In 2005 they concentrated on markets based on their geographical locations, providing various products to fit the local demands. 2006 onwards individuals became a very interesting market for Blackberry. In 2008 it was the main focus of the company, even more than it’s business users. 2009 marks an important shift in Blackberry’s branding strategy to go from a very corporate look and feel to a very consumer focused. First time ever, Blackberry could be considered as a end user focused product, from the branding perspective. 2010 clearly shows off it’s social features, solely focused on the consumer. The corporate image has completely disappeared from it’s homepage. It’s now competing heads on with iPhone/Android as a user friendly social device.

2002

Corporate market centric, reflecting branding of it’s time.

2003

Blackberry integrating it’s offering with Microsoft and Lotus’s software packages

2004

Blackberry brings some life into it’s offering by focusing on bright colours and product, as oppose to it’s audience. Blackberry also categorises it’s offering to various industries, very typical for a B2B enterprise.

2005

Blackberry get’s more involved in developing new product range and focused on it’s markets based on it’s geographic location

2006

Individuals become very important to Blackberry’s market

2007

2007 showcases a role back on it’s strategy to focus on businesses

2008

Blackberry was back focusing on individuals before businesses.

2009

Important shift in strategy, making Blackberry a end-user focused brand competing with Apple/Google

2010

Blackberry is all about the user, highly social via integration with social media tools.

Dawn of the Smartphone

It is possible to draw a line between the growth of social networking and the dawn of the smartphone. Mobiles have become steadily more advanced over the years, but whereas in the past the focus was on ever-improving hardware, these days people are more concerned with the software and connectivity options offered by mobiles. Smartphones are no longer the preserve of the most affluent users, because even pay as you go models can go online and even connect via Wi-Fi networks using dedicated browser software.

The growth of social media on the mobile platform has been fuelled by the popularisation of applications, which in itself has only come to the attention of mainstream users thanks to the success of the Apple iPhone (and the enormous growth of Android) and its various iterations. Users of Facebook access the site in their hundreds of millions from dedicated apps or via mobile web browsers each and every month and it is regularly the most visited mobile site on the planet according to mobile browser developer Opera.

Multimedia on Mobiles

The multimedia features of mobiles are also taken into account by social networking functions, with most phones coming with built in cameras which can shoot video and stills that the user can then upload directly to their social networking profile or to video sharing sites like YouTube. This allows users to instantly transmit the latest information from their life in a visual manner, distributed to a potential audience of billions around the globe. Location-based social networking services like Foursquare, Google Latitude and Facebook places have also only become possible because of the GPS technology which is commonly integrated into even the low to mid range mobiles of the modern era.

Mobile phone manufacturers now choose to hardwire social media and social networking features into mobile phones, rather than forcing the user to rely on third party apps which must be accessed separately, disrupting the natural flow. The likes of Motorola`s MotoBLUR, HTC`s FriendStream and Sony Ericsson`s MediaScape are all examples of how the disparate threads of different social networking services are being drawn together so users can get all of their notifications and in a single place. It is also significant that the three examples of cross-platform mobile social media services given above are all built on mobiles running the Google Android operating system, which is fast becoming the go-to software for consumers who want a low cost way to stay in touch when they are out and about.

Impressive how the product placements like Aston Martin/ BMW / Omega Watches in Bond movies, Courvoisier in Busta Rhymes video and other luxury goods have been replaced by websites and multimedia devices. There is much more to come, I believe in the future we will see a whole heap of social media, gambling and online services sites.

Are we ready for the digital revolution?

1. Paid content gets more attractive. Suddenly major publishers will have the opportunity to sell their content on a subscription basis, bundled into your monthly iPad contract. A bit like Spotify selling music on their platform. You have the option to buy advertisement funded content or if you want it uninterrupted just subscribe for $xx.xx

2. Social Media subscription. Suddenly we will have social networking application which be designed for Apple iPad only. What are the advantages? Firstly you have a big enough screen to navigagte easily. It will help form a niche social network which will work like real social networking events. It will work online when you are away (via video chat perhaps?) and will require you to hold up the iPad in your hand when you are physically networking to identify the members. Great example of online meets offline.

3. News readers. Apple iPad will become the preferred gadget for news readers on your television. They will ditch their bulky laptops and embrace the iPad. This will happen sooner than you think!

4. Video game market. More video games will be released on a 12/18 months contract basis. Games as a Service (GaaS). This will bring the prices down and distribute the cost to a affordable monthly payment. Making game publishers a recurring revenue and boosting sales by making it affordable.

5. iTunes will be your digital subscription Walmart. If you haven’t still realised iTunes now sells anything from video, music, applications, e-Books and games. More so it will become the one stop shop to buy anything digital, whether it’s news, jokes, video games, social networking etc. In essence like your local Walmart store.

6. Movie premier on iPad. As iPad becomes popular there will be movies which will be released on it before they hit DVDs. It’s already happening to an extent on iTunes but now the tablet has given us a reason, especially for people who spend a awful amount of time commuting everyday.

7. iPad ready websites. Soon we will have wesbites compatible with the ipad i.e. they will render the experience to fit your iPad. A bit like iPhone/iTouch websites (example Facebook iPhone). These will provide new opportunities for web developers and publishers, providing a new range of rich media pages and e-commerce transactions. iPad-commerce?

In conclusion, these 7 changes are only the tip of the iceberg. We will see a wide variety of innovative products and services on the iPad. The mobility, screen size and mainly the prize have really made this an exciting opportunity for publishers and consumers.

If you get your social media strategy correct there are ten things you can get out of it:

1. SEO (Search Engine Optimisation), listing your brand higher on search engines.
2. Connecting and engaging with customers on your website and other properties.
3. Increasing penetration by allowing customers to consume and engage with you on mobiles and social web.
4. Acquire, convert and retain your community.
5. Monetising not only your core product but your social media offering.
6. Tracking your social media success.
7. Review company’s current social media performance and map it against it’s vision and mission.
8. Constantly learning about customer behaviour and how they are interacting with your brand.
9. How social meda advertising is working and how it compares with Search Engine Advertising.
10. Impact of Social Media Optimisation and how that can transform your business.

Related articles

• Why do big brands slack on SEO? Insurance Analysis (seocowboy.co.za)
• How To Become A Social Media Master Without Going Broke (socialmediatoday.com)
• Social Media buzz phrases and what does it mean to your mum (rajanand.biz)
• RajAnand.biz Social Media Consultant

The application is built by Geni a family tree web application and has been announced as the winner of TC50.

How does it work check out the Video:

Although it doesn’t stream you can send pictures and polls. Actually thinking about it, I can still do some really exciting stuff with it. Watch this space !

Today I came across Next2Friends through LinkedIn. It seems like Qik: Mobile Video stream meets Digg + Proximity tagging using Bluetooth (very clever).

Interesting idea !