4. Introduction
Part 1: Past - 1984-2012
Part 2: Present - 2012- 2015
Part 3: Future - 2015 onwards
Conclusion
Bibliography
CONTENTS
Page 2
Page 4
Page 18
Page 44
Page 68
Page 66
5. INTRODUCTION
Blackberry has had to undergo a number
of issues throughout the lives of their
company. Having had highly profitable
products (which have kept them number
one through many years) they have also
had to fight to keep their share of the
market in the falling years. (Arthur, 2013)
The aim of this marketing brochure is to
give an insight in the life of RIM
Blackberry. This will include their strategic
approaches and values through the years.
The brochure will also attempt to capture
an understanding of the future of the
business & where they will potentially go
as well as give recommendations that
could help them recover from their present
market share.
2
6. PART 1: PAST - 1984-2012
Heritage and History
Products and services
Mission statement
Vision and strategy
BCG matrix
Critical events timeline
4
Mike Lazaridis: C.E.O 1984 - 2012
7. HERITAGE AND HISTORY
In 1984 Mike Lazaridis and Douglas Fergin founded RIM (Research in Motion). The business was designed to “allow users to send
data by a wireless data network.”(Smith, 2009) Due to the timing in the technology market, the software idea was unsuccessful in
consumer likeness.
During the following years RIM began launching products that were associated to the 1990 software concept. They began with a
two way pager that enabled users to communicate with each other through messaging and followed up with a “next generation”
pager in 1998. At this time Jim Balsillie joined RIM and became the Co CEO. (Silcoff et al., 2013) It wasn’t until 1999 that the first
device presented Blackberry to the market. The Blackberry name was born but RIM didn’t yet use it as the endorsed name for
their products, but as the name of their new server software “Blackberry enterprise server” (BES). (Smith, 2009)
In the year 2000 RIM launched two new handheld products, using Blackberry as their official handheld product name. The
Blackberry 5790 device similar to the RIM 857/957 (which was also launched in 2000) introduced features to the world such as
wireless email, internet, corporate data access, and more. This was not only the highlight for this particular device, but became the
foundation for all the Blackberry smartphones in the future.
During this time, RIM was able to try out a variety of different products and services, which sooner or later enabled them to
produce the types of products that consumers wanted. At this time, Nokia, their main competitor, had a large share of the market.
Due to the difference in Blackberry and Nokia products, Blackberry was very laid back in the changes that were made to their
products/services.
With the history of Blackberry being easy going in the phone market this impacted them when a new phone brand came into the
market that had potential. Instead of realising the interest that consumers had with the new brand, Blackberry blew it off with the
assumption that it would never work.
From 2000 onwards Blackberry introduced a number of diverse smartphones for their consumers. Throughout this time, the products
launched encountered mixed emotions from consumers which began the decline in sales.
6
8. PRODUCTS AND SERVICES
From 1999 to 2011 Blackberry Ltd had a
variety of products from pagers to
smartphones. The smartphones were launched
in different series and introduced world edition
phones such as a “flip up” phone.
Figure 1.1 gives an insight of the variety of
phones Blackberry launched globally between
1999 and 2011.
Types of blackberry phones (2013)
Figure 1.1
8
9. MISSION STATEMENT
“RIM innovations are all about seizing opportunities the moment they happen and making the most of them. It’s that spirit of
purposeful action which drives our continuing mission to create a thriving sustainable business.” (Blackberry, 2012, p.5)
“Aims to inspire the success of our millions of customers around the world by continuously pushing the boundaries of mobile
experiences.” (http://uk.blackberry.com/company.html, no date).
RIM Blackberry also expressed their aims in five points regarding how their business would be run. These were:
• Corporate citizenship
• Public policy and government relations
• Sustainability at blackberry
• Responsibility at blackberry
• Supply chain and ethics
In short these points expressed Blackberry beliefs in community giving in places where the business operates as well as promotion
of their own products/services in agreement with the laws in all countries used in sales. The company also stated that they would
be “committed to reducing the environmental footprint through their own product life cycles”
(http://uk.blackberry.com/company/about-us/corporate-responsibility.html, no date)
From 1999 to 2011 RIM Blackberry communicated their mission statement and aim to their consumers by the production of new
and improved products. As explained previously, before Blackberry was officially launched as the product name, RIM launched a
range of different service software’s, the first being a wireless data network. Unfortunately due to wrong timing it was not picked
up by consumers; but over the next few years RIM made sure to keep an eye on the potential of the software as well as the
public’s technology needs. Through a variety of articles such as (Business Insider, 2012) it was noticed that some products were
repeated throughout the Blackberry lifecycle i.e., the Blackberry Bold that was repeated with extra features to keep up with their
competitors in 2008. Therefore throughout these years, the business mission statement was somewhat effective in the need for users
and their new technology but began to lack from 2007 in the consistency of keeping that as their overall task.
