The Crushing Frustration of the Early Adopter
Thursday, July 9th, 2009I’m a sucker. I’m one of those “early adopters” you read about – the people who get the newest gadgets as soon as they come out. I’ve modified my ways in recent years, never buying a 1st generation product. (I learned my lesson from the battery-challenged 1st gen iPod.) I waited for the 2nd gen iPhone (3G) and the 2nd gen Amazon Kindle. Both are terrific products. But I’m still killed by the indifference that companies show to the people who make their product viable. If we don’t create the buzz, the product doesn’t perform as well.
So I purchased the iPhone 3G earlier this year for $399, and the Kindle for more than I care to print. Within a few months, both products dropped in price. Amazon came out with a bigger Kindle that’s less expensive than the smaller one I bought. The iPhone 3G (S) alphabet soup starts at $99 – unless you bought the iPhone 3G this year, in which case they’ll penalize you. You actually have to pay more for the thing than 1st time buyers because you haven’t amortized the cost of your phone, or are trying to change your contract, or whatever.
Wouldn’t it be nice to see a company reward early adopters?
I can’t tell you how many people have seen me using my iPhone and decided on the spot to get one. I bet I’ve helped Apple sell at least five. I am that “volunteer word of mouth marketer” that every company seems so intent on finding. So how are we treated? Like suckers P.T. Barnum would be proud to meet.
So here’s a thought for these companies with high-profile products: REWARD THE EARLY ADOPTERS!
Amazon and Apple want you to have their hardware so you’ll buy their software. The software (books, music, apps) is simply bits and bytes. Give us a token. Send us a credit. Work a deal with the popular labels and publishers for some freebies. You could even make it a hell of a promo: “Anyone who has a 2nd gen iPhone can download the latest song by (insert band name here), as well as $25 worth of whatever they want.
Put it in the marketing budget. Get together with bands and authors who would love the publicity and would forgo their cut. The more people that read the book, the more they’ll recommend it to paying friends.
This concept has precedent. Apple gave 1st gen iPhone customers (the ones who waited in absurd lines to pay $599 for the thing) a $100 credit toward Apple purchases when it dropped the price of the phone by $200 just 10 weeks after the iPhone’s introduction. A token, to be sure. But at least it was something.
These damn things ought to come with warranties: “If we introduce a bigger (or smaller), badder product in the next six months, we’ll refund half your purchase price if you put it toward the new product.”
Right now, I’m telling friends not to buy the iPhone 3G (s) because of the problems with the AT&T network. “It’s a great product,” I tell friends, “unless you want to make a call. Then it sucks.” But how easy would it be to turn that around for me? “For every dropped call, we’ll credit you its cost and add five minutes to your plan.” It’s just software. It could be done.
There are conferences and companies teaching “Word of Mouth” marketing. I can summarize it and save you a bundle: reward your early adopters. Those who pay the most for your product and preach its charms should be lauded, not made to feel foolish.
