Editor’s Note: In this monthly feature, RCR Wireless News talks to retail managers across the country to get a first-hand view of what’s hot in wireless.
Search for “wireless phones” on Google, and Letstalk.com is one of the first sites that pops up. The online retailer offers devices and service from 19 different carriers. Founder and CEO Delly Tamer recently discussed online retail sales trends for the site with RCR Wireless News.
What are the most popular devices that you sell?
Probably the most popular are the Blackjack, the Blackberry Pearl, the T-Mobile Wing-and the Razrs are continuing to sell very well. The trend that I’ve seen recently is that customers are flocking to datacentric devices that have a stylish or appealing form factor.
What do you see in terms of trends among accessories?
In terms of trends, I’ll tell you the growing area is the stereo Bluetooth headset. I’m seeing the Motorola S9 selling very, very well, and it’s interesting, because not long ago there were lots of stereo Bluetooth headsets on the market but the sales were really minimal. I’ve seen that category grow very recently. I also see that the Bluetooth headsets are selling lots-that’s been true for about six months. I see car and home chargers also, which are most like the bread-and-butter of accessories. And I’m seeing memory cards, especially the 1 gigabyte memory cards, selling lots. Customers seem to be ignoring the small memory cards and the big ones and tend to be focusing on the 1 GB for some reason.
Which plans are customers going with?
We’re seeing a lot of demand for family plans. I believe that customers are realizing that with family plans, each member of the family can get their own handset, their own phone number, and everybody shares the minutes and shares the love. I also see a big trend toward plans with clear, simple value for customers-for example, all the “circle”-type plans from Alltel and the T-Mobile myFaves have recently been selling quite well.
What data add-ons are customers taking?
What I’m seeing is, compared to a year ago, the level of significant add-ons beyond just texting has really gone through the roof. The add-ons are basically in one of three things: music, e-mail or Internet browsing. And conversely, despite the fact that this is growing so much, I also see a lot of confusion among customers, who still do not fully understand ‘How do I get music on my cell phone, do I need a subscription, can I use iTunes?’ We as an industry need to do a better job to simplify the music on the device. We had the same problem about a year ago with e-mail . it’s gotten much clearer to customers and we’ve seen a surge in demand for data add-ons. Texting continues to be extremely popular as well.
What trends do you see ahead for the rest of 2007 and 2008?
I think I’ll put it this way: customers are wondering who is going to upend Apple’s iPhone. That’s the biggest question I hear from my customers. And will it be Apple itself, or will it be one of the other manufacturers? There’s significant interest in what’s going to be the next iPhone or the iPhone killer. And the second trend is . customers are wondering will the Moto Razr2 have the same love story with customers that the first Razr did? The jury is completely out. The third question, or trend, I see is, what novelties will Blackberry introduce later this year and into next year? It used to be that Blackberry was just a device for investment bankers, and it has been very successful in penetrating into the “cool and stylish” customer segment.There are a lot of questions . on what manufacturers will do and will others react and join the fray, and what new and stylish smartphones and data devices we will see in 2008.