10
10. VISION AND STRATEGY
From the years of 1999 to
2012, RIM Blackberry had
various products that very
much incorporated the BCG
matrix. (See figure 1.2)
BCG matrix (also known as the
Boston consulting group) is “a
method used when profiling a
specified business.” (Baines &
Fill 2011) This includes,
explaining the market
growth/share that the business
possibly has. To show the
market growth and share the
matrix method is split into four
sections; stars, question marks,
cash cows and dogs.
RIM Blackberry as the BCG matrix from the years of 1999 to 2012.
(www.managementstudyguide.com/bcg-matrix.htm, no date) Figure 1.2
12
11. TIMELINE: KEY EVENTS
From the birth of Blackberry to this present time, the company on a whole have been through ups and downs concerning the
business brand. Here is a look at Blackberry’s key events from 1984 to 2013. (BBC, 2011)
Business insider (2012)
Figure 1.3
During those years, Blackberry’s proposed market changed and their sales and market share increased greatly until 2007
when problems began to occur. As shown above Apple launched their first iPhone which Blackberry reportedly dismissed,
(Smith, 2009) assuming it wouldn’t catch the attention of the market. Blackberry’s dismissal of the Apple iPhone was most
likely due to their 1984 launch and the market not taking to their then product software. Assuming that the mind set of
consumers had not changed, (that they didn’t want any new technology) the company missed their opportunity to remain a
market leader; and became a business that had to fight for sales of their products and their overall continuing profit. To keep
their constant profit increase this also included the project that BBM would become a messenger app available for non-
Blackberry phones. (Silcoff et al., 2013) Although, this project was a major hit with a variety of different brands this meant
that Blackberry’s initial USP (a messenger for users to interact with each other) wasn’t so unique but generic for all to have.
14
12. PAST SUMMARY
To summarise, part one introduced the Blackberry name to the world. RIM (the original company
name) presented new ideas that unfortunately never took off like they expected it would.
Implications from the past included:
• Blackberry becoming unaware of new businesses that looked to the future for ideas
• The lack of interaction with consumers when starting up
• Not understanding where the market was going
16
14. INTRODUCTION
With the roller-coaster sales and performances undergone by Blackberry, to get the company back to what it
once was (a leading smartphone brand), many changes occurred both internally and externally.
The founder and co-CEO of Blackberry resigned and a new CEO took the role in January 2012. This was
Thorsten Heins who was the former senior vice president. (Sanghani, 2013) Unfortunately the new CEO could
not help Blackberry in gaining back what they lost and eventually stepped down the following year in
November. A new CEO was appointed named John Chen that following January.
With the arrival of the CEO John Chen, many problems became evident regarding the company and all it
stood for. This included the change in their market position.
(The Guardian, 2014)
20
John S. Chen: C.E.O. 2014 - PRESENT
15. 3 GENERIC STRATEGIC POSITIONS
MODEL
(Porter, M 1979)
Figure 2.1
When Blackberry was first launched, their products were very much in the niche market. Focussed mainly on
the target market of business men and women (the corporate world) they were able to make themselves
known. Gradually through the years their target market expanded to the working family as well as young
people. This was when they eventually moved into being a differentiator; as well as the position of cost
leadership by having the ability to cater to all different markets. It was only from 2009 after the launch of one
of their main competitors’ first phone, Blackberry weren’t able to continue in those positions and eventually
became a phone company that is currently stuck in the middle.
22
16. CURRENT STRATEGY
Since becoming the CEO of Blackberry Ltd, John Chen has chosen a realistic strategic aim which he hopes will
help the company position itself in the future. According to Chen, Blackberry’s strategic aim is “To stabilize the
company, return to our core strength in enterprise and security, and maximize efficiencies.” (Chen, 2013) The
choice of using this as the initial strategic aim for the company, could help the business in finding their feet in
the market they are in. Already this strategy has and is continuously taking effect. This included the
resignations of persons such as Thorsten Heins (former CEO), Mike Lazaridis and Jim Balsillie (RIM founders).
Figure 2.2
http://www.smartdraw.com(no date)
24
17. Blackberry have been grouped in a number of different markets. This includes market penetration, product
development and diversification.
