The Use of Mobile Phones in the US - Essay Example

The product under review is the use of mobile phones in the United s which is on a decline since the past few years and according to the US census, it seems that the mobile phones will eventually turn out to be a dead product. The mobile phones are classified as the basic communication devices that are used only for the purposes of calling or sending a text message and may or may not contain a camera along with a few multimedia options. The target audience for mobile phones virtually includes everyone who wants to communicate over a long distance and therefore the size of the target market of mobile phone manufacturers is huge. The table on the right shows that about 85% of the total population in the United States uses mobile phones. The age group which owns a mobile phone ranges from 18-29 years old while the age group with the least percentage of mobile phone ownership is the 65+ age group which stands at only 58%. The greatest numbers of mobile phone owners are the people with the highest educational qualifications and live in the urban or suburban areas. Loss of Popularity The mobile phones have lost the popularity in the recent years and statistics reveal that it is likely that the product will continue to decline given the emergence and the sudden rise in the popularity of smartphones. It is estimated that in the year 2012, almost half of all the mobile phone users will have switched to the smartphones and this will mean that with time, mobile phone ownership and usage will decrease before it becomes more or less a non-existent product eventually. (Stewart) Companies such as Apple, Samsung and HTC have witnessed huge rises in their sales in the recent years and their popularity has gone sky high thanks to the introduction of newer versions of smartphones which offer an incredible amount of functions and opportunities to explore. This gives the mobile phone manufacturers and marketers enough to worry about with the US census supporting the view that people may actually shift from mobile phones to smartphones in the near future. The table above shows the methods used by the American households to use the internet. The usage of internet in the United States is very high and is now considered as one of the basic necessities of the public. The table shows the data from a US census in the year 2010 and it shows that about 9.1% of the households now use mobiles for internet usage. The internet accessibility in mobile phones is very limited and people have started to shift to smartphones due to the fact that these smartphones offer a wide range of internet options and much better accessibility and surfing options. Also the competition among the top 4 smartphone companies in United States which includes Apple, Samsung, HTC and BlackBerry are now so much involved in competing in the market among themselves that these companies are forced to price their products at a lower range. This competition is healthy for the consumers of America who can now obtain these smartphones at a much lower price and thus this product is now within the financial reach of a larger number of people. Also, the mobile phone carriers, the companies that provide mobile communication services, are now offering an attractive contract package which allows a smartphone at a very low initial price with money to be paid over a period of usually the next 2 years depending upon the length of contract. As mentioned above, the mobile phones have been unable to offer the same wide range of features that a smartphone has been able to offer. U.S. – All industries by year The table above shows that the small businesses continue to thrive in the US economy. In the economic crisis that hit the US in the year 2008 resulted in the emergence of an even greater number of small businesses which were more flexible and adaptable to the economic shocks. These small businesses cannot afford the same resources as the other large businesses such as the labor or expertise required in running a business. In this case, the smartphones come into play which can be referred to when using the wide range of applications and e-commerce. This is another factor why smartphones have been successful in taking the lead over the conventional mobile phones in the United States. Recommendations Needless to say and as mentioned above, the mobile phones face a great challenge to recover from this loss of interest and popularity from the consumers. In this situation, the mobile phone manufacturers and marketers should introduce new ways and improve the existing ones to regain the confidence of their target market. The first thing that the mobile phone companies can do is to offer better internet options in their mobile phone devices. The primary purpose of this shift from mobile phone to smartphone is the internet usage and if the mobile phone companies are able to improve this feature, then it will surely win back some market share in the United States. The second thing that can be done is to capitalize on the potential drawbacks of smartphones. The smartphones today are large in size and some people are bound to have objections with this as it creates a hindrance in the portability. This can be capitalized upon by introducing thinner mobile phones which allow greater mobility. The third is obviously the introduction of a revolutionary marketing campaign which may help to trigger the sales of mobile phones in the future. Foreign Country The mobile phone companies can invest and promote their products in the West Indies and Caribbean region. The region is host to a population of about 37 million people, yet only a couple of million people use mobile phones for communication. (CIA) The region has great potential for mobile phone success since people need something through which they can communicate but most of them do not own any mobile phones yet. Also, since the mobile phones are considerably cheaper than smartphones, the mobile phone companies can market their products on the basis of price given that the population in the Caribbean region is very poor and are going through several financial constraints. Along with the marketing on the price of the product, the people in West Indies are not really aware of the smartphones and all the great number of technological gadgets now available worldwide. Therefore the introduction of mobile phones will be like a revolution in their life and the product is bound to be a success. Bibliography CIA. (n.d.). The World Factbook. Retrieved from CIA: https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/rankorder/2151rank.html Sterling, G. (n.d.). Pew: 85% of US Adults Have Mobile Phones, One in Ten (High Earners) Own Tablets. Retrieved from Internet2Go: http://internet2go.net/news/data-and-forecasts/pew-85-us-adults-have-mobile-phones-one-ten-high-earners-own-tablets Stewart, C. (n.d.). [Infographic] U.S. mobile phone usage statistics. Retrieved from Talk Android: http://www.talkandroid.com/116169-infographic-u-s-mobile-phone-usage-statistics/ United States Census Bureau. (2010). Computer and Internet Use. Retrieved from United States Census Bureau: http://www.census.gov/hhes/computer/publications/2010.html United States Census Bureau. (2009). Statistics about Business Size (including Small Business). Retrieved from United States Census Bureau: http://www.census.gov/econ/smallbus.html Read More