Targeting the local market
Targeting the local market
JAKARTA (JP): Some people do not buy certain types of cellular
phones because they considered the models either too feminine,
too masculine or too commonplace.
Handset producers also realize this and have gradually changed
their marketing strategies.
Private surveyor AC Nielsen disclosed in its recent annual
Media and Marketing Index Survey that different genders prefer
different brands.
The survey was conducted in seven locations: the greater
Jakarta area, the greater Surabaya area, Bandung, Semarang,
Yogyakarta, Medan and Palembang.
Total sample was 290, with a projection of 854,000 population
in the surveyed areas. The margin for error is estimated at some
1 percent.
The survey had an interesting finding in that women prefer
Nokia while men prefer Ericsson.
The poll found that Nokia, Ericsson and Motorola are the most
popular brands in Indonesia. Of those polled, Nokia was used by
334 people (39 percent), Ericsson 314 (37 percent) and Motorola
112 (13 percent). The other brands were Siemens (45 users or 5
percent), Philips (21 users or 2 percent), Samsung (16 users or 2
percent) and Bosch (five users or 1 percent). The only virtually
unknown brand included in the survey was Alcatel.
Out of the 334 Nokia users, 189 were women, while Ericsson was
used by 196 men. Motorola was the chosen cell phone of 77 women
and 36 men.
The data show that 3 percent of urban adults have their own
cell phone, 4 percent of the male population has one and 3
percent of women.
It discloses that 56 percent of users have had their phones
for less than a year, suggesting that cell phones are fast
becoming popular.
Fifty-nine percent of users said they used cellular phones
mostly for personal purposes as opposed to business purposes.
"Given a low penetration of 3 percent of adults in the major
areas, we still expect strong growth in the next few years in
cellular phone sales. Even in the relatively affluent A-Class,
the majority of Indonesian consumers do not have a phone," said
Farquhar Stirling, managing director of AC Nielsen Indonesia.
There are currently some 2,050,000 cellular phone subscribers
in Indonesia, up from 1.2 million in the previous year. The
figure is estimated to reach three million by the end of this
year.
Cellular phone producers consider Indonesia a promising
market, as users regard mobiles as a fashion accessory. Some
producers have refashioned their marketing around the style of
their new products rather than adapted systems.
Ericsson, for instance, places customers in categories: A
category for first timer users, R for professionals interested in
the technology, and T for users who buy phones for image.
Motorola's Husni Erwinn said that the company categorized
customers into four segments: Acomply for those seeking the best
and the latest, Time Port for those looking for the technology,
V. for those into image, and Talk About for those interested in a
cell phone as a communications tool only.
The cellular phone market has indeed broaden in Indonesia,
from the conventional to the more stylish. It's now the job of
the producers to not only match the targeted segments with more
innovative types but also with `qualified ones. (icn)