When first launched Blackberry was very much diversified. Throughout these years (see figure 2.2
diversification) Blackberry were producing a variety of new products in a very diverse market. They increased
their market by not only selling to corporate people but to individuals.
From 2005-09 Blackberry was grouped in market penetration. These years for Blackberry were very much
their peak time with a large following shown in their market share and sales. The company had a few popular
products that they kept re-launching with new updates. This also aided them to penetrate the market with BBM
(messenger to connect with Blackberry users). This software helped them gain a large market share for a long
period of time.
From 2009 to this present day, Blackberry has moved into product development. At the moment, the company’s
market share and sales have dropped greatly whilst their competitor’s sales and share of the market have
doubled and even tripled (for some). This change could have come from Blackberry’s competitor’s relationship
with consumers. Although Blackberry’s competitors’ products are steep in price, consumers still want to purchase
their products. This is very much due to the consumer trust of the company in what they launch.
If Blackberry was trying to gain new consumers by new products their strategy should have been to make
amends with the existing/old consumers they have/had by communicating to them and regaining their trust
back through incentives via their price plans. These points should have been their main focus at that precise
time. The increase in sales and overall competition takeover, could happen but only after these issues had
been dealt with.
Telegraph(2013)
26
18. PERFORMANCE INDICATORS
There are a number of indicators that Blackberry can use to check their performance levels. This includes social media, financial
reports and other independent sources. Understanding and keeping these levels checked consistently will enable Blackberry to see
what they need to look at closely.
Social Media Audit
Social media was a strategic move for Blackberry in advertising to their consumers. Being involved in social media mediums such as
Facebook and Twitter, the use of both company pages, were mainly for advertisement purposes and some consumer engagement.
Both pages are consistent, with the same posts being shown to their customers, and although there is a high volume of post
consistency, there still is a low to none business to consumer interaction. This is mostly relevant to their Facebook page where most
questions posted by consumers are not answered, and only advertisements are publicised. (See figure 2.3)
Figure 2.3 (Blackberry, 2008) (Twitter, 2008)
28
23. COMPETITOR ANALYSIS
Porters 5 forces Potential entrants: LOW
Entrants entering the market is medium although
for them climbing to the top is very low.
Samsung and Apple have a large market share
and their sales have increase over $30million.
If they saw a threat coming with a new product
that would definitely be able to attack them with
the power they already own.
Impact:
Blackberry wouldn’t have to worry about new
entrants as their competitors would take care of the
situation
Although, it could impact Blackberry if the new
product/service launch something that consumers
wanted and Blackberry didn’t see it.
Supplier power: MEDIUM
Newer operating systems
Small amount of developers that will supply Blackberry with their specific
operating system
May not have enough sales to breakeven and pay for suppliers
Impact:
Blackberry incentives for suppliers will have to be very rewarding for them.
Buyer power: HIGH
Variety of different phone products that the buyer could purchase.
Blackberry market share declining through the years
Impact:
Blackberry has to push their products harder for consumers to acknowledge
and purchase
Threat of substitutes: MEDIUM
Depends on the impact of these substitutes.
Competitors have branched out and launched a variety of tablets i.e. Tablet PC’s, iPads (Apple) and pocket notebooks (small
screen feature).
Impact:
Phones are always needed therefore tablets are very much an add-on product.
Blackberry would want to produce a better tablet as many consumers want add-on with the same brand. I.e. iPhone and iPad
Figure 2:12 - Compiled from past and present analysis and the use of: https://prezi.com (no) date 38
24. PERCEPTION MAP
Shown below (see figure 2.13/14) gives an overview of the perception of Blackberry (past 1999-2007 and present
2007-2014) compared with their main competitors Apple and Android Phones.
Due to Apple having previous products such as laptops, their brand strength was greater than the android (Samsung
etc…) phones (see figure 2.13). Between 2007 and 09 due to Blackberry not taking initiative their once innovative,
strength and market share brand diminished. Throughout these two years, instead of Android doing the same as
Blackberry, they saw the change in technology that apple had achieved and followed their innovative mind in such
features as touch screen phones. This is what led Blackberry falling behind and becoming a follower of both market
leaders Apple and Android (see figure 2.14).
40
25. PRESENT SUMMARY
To summarise, the current perception of Blackberry declined tremendously in popularity. Part two
expressed the changes in Blackberry internally and externally. The changes that occurred introduced
a number of implications for the brand such as:
• Blackberry introducing products that consumers weren’t looking for
• Beginning of becoming a brand that followed other brands
• The change in how consumers perceived them as. Started as a brand everyone loved to a brand
that everyone despised.
