S/C-testing is a new A/B-testing for iPhone
or why Apple is a marketing genius
Have you heard the latest news?
So iPhone 5s outselling iPhone 5c two to one according to AllThingsD at least in the United States.
And the question everyone ask — if iPhone 5c is a failure?
No, iPhone 5c is an epic key to success.
If you have no time to read to the end, there’s a spoiler in the comment why Apple is a marketing genius.
What do we have?
iPhone 5s 16GB for $649 contract-free.
iPhone 5c 16GB for $549 contract-free.
Both Android-free.
And the majority of people consider better buying iPhone 5s.
It’s only $100 more. I definitely take it.
Oh, more power efficient, a better camera, advanced video. Great!
Shut up and take my money.
That’s the point.
Rush to buy iPhone 5s without any doubts.
No time to question. Almost unintentional decision.
Apple does want it from its customers.
And Apple came with a brilliant idea.
How to make people buy a new iPhone not a new breakthrough?
Let’s produce another iPhone that is far more from being a breakthrough and is slightly cheaper.
Alternative
It is hard to buy something you don’t know.
It is easier to buy when you have choices.
You need to compare.
Imagine you have a chance to go to the cinema.
Option A.
There’s a new movie where there’s only one hero. A real hero.
But nothing more.
Will you buy this? Not likely.
Option B.
Another movie has a hero as well. But a bad guy appears.
Here comes confrontation.
Now it is interesting.
Now you feel empathy for the hero.
And you’ve made your choice.
Mindtrick
Do you want to sell a pen for $1000?
Yes, that’s an iPen. Like a pen, but costs $1000.
Still difficult to sell.
Take another pen, bite it and bend a little, then also sell it. For $999.
So you sell a normal pen for $1000 and a functionally limited pen for $999.
Both are ordinary pens and very expensive ones. Very expensive.
But now people will come up, compare (oh, it’s not bitten and just a dollar more) and buy your iPen for $1000.
By the way, costs are not so difficult to calculate: the same pen, need time (and may be some efforts) to bite and bend it, and that’s all folks.
Real life example
The same trick works in soccer.
A team plays with 2 forwards: one player diverts defenders and helps the second forward score.
Some theory: price discrimination
Price discrimination exists when sales of identical goods or services are transacted at different prices from the same provider. As Wikipedia claims
in a theoretical market with perfect information, perfect substitutes, and no transaction costs or prohibition on secondary exchange (or re-selling) to prevent arbitrage, price discrimination can only be a feature of monopolistic and oligopolistic markets, where market power can be exercised.
And yes, Apple is almost a monopoly.
Moreover Apple gives the best marketing examples.
Once again, just to recall.
Apple wants you to choose iPhone 5s.
That’s why there’s iPhone 5c presented.
Plan B
Moreover iPhone 5c is also Apple’s backup plan. There’re some reasons for it.
Scarcity
That’s Apple’s marketing.
Huge lines to Apple Stores.
No more gadgets in stock.
You have to wait.
Scarcity is the Apple’s strategy for a very long time.
And now again — iPhones 5s have run out:
— Want 5c instead?
— Okay, like I have a choice. Pack up please.
iPhone 5c is Apple’s Plan B.
Touch ID
Security issues.
Yes, it may cause troubles.
Some buyers may have concerns.
There were well-known stories when personal data leak to government from Facebook and Google.
And now users will leave their fingerprints, let’s say their real identity.
Too risky.
May be that’s why Apple decided to launch 2 models with and without Touch ID to see whether the market is ready.
Color-testing
New colors of 5s might be a little bit confusing.
Space Gray and Gold iPhones.
Gold one seems like an experiment.
Okay, some sort of a safety net.
Anyway Apple has twice as much colors of iPhones.
That’s a broad range of future decisions.
Testing, sampling, statistics.
Real A/B-testing.
Big data to analyze: what color is preferable and so on.
Perhaps in the next flagman there’ll be more than 3 colors.
As a conclusion
Anyway 5c is still better than 5. It’s new and full of new features.
And it helps 5s to look better and to be sold better.
P.S. Even if you look at carrier options.
There is a $100-iPhone and a $200-iPhone that is much better.
So the price differs 2 times.
What will you choose?
If you love math you might think:
“Okay, I have $200 and I could buy 2 iPhones for $100".
But firstly, you don’t need two iPhones.
And secondly, $100-iPhone is not the same as $200-iPhone. Apple claims so.
P.P.S. Some more estimates.
Instead of 2 options (buy iPhones 5s or not) people have 3 options (buy iPhone 5s or buy iPhone 5c or do not buy iPhone at all).
Chances of not spending money lowered from 50% to 33%.
Not bad.
Thank you for reading. Feel free to comment.
