs. During this stage, Rapaille asks his participants to tell him a short story as if he was a 5 year old from another planet. This stage is important because people don’t try to be logical or intelligent—they must speak in the most basic vocabulary to ensure that a 5 year old can understand them.

After another short break, participants visit their primal cores, where all of a consumer’s purchase decisions really exist. Rapaille removes all of the chairs from the room at this point so that participants can relax in a room filled with very little light. Participants are forced to go back to the very first time they went through an experience dealing with the topic at hand, due to their environment. According to Rapaille, if these “reptilian hot buttons”, the innate reactions of consumers to certain words, are discovered, companies can use this information to position their product to be successful because they will know what consumers respond positively to. Ultimately, I never learned what ideas are associated with "luxury" since that information is valuable to various companies, which was disappointing.




I enjoyed learning about Rapaille’s findings dealing with his process in general. Essentially, he said he learned that if companies discover successful properties through consumers’ primal cores, this information can really help a company. The reason I found this finding so interesting is because I instantly linked it back to another concept we discussed a few weeks ago from Malcolm Gladwell’s Blink. We talked about how consumers’ first impressions can’t be trusted because they aren’t experts. Similarly, Rapaille states that during the first stage of his process, consumers’ answers can’t be trusted because they are first responses to situations. Instead, Rapaille travels further into participants’ minds to discover their real desires. I found it really enlightening that Rapaille’s and Gladwell’s concepts fit together.

Friends! Gladwell (above) and Rapaille (below)

Learning about Song Airlines was actually really pleasant. I thought the way the documentary chronicled the progression of Song’s creation through its introduction and thereafter was pretty informative and in-depth.

In case you haven’t heard of Song, it was a subsidiary of Delta Airlines that was aiming to compete with the more hip, low cost carriers in the industry. Song executives wanted to create a new type of culture around their airline by focusing on a different target market: women. Song researched women’s desires when it came to airlines and used the information to make Song attractive by offering low fares, organic food, and various entertainment options on board. In addition to that, Song relayed its culture in almost every way possible—“Song” was considered an adjective that meant "hip" or "cool," used to describe employees. Also, every item related to Song was characterized with pastel colors that would be appealing to women.

One of Song Airline's airplanes

I really thought Song’s ideas on how to enhance the customer experience were pretty great, but that could be because I’m a member of their target market as a young woman. I may not have my own disposable income just yet, but I think Song’s greatest asset was reinforcing its culture in multiple ways so every potential consumer knew what Song meant. I enjoyed watching Song’s launch party at the beginning of the documentary because it looked entertaining and exciting—a great way to get people’s attention.

Unfortunately, there were downsides to Song. Although the company had great ideas, execution of those ideas didn’t go very smoothly. I think the company could have improved the way it first created awareness for itself by improving its ads, which were somewhat confusing and misleading. They never showed airplanes or mentioned travel, which left many potential users in the dark. Also, Song’s parent company, Delta, did not end up doing so well in the long run so all of Song’s airplanes were absorbed by Delta eventually.

Kenna's Dilemma

A few posts ago, I discussed Malcolm Gladwell’s TED talk about creating the perfect spaghetti sauce. This post is about the chapter titled “Kenna’s Dilemma” from his book, Blink. There were two big points that I took away from the chapter—areas I think marketers could really learn from, and I’ve outlined them below.

Lesson 1- It is important to understand if consumers really hate a product because of the product itself or because the product makes them nervous because it is different from anything they’ve ever seen before (pgs 173-174).

The implications of this lesson for marketers are pretty obvious. First, if a company’s product is terrible, it should be taken back to the drawing board for a revision. If the product is beyond repair, it should just be tossed out. It’s extremely important for marketers to find out what consumers want so they can provide them with useful products. Consumers buy certain products for specific benefits, and if they don’t believe a product can satisfy their needs, they won’t buy it.

In one of my past marketing classes, we discussed products that failed miserably, and one of my favorites was Harley-Davidson perfume. Why would anyone want to buy Harley-Davidson perfume? The brand caters to rich professionals who buy motorcycles to access their “wild” sides. When you think Harley-Davidson, what comes to mind? For me, I think of dirt and sweat. I wouldn’t want to buy perfume from a company that advocates riding a bike out in the sun. This was a brand extension that just wasn’t thought out completely.

Harley-Davidson Perfume

On the other hand, if the product just makes consumers nervous because it’s something new or different, then that’s a great place for marketers to step in. Companies should provide potential consumers with as many samples and trials of these types of products at stores, expos, etc., as possible. Consumers need to be exposed to new products repeatedly so they can see the benefits provided. If they see those benefits, they’re more likely to purchase the product.

I have a personal story when it comes to a product that I thought was going to fail miserably, but actually has been doing pretty well in the market. I’ve always been an avid Coke drinker, but I never liked that one can of Coke has so many calories. I went home to Houston one weekend, and my dad had bought a case of Coke Zero. The first thought that came to mind when I thought about Coke Zero is that it would taste nothing like regular Coke, or worse, it would taste like Diet Coke (which I absolutely cannot stand). When I took my first sip, I was pleasantly surprised. Coke Zero actually tastes pretty similar to regular Coke, and it doesn’t have any calories. This example actually leads to the second lesson I learned from the chapter.

Lesson 2- Only experts can “reliably account for their actions” (pg. 179). Essentially, only experts’ first impressions are real.

As consumers, we don’t really understand what happens during the creation of a product. This isn’t our fault at all—we’re obviously busy living our lives, which rarely includes researching in detail each product we buy. After trying a product for the first time, we may think we know the product well enough to decide whether we like it or not, but the truth is that we don’t.

Back to my Coke Zero example. Coke Zero may taste the same as regular Coke to me, but then again, I’m not an expert Coke drinker. Yes, I may have been drinking Coke for many years, but my life does not revolve around tasting different Coke products and determining which ones come out on top.

I think marketers can really use this lesson to position their products perfectly in the minds of their consumers. This lesson is essentially saying that if a product is not successful immediately, it’s alright…Use that second chance to take a step back, figure out how to expose consumers to your product correctly so they can figure out whether or not they actually want to purchase your product. Determining the right marketing mix is essential for a product’s success. Marketers need to be sure they’re selecting the right combination of promotions and distribution channels when introducing any product.

When I was trying to come up with a personal experience dealing with experts, one stuck out in my mind. It’s a little out there, but I think it supports my ideas. I think judges at dog shows are really fascinating people. Imagine, your whole job is to determine which dog is the best based on its body structure, fur, personality, among other things within a very short period of time. My dog, who was part of my family for 11 years, passed away last May, but I can still remember when we first brought her home. That’s because when my sister and I first saw her, we knew she was supposed to ours. She was a really beautiful dog—her breed was Shetland Sheepdog, so she was destined to look like a mini-Lassie. The thing is that even if she didn’t have that innate beauty, my family and I still would have thought she was beautiful because she was part of our family.

My dog, Shellie

This is where the dog show judges come in. The judges’ perception of beautiful can’t be determined by how much love they feel for a dog because that wouldn’t be fair. They have to judge the dogs using specific criteria within a few hours. That’s why sometimes the winners at these shows aren’t necessarily the most attractive dogs. No offense if you own one of them, but I personally don’t think that the Bull Terrier (the 2006 winner of the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show) is particularly nice to look at. However, judges look past that and determine the best dog because they’re experts in the field.


















A Bull Terrier