42
26. PART 3: FUTURE – 2015 ONWARDS
Introduction
Active Inertia
SWOT
Potential Strategy
Brand essence wheel
Value proposition
Future market
Performance measure
Ways of communication
Conclusion
44
John S. Chen: C.E.O. 2014 - PRESENT
27. INTRODUCTION
Overall, the last 50 years RIM Blackberry have presented itself as a company that will stay. Overcoming a number of
problems that caused many (competitors, consumers, articles and journals) to think they would never make it to 2014,
they have continued to strive to become the best again. Figure 3.1 (active inertia) shows the state that the company is
presently in which is in a need of adjustments; but has shown that although they are in a critical position in their sales,
market share and overall interest of consumers they indeed have a chance to change.
Figure 3.1
Sull (1999)
46
28. Figure 3.2 explores Blackberry’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats (SWOT analysis)
internally and externally. Points detailed in the analysis will introduce a number of strategic ideas that
Blackberry can adopt for their future decisions to hopefully gain back what they once had.
Marketline (2014) Figure 3.2
48
29. POTENTIAL STRATEGY
Blackberry are already underway with changes regarding the company and its products, which includes changes
within their internal workforce.
For their future strategy, Blackberry is in need of work regarding their relationship with their consumers (figure
3.3). If this strategy comes into effect this will support them overall in delivering value by the building of a mutual
relationship between them and their consumers. If this is achieved they will gain high value in customer loyalty.
Figure 3.3
50
30. MARKET AND TARGET CUSTOMERS
Considering the brands life span, it is very evident that the best sales and market share increase came about only twice in the
past 20 years. This was the sales to only “business-like” customers and the introduction of their BBM (Blackberry messenger).
As explained previously due to the decrease in sales overall, the company chose to sell their BBM idea. Therefore Blackberry
should consider for their future strategy to go back to selling only for business-like consumers. Another idea that Blackberry
could use (if they didn’t want to sale only to the business sector) is the Apple iPhone 5C and 5S concept. Apples concept was
to produce two similar touchscreen phones which one was expensive (5S) and the other low-priced (5C). This concept enabled
the company to gain a large consumer based interest and ideally an increase in market share and overall sales. In the case
of Blackberry they could use this concept in the production of two similar phones, one for business-like consumers and the
other for people in the other working class sectors. The similarities could engage all their consumers that they all are
important, and the differences could ideally suit the needs of that specific consumer. For this concept, to understand the
consumer market Blackberry could communicate with customers in a variety of ways. This includes, social media as well as
competitor analysis.
To understand the target market better, market sensing can be included in their strategy. This will help to recognise any
changes in consumer wants and needs that they may have missed from looking at their competitors. Blackberry can use ways
within market sensing to increase the understanding that they may have of public behaviour. The use of discourse,
postmodernism and emotions will enable Blackberry to produce the products that consumers would want. (See 3.4)
Piercy,N. (2009) Figure 3.4
52
31. VALUE PROPOSITION
Studying Blackberry from the first launch of their products in 1999, it shows that their keyboard was one of their pros
when selling to business men. One of the problems that occurred when the product finally opened to individuals was the
keyboard and the optical pay consistently breaking.
Therefore as explained previously Blackberry can produce two products that could engage to different markets,
individuals and the corporate world. Researching the newer launched products one thing is common. This is their
touchscreen concept. For Blackberry to gain that market as well as be different, the company can introduce a new
concept that introduces a touchscreen/keyboard phone. This concept can be available to those in the corporate world.
Already a leader within business professions because of great security applications, to continue this success and grow into
a wider sector in regards to the public, Blackberry would have to create a distinguished design within their core
products. Therefore figure 3.5 shows an example product that incorporate both keyboard a touchscreen concept. The
keyboard be the QUERTY keyboard that many consumers enjoyed and will be integrated into the products case. This
concept will be a new and improved Apple idea. This idea introduced a Bluetooth keyboard case that consumers can use
if they didn’t want to use the touchscreen feature. This keyboard case, introduced features that many consumers did not
like. This included the keyboard being too bulky and the case being leather which meant the middle wouldn’t be as
steady as many consumers wanted.
