Is the iPhone still cool? Maybe not

[baseballbert]

One of my clients is a marketing professor, and we were talking the latest iPhone buzz. She said Apple is in danger of becoming uncool because it is so mainstream.

"it is the safe device that even a 52-year-old can easily use. My generation has gravitated to it because it's easy to use. So if 50 year olds use it, how can it still be cool/hip?

Teenagers are going to stop wanting the things that their parents, aunts uncles and grandparents use."

 

[BLiNK]

i would have to say your client doesn't shiit. lets wait and see if it happens first

 

[seashell93]

Pretty sure both my teens want (and continually nag for) the iPhone that their Mom has!!!

 

[DMBAdict04]

I can see where your client is coming from and think it is reasonable. However, I look at Apple as one of those companies that is capable of breaking down that barrier.

Apply that logic to cars: A 16 year old wouldn't love to have a Ferrari or Porsche because 40 - 60 year olds drive them.

That's a ridiculous notion right? Right. Why? Because those are top-notch vehicles and there aren't many brands out there that outdo them. The same goes for Apple. Think of a brand that is really taking it to Apple right now? There aren't any. That's not to say there can't be.

I think from a perception standpoint, Apple is the Ferrari/Porsche of Tech. They are such a luxurious/high quality product, no one cares who uses their products.

This is my opinion but I think it's fairly accurate.

 

[Ipheuria]

I think the problem is that your client is actually looking at the iPhone as an island on it's own. The thing is that teens will want what every other teen has and that is what makes it cool. It is not that it's a cool thing let me get it it's that everyone that is cool has one so I want one too. So you see Apple unlike other smartphones introduces them to the device and OS at an earlier age with the iPod. So once they get older they gravitate towards the iPhone because they don't need to learn anything new they already know how everything works. It's also the pull of the apps, they will show off their apps with one another and the more apps there are and the easier they are to find creates a pull to the device providing it.

So while I do understand what your client was trying to say and it does make sense in certain cases. However in this case I don't think so. My wife's preteen sister has about 8 friends all who have iPhone 4s. She has an iPod Touch and they are all PRE-teen, although I know that is probably not the majority trend but I think it is an indicator of how much the device is wanted.

 

[anon(4698833)]

Your client assumes that the iPhone cannot satisfy and be successful in multiple markets...that's like saying now that Porsche offers lower end cars like the Boxster so that a lower income class of person can enjoy the car, the higher income people who once enjoyed driving their Porsche are no longer going to do so. The word asinine comes to mind...

 

[boomhower1820]

Who cares whats "hip". I use what works for me. I couldn't care less what is hip or popular. The iPhone and even more importantly, the Apple ecosystem as a whole is what works for me.

What my parents or kids use is meaningless to me.

 

[scorpiodsu]

I can see where your client is coming from and think it is reasonable. However, I look at Apple as one of those companies that is capable of breaking down that barrier.

Apply that logic to cars: A 16 year old wouldn't love to have a Ferrari or Porsche because 40 - 60 year olds drive them.

That's a ridiculous notion right? Right. Why? Because those are top-notch vehicles and there aren't many brands out there that outdo them. The same goes for Apple. Think of a brand that is really taking it to Apple right now? There aren't any. That's not to say there can't be.

I think from a perception standpoint, Apple is the Ferrari/Porsche of Tech. They are such a luxurious/high quality product, no one cares who uses their products.

This is my opinion but I think it's fairly accurate.

This. Younger folks want to drive BMW, Benz, Lexus, etc. Because older folks drive them, it doesn't make them not want it. It's about having something that feels top of the line. And as long as iPhone has that, it doesn't matter the demographics of the users. Also your professor assumes that people buy iPhone because it's "hip". Sure that may have been the case a couple years ago but by this time, people are buying it because it flat out works better than anything else available.

 

[symtronic]

One of my clients is a marketing professor, and we were talking the latest iPhone buzz. She said Apple is in danger of becoming uncool because it is so mainstream.

