The long tail Aug'07

Apple need not bother marketing iPhone?

Apple's launch of its much anticipated iPhone has made headlines around the world and in the online space, but no one has written more about the topic than bloggers - here's a taste of what they have been saying about the iPhone's marketing story?

O'Reilly Emerging Telephony

URL

http://www.oreillynet.com/etel/blog/2007/06/apples_iphone_marketing_machin.html

Blogger

Aaron Huslage

Blog post: Apple's iPhone Marketing Machine. Is it enough?

What he says: Aaron Huslage reckons Apple's iPhone strategy is excellent and bordering on "genius" in the way that the company has manged hype.

"The device can sell itself and the hoards of rabid fans in the blogosphere have been hyping it since before it even officially existed. Over the intervening months, Apple has continued to seed the press with rumors and announcements about the phone having a glass screen and 8 hours of talk time. This has all been, as anyone who has followed Apple knows, extremely well calculated and planned out. Apple knows what it's doing and it has done an amazing job of hype management over the past few months".

Digital Consulting

URL

http://digitalconsulting.blogspot.com/search?q=iphone

Blogger

Gregory Birge

The post: iPhone and iPod: review before launch

What he says: Gregory Birge says the iPhone will be a success and thinks that it could even be as successful as the iPod but Apple needs to get the timing right and learn from when the iPod launched because iPods only started to sky rocket when iTunes Music Store service was fully available, and when the TVC and marketing actions started hitting all regions.

"The iPhone and and the iPod share the same 'success genes ' which are brand image, ease of use, design, integration and finally the most important one 'a consumer product designed and tailored for consumer by consumer thinking people".

"The iTunes Music Store customer experience is not similar in all regions. Europe is for example dying to get movie video download while the Asian music stores availability are lacking behind. Despite that, the iPod is still a huge success in those regions, even though sales would even be better if the iTunes Music Store features would as advanced in those regions as they are in the USA. The iPhone success might face a similar situation and its full potential might be totally unlocked in a near future".

New Media Curious

URL

http://benayers.blogspot.com/2007/07/iphone-apple-box-clever-with-giveaways.html

Blogger

New Media Curious

The post: iPhone - Apple box clever with giveaways

What it says: The New Media Curious blog post credits Apple for giving the phone to the right ‘online' people resulting in fantastic virals such as the Will It Blend video and iPhone magic video, as well having the product viewed by millions.

"The thing that has leapt out at me is that the PR equivalent of giving a product to an entertainer or celebrity in the hope that they use it and chat about it to their influential mates and the press has a different dynamic online. The beauty of the internet - especially with natty new technology - is that by giving a phone to some of the creative 'celebrities' who occupy the online space you can get your product viewed by millions with some fantastic virals. Apple has tapped into that beautifully".

iPlot

URL

http://iplot.typepad.com/iplot/2007/07/meta-marketing-.html

Blogger

iPlot

The post: Meta-marketing: When the story becomes the product

What it says: iPlot credits Apple's meta-marketing, which is viral, consumer driven marketing, of the iPhone, and offers tips on how to use this marketing tool.

"Stunned by the buzz about the ‘Jesus Phone' many observers pointed out that Apple actually didn't do much marketing and relied mainly on the evangelising power of its avid early adopter customers. There were ads, sure but overall, the investment in marketing seemed disproportionally low given the impressive results".