Blackberry Bust

A marketing failure ! That’s what someone will call the “Blackberry Loves U2” U2 most likely have been very happy with the sponsorship. Really no extra work done from the band. Consider the video ( apple like) and the commercial shoot. That’s about all we have heard from Blackberry. Sad truth here. The RIM marketing team and the advertising agency have failed ! This was a slam dunk if ever I saw one. The market demo of a blackberry user fits right into the bands audience.  Maybe the program could be simply that the wireless carriers did not want to pony up to the marketing table. In order for this to be a succesful promotion some carrier like AT&T or Verizon needed to be a part of the North American tour. Phones are great, however you need a network. So maybe the truth is in the promotion. RIM may not enjoy the co-marketing dollars it head expected to have for this event. Its a stange promotion for sure. Almost sad.

Boy Genius Report, the author writes about going to see the U2 concert and notes, while BlackBerry may love U2, but “U2 doesn’t love BlackBerry.” He writes: “What’s so unsettling is how disconnected RIM was from the event. Sure, there were a couple banners strewn about Soldier Field, but no one noticed. And the folks that did notice didn’t care. Instead of using this opportunity to push their brand forward, it almost seems like just a second thought to throw some quick marketing dollars to try act like your company is doing something in the consumer and ‘cool’ department.”

Remember last week we had talked about the launch of the new application aimed at U2 Fans well we believed then and now that this surely was a BUST. Fans wanted more. The lack of full tunes, or videos or even something different then you can get from our site. The news, information,videos, and photos left you with a so what feeling. You can get all of that from your fan site. ( ah like U2TOURFANS.com)

Unfortunately, the application can only be considered late given that the tour is more than halfway over, and more likely can be considered a complete bust because it does not feature full-length songs, unlike the name would suggest, “U2 Mobile Album.” In addition, despite BlackBerry being the tour’s official sponsor, there are no tie-ins between the application and the live concerts, which misses a big opportunity for the historically enterprise-focused company to appear more consumer-friendly.

Beyond timing, the application is also missing out what could be a big opportunity. In the online demo, it says new features are coming soon, including the ability to chat with friends at shows and meet other fans from around the world. It makes you wonder, however, if these features will even come out before the tour ends?

Well we will always have this cool video to reflect on what could have been. We tend the think that blackberry will get it right for the second and third legs of the tour. Lets face it the press has been hard on them already.  Enjoy - Story written on my blackberry bold -