Mobile Fun (2012)
54
33. Another proposition could be to reinvent the Blackberry Playbook.
When launching the Blackberry Playbook (previously spoken about) Blackberry Ltd suffered many complications and
regrettably was forced to discontinue the product. http://www.gsmarena.com (no date)
To reinvent the Playbook, Blackberry could introduce a USB (SD memory card) that could be used in both phone and
tablet. This would allow business corporates to carry on with their daily trade if one product battery were to die or was
in use. Blackberry could implement an idea from one of their main competitors Apple in using a security system in which
a consumer could wipe their product if it was lost or stolen. This idea could be adapted within Blackberry by its USB
portal in enabling a consumer to wipe the memory card if it were to be used by someone else. (See 3.5.1)
For security on the memory card USB, Blackberry would include either a fingerprint access or password access. This
would enable those in the corporate world to recognise Blackberry in them understanding the importance of security for
their consumers.
Figure 3.5.1
58
34. BRAND ESSENCE WHEEL
Figure 3.6 gives an idea of
how Blackberry would want
the product (figure 3.5) to be
seen as in the eyes of their
consumers. Both apple and
android have begun to
produce phones that
consumers in the corporate
world have chosen to use.
Therefore the words
expressed, combined both
Apple and Android phones
assumed brand essence in
consumers’ minds.
Figure 3.6
60
35. Figure 3.7 gives the perception of where Blackberry and their main competitors will be regarding the market.
The figure shown gives the perception that if Blackberry chose this concept they will be considered different
and initially could become the new leader of the market.
62
Figure 3.7
Apple
Android (Samsung
Blackberry
LG
Motorola
Nokia
36. PERFORMANCE MEASURE
Vision and strategy
Figure 3.8 Kaplan, R.,
Norton, D (1996)
If Blackberry defined their value
proposition as marketing to the
professional (corporate world) where
they would have a choice to use a
keyboard or touchscreen, the company
would have to measure the
effectiveness of that (See figure 3.8). To
measure the performance, prior to
launching the product officially,
Blackberry could make a prototype to
determine whether professionals
would use it or discard it. This could
include using ethnography (factor of
market sensing) to analyse the use of
the prototype in their consumers life.
64
37. WAYS OF COMMUNICATION
Social media
As expressed previously (see present social media audit) Blackberry's interaction with social media is
somewhat low. To understand the market it’s in, Blackberry could communicate with the consumers they do
have to understand what they want to see, what they are missing with the product, what they could do
better and so on. This would not only help Blackberry produce what consumers want but will spark a B2C
(business to consumer) relationship. The company could look at their competitors, those that are doing well,
those that have continued to increase in their share of the market and consumer interest over the past years.
Blackberry’s two main competitors are Apple and Android phones i.e. Samsung. From the analysis retrieved
from the research gathered, has shown a constant increase in Androids market share while Apple’s has been
steady throughout. To understand consumers in the phone technology market, Blackberry could have a look
at Apples interaction, software and features that have enabled them to keep a set amount throughout the
years. Although if Blackberry wanted to lead with their sales and market share, they would have to look at
the change in Android phones. It shows the dramatic change that’s been involved in the Android shift.
Blackberry would have to consider looking at all aspects of the various android phones (especially
Samsung) to see what extent their new products may go to and understand why a significant number of
customers are choosing Android over Apple and themselves.
66
38. CONCLUSION
To summarise, here is a look at the past, present and future key points that were
covered in this report.
Past
Began as an innovative company
Focussed on one target market
Blackberry’s successful period was between the years of 1999-2006 and
2009-2011
There was a decline mainly due to the company misreading the smartphone
market
Difficulty in regaining market back – Began playing catch up from 2011
Present
Began 2012 with a continuous decline in all performances
Consistently playing catch-up with their competitors
Future
Un-innovative
Clear brand
New value proposition – emerging both touchscreen (future technology) and
QWERTY keyboard) past consumer interest
Leader within business professions because of security applications
68
39. BIBLIOGRAPHY
Textbooks
Baines, P., Fill, C., Page, K (2011) Marketing. 3rd Edition. Oxford:
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Kaplan R, Norton, D (1996) The Balanced Scorecard
Kotler, P and Armstrong, G (2012) Principles of Marketing. 14th
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Piercy, N (2009) Market-Led Strategic Change. 4th Edition.
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Chan Kim, W and Mauborgne, R. (1997) ‘Value Innovation: The
Strategic Logic of High Growth’, Harvard Business Review, pp. 102-
113
Levitt, T. (1960) ‘Marketing Myopia’, Harvard Business Review
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(Accessed: 2nd December 2014)
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November 2014)
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