early adopters

In my Principles of Marketing class I ask my students a simple True/False question: “Good marketing means giving customers the products and services they ask for.” I’m always surprised at how many say “True”. What they don’t yet realize is that customers don’t always know what they want or even what’s possible. Successful innovators often develop products that people aren’t asking for and, sometimes, they create products that are so disruptive they elicit a negative initial reaction from their customers. That doesn’t mean the idea is necessarily bad but it does mean they need good marketing to help customers get over that initial rejection and embrace the benefits possible.

Amazon is one of those companies that’s not afraid to take risks in all aspects of their business. Some of those ideas are spectacular failures but those that have succeeded have helped propel the company to becoming one of the world’s top three retailers. One of Amazon’s most recent initiatives is the “Amazon Key“. This new device replaces a traditional lock on a customer’s front door with a smart, electronic lock. This new lock allows Amazon delivery personnel to deliver products inside a customer’s house, not just at their front porch. The device includes video recording of the delivery as well as options for the owner to block entry. The idea has been met with understandable skepticism. Allowing strangers into our home feels like an invasion of privacy and there’s an inherent fear of theft when the consumer hasn’t personally vetted the delivery personnel.

Ask your students what they think about the innovative delivery idea. How can Amazon successfully promote the new concept in a way that gets customers past that initial rejection and to the point that they install the Amazon Key on their front door?

Smartphones revolutionized the world and it wasn’t long after the first smartphone was released that everyone wanted one of their own. For years, smartphone manufacturers were able to capitalize on unmet demand but as the product-market reached maturity and demand became saturated, manufacturers needed to find ways to entice users to upgrade in order to protect their new revenue stream.

The classic approach in technology is to release new versions of products. If a manufacturer delivers enough added value with the new release, existing consumers will be willing to buy the new product to replace their old one. But how much is necessary to entice consumers to upgrade? That answer is dependent on several factors that influence consumer buying behavior. These influences are reviewed in detail in Chapter 5 – Final Consumers and Their Buying Behavior.

This article, “Your Next Phone Will Probably Cost $1000“, talks about the latest generation of smartphones to hit the market and the various influences that will determine their success or failure. In particular, the article notes that this is the first generation of products to pass the $1000 price barrier. The article suggests that surpassing that psychologically significant price barrier may slow adoption of the new line of phones.

Ask your students how many have purchased or intend to purchase one of these new phones, when they purchased (or intend to purchase), and why they chose to upgrade. This can lead to a good discussion regarding all of the influences that impact that purchasing decision. Some will choose to buy primarily because of psychological social needs – the desire for status or acceptance from peers. Others will apply a more economic assessment. Those individuals may justify the purchase based on faster performance, larger screen sizes, new features, etc. A full discussion of the various factors that influence consumer purchasing behavior is covered in Chapter 5 – Final Customers and Their Buying Behavior.

This conversation can also apply when covering the adoption curve discussed in Chapter 13. In any given classroom you’re likely to have students that can be classified as members of the early adopters and early majority segments of the adoption curve but you may also have members of other segments. Asking students from each group how they make decisions about when to buy can really help illustrate the differences between segments.

Welcoming unwelcome innovation

Smartphones top $1000 price point