R
Robert Nazarian
Guest
HTC continues to get praise from the media, but it never translates into growth. They were just awarded the best phone of the year by the GSMA, which has to be bittersweet while watching Samsung sell over 200 million Galaxy S phones right in front of their eyes. I declared the HTC One the best phone on the planet, but I asked the question, “Is it good enough?” in my review last year. Some of you laughed at me, but it’s clear that being the best doesn’t always translate into success.
CNet had a chance to sit down with Jack Yang, the new HTC boss of the South Asia Market, to find out what the thinking is for 2014. Ironically, Mr. Yang is the former head of Apple’s iPhone business in Southeast Asia, so this has to be a dramatic change for him. He is not only in charge of Southeast Asia for HTC, but also India and Australia.
A couple of years ago, HTC announced they wouldn’t offer mid-tier phones, but Mr. Yang convinced CEO Peter Chou to change their tune and also add low-tier devices. Mr. Yang feels that consumers don’t always want to buy a flagship phone from a “new” manufacturer. By offering great low to mid-tier devices, consumers can easily get their feet wet and eventually go for the flagship down the road. It’s a way of building a relationship.
Marketing is something I have been very critical of HTC, and it doesn’t appear that is going to change. There are no plans to offer any “fancy marketing campaigns “, and instead, will engage telcos and retailers on the ground level. My issue with HTC has been they don’t handle their marketing efforts efficiently. Last year, they spent $1 billion on a ridiculous campaign featuring Robert Downey Jr., but it didn’t get them anywhere since there was no focus on convincing the consumer why the HTC one was the phone to buy. I am no marketing exec, but my feeling is spend the money again, just do it wisely and effectively.
On the hardware side of things, HTC has implemented nano-SIM slots for the new Desire phones with the idea that iPhone users can now easily switch if they want to. The problem is you need to convince Apple users to switch. That takes marketing. They won’t do it on their own.
Those of you that love microSD expansion will be happy to know there is a good chance the All New One might sport it. Mr. Yang said “Expandability is the key to our consumers.” He is obviously referring to microSD slots, of which have been showing up in recent models. He didn’t specifically say anything about the All New One, but I think it’s a safe bet they will finally go in that direction for their flagship.
What do you guys think? Can HTC get over the hump this year?
source: CNET
Come comment on this article: Can HTC make a difference in 2014?
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