iphone Fandom Study Among College Students

Transcription

1 CCTP 612 Shimeng Tong Dec 4, 2016 iphone Fandom Study Among College Students Fandom Background: Since the first iphone came out in 2007, Apple started to lead the trend of touchscreen smartphone globally. With advanced functions and better designs, iphone 4 made iphone one of the most popular smartphones in the world. iphone fandom started to emerge aside from Apple fandom, since all the features Apple ever developed were implanted into this one device. Currently, most of iphone fans are millennials. For this study, with time constraint, I m narrowing down the fan base to college students, and trying to find out the factors that made them iphone fans regardless of the expensive price compared to other smartphones. Study Method: I designed an online survey and received 42 replies. Afterward, I interviewed five of them, the questions were still the same, but face-to-face conversations provided me more contexts and the chance of ask follow up questions according to their answers. From which I received a lot of useful data that can contribute to this fandom study. Findings: Different understanding of the word fan.

2 All five interviewees asked me my definition of fan when I asked them whether they are iphone fans, but I told them just answer this question based on their own understanding. Because in many situations, people thought they are fans, but actually, they are not. Simply own an iphone doesn t make them qualified, they need to have connections with iphone. On the other hand, some iphone fans don t think they are fans just because they don t really understand the word fan. According to the survey, more than half of the users had more than one iphone. And 57% of the users see themselves as iphone fans. The rest of them who said no, were mainly thinking that they do love iphone, but not crazy about it, so they can t be counted as a Fan. It s interesting to see how people define and stereotype the word Fan. Interviewee 4 had five iphones, but she said no when I ask her whether she s an iphone fan. She explained: I never waited in the line to buy a new iphone when it was first released. And I won t buy the new iphone 7 until my current iphone 6s is broken. I read similar answer from the survey as well. Seems like people are equalizing fan with irrational behaviors. And they tend to compare themselves with the extreme fans while identifying whether they are iphone fans, they believe only the ones reached the standard set by those extreme fans are qualified to be identified as fans. Nevertheless, interviewee 4 also admitted that she likes all the qualities iphone delivered, and using iphone make her feels better about herself. And in the end of her interview, after more questions about her attitude towards iphone, she realized she actually is an iphone fan. She felt shocked, because she never considered herself as one of the fans. Education background defines the characters of iphone fans. 2

3 Another detail I noticed is most of the top 2 reasons why they choose iphone were user experience and functionality, and 67% of the user consider themselves as regular customers instead of iphone fans when purchasing iphone. According to five interviewees and most users (45%) in the survey, they won t buy iphone 7 because it s not a necessity. Interviewee 3 also said, As long as my iphone 6 works normally and can still update the operating system to the newest version, I m fine with it. Because I already have an iphone, and I don t really need the new functions on iphone 7, so I don t care about whether I m using the newest one. So the iphone fans in this study are very rational, because their purchasing decisions were based on the information they have about the new iphone, and they thought about the opportunity cost before purchasing it. As far as I m concerned, the reason why this situation occurred is because I narrowed down the fan base from general public to college students, and there is a great difference between these two categories, the education level. Within this study, all the iphone users are receiving college education or above. On one hand, this made them wiser and calmer when making purchasing decisions. On the other hand, fans that received higher education are more conscious about the self-identity, which made it easier for them to choose the right role under different scenarios. In this case, after balancing the opportunity cost and iphone 7, they chose to be regular customers and not be influenced by the fan part. Does this mean they are not the real fans? No. You don t have to have all the iphones to be an iphone fan. It s the connections you have with iphone, and the qualities and brand culture that you share from iphone made you an iphone fan. Interviewee 5 mentioned that when he was in high school, he bought an iphone 4s within the first week of its releasing. He said at that time he did consider himself as a fan when he made that purchasing decision, because he really wanted to experience all the new technologies on the 3

4 new iphone. Besides, he thought buying the new iphone immediately is the best action to support Apple. But I don t think the same way any more. I believe I m still an iphone fan, because I watched all the un-boxing and hand-on review video of iphone 7 online. But the more I know about it, the more I hesitate whether I really need to upgrade my iphone, said interviewee 5. I know this one person case can t be applied to all the other fans, but this represents one of the aspects iphone fans share, and it did supported my reflection about education level could more or less influence fan behaviors. iphone is a symbol/culture. Interestingly enough, in common fandoms, fans will worship their fandom directly; but through the survey and interviews, a lot of fans expressed that using iphone made them feel better about themselves. Using iphone made me feel more successful and elegant, interviewee 4 said so. According to Maslow's hierarchy of needs, a product has to provide more than physiological needs to become a fandom. In this case, iphone has such a huge fan base not only because it provides the best user experience, but also because it represents a pop culture. Which leveled up iphone from physiological level to spiritual level includes belonging, esteem, and self-actualization. The extremely high standard iphone pursues in industrial designs empowers iphone with outstanding sense experience, and this experience delivers the aesthetic feeling other smartphones on the