Social listening iPhone 17 mixed reactions.

I ,like many people in America, own an iPhone. Every phone I have had has been an iPhone. So I was really interested in the new iPhone 17 line up this year. The vibes on social media have been fairly negative but the iPhone continues to dominate in sales. Comments include complaints about durability, connectivity, and general lack of innovation.

Apple has long dominated the smart phone industry since its inception. The iPhone is a long running series of smart phone starting in 2007. iPhone makes up 58% of US phone sales and 25% globally making them one of the largest companies in the world. The companies value proposition is that they sell a premium product at a premium price.

Social media is generally not a fan of apple and is quick to point out mistakes in their newest products. The first major issue that began circulating the internet was how easily they got scratched. Many quickly dubbed this scratch gate and soon videos started popping up on YouTube. Youtuber JerryRigEverything made a video that quickly gathered millions of view of just how easily these phones scratch.  

Another flaw in the launch of the iPhone was with connectivity and cellular usage. This is one of the key uses of an phone and it was poorly handled at launch. One user on the iPhone reddit page posted saying "I just got off the phone with an Apple Senior Advisor who confirmed that they are having issues with iPhone 17 and cellular signals. Dropped calls and texts that won’t send - all in places that my previous iPhone had zero issues. The Apple Senior Advisor said their engineers were working on the issue, but had no ETA for a possible fix. Frustrating 😖" 

The other major criticism apple has received has been about the perceived lack of innovation. This is a complaint apple has received many times over the years. The design of the iPhone has changed very little over the years. Fans of apple don't seem to mind however, they continue buying the same phone. 

Apple has an impressive media presence boasting almost 35 million followers on Instagram and millions more on other platforms. They mostly show off the impressive quality of their cameras. This is a genius marketing play because social media is one of the main apps used on their products. They are showing how their product can help other people make amazing social medias. They also use storytelling a lot. Painting a picture of technology and innovation in the palm of your hand.

Apples marketing mostly stems from the quality of their camera and its use in quick high quality shots. They employ bright colors and action to bring life into this long running line of phones. They posted on their YouTube a video of the iPhone 17 pro being blasted at a pirate ship. This shows that they have a real creative approach to their marketing and want to appeal to a young audience.

Apple has had a limited response to costumer complaints in regards to the durability or connectivity. They seem to be staying quite on the issues and handle them low key. This is a smart move for apple as there is no need to draw massive attention to small issues when doing so would only hurt the brand. 

If I was the social media manager I would do more collaborations with popular brands and try to grow our social medias in emerging markets. They also could employ more active media listening and be a bit quicker in their responses to the media.

I learned in this assignment that a company can quickly be inedited with stories and negative criticism. That companies need to have a tailored social media presence and to keep the brand fresh.