"it is the safe device that even a 52-year-old can easily use. My generation has gravitated to it because it's easy to use. So if 50 year olds use it, how can it still be cool/hip?

Teenagers are going to stop wanting the things that their parents, aunts uncles and grandparents use."

They DID sell 2 million iphone 5's in the first 24 hours... sounds like they are still 'cool' for now

 

[Just_Me_D]

One of my clients is a marketing professor, and we were talking the latest iPhone buzz. She said Apple is in danger of becoming uncool because it is so mainstream.

"it is the safe device that even a 52-year-old can easily use. My generation has gravitated to it because it's easy to use. So if 50 year olds use it, how can it still be cool/hip?

Teenagers are going to stop wanting the things that their parents, aunts uncles and grandparents use."

Ask the professor if that is why ABC, CBS, CNN & MSNBC have all fallen from grace. They call themselves the "mainstream" media. . Anyway, back to your post, people of all ages purchase the iPhone, but all of those people do not use it the same way nor buy the same apps. Apple has found a way to create products that appeal to people regardless of age, race or religion and that is the beauty of it. Is it possible that a new generation of kids will come along and want something totally different? Of course, it is. Is it possible that current iPhone faithfuls will one day buy something else? Of course, it is. Is it possible that people the world over will continue to purchase Apple products despite it being mainstream and despite the fact that certain people are ticked off because they believe that Apple has stopped innovating? Well, if the ore-order sales of the iPhone 5 is any indication then yes, it is. By the way, I didn't buy my iPhone because it was cool. I bought it because it was what I wanted and I'm happy as heck that I got it.

 

[Reaktor5]

Yeah, I'll just get a phone that's 'harder to use' to look smart in front of 50 year olds.

 

[anon(19759)]

I'm going to say the opposite, since I'm 40+. I think old people buy it to still look cool next to their kids with iphones.

 

[kilofoxtrot]

olders folks may not be cool.... but they do have money.

 

[count123]

I thought it was if your iphone was JB or not that determined your coolness

 

[Just_Me_D]

I'm going to say the opposite, since I'm 40+. I think old people buy it to still look cool next to their kids with iphones.

I'm not sure I agree. I'm sure some do, but the majority? I don't know. I'm 49, but for the past 25 plus years, I was always the guy that had the latest and greatest tech devices. Not because I had to get them, but because I wanted them and was Blessed to be able to afford them. If I opt to buy the iPhone 5 or the one after it, the same will apply. As a matter of fact, my kids often wait to see what I'm going to get...lol.

 

[Doc Z]

Just a silly statement. People want what works. The iPhone is still very much a premier device that many many kids/teenagers/young people aspire to own. It is as much a status symbol these days as it is a functional device. Parents, grandparents, etc who own an iPhone is a secondary thing, and has no bearing on whether the "coolness" of the phone disappears.

 

[Just_Me_D]

olders folks may not be cool.... but they do have money.

Yep. Besides, you're only cool to your own generation.

 

[DomFeeney]

There is also an app element at play here.

Yes my not that tech savvie folks have iPhones but get far from the most out of them by not really embracing the app culture fully.

Younger hipper peeps will presumably have the better newer flashier apps and can even take pleasure in being the "expert" and recommending or introducing the latest and greatest apps to family and friends.

Just a thought and would be interesting to see what your friend thinks of this theory

All the best

D


Sent from my iPhone 4s using Tapatalk

 

[Jeremy]

Who cares what is "cool" or "hip" as long as the owner of the device likes it, all that matters. And something that is "cool" to me may not be with someone else.

 

[iEd]

Wow a marketing professor should know Mainstream = Big money. Making it available to everyone = Big Money. iPhone always be cool as long as Android phone are being made.

I'm 50 and my nieces and nephews wanted iPhone because I had the cool **** with not the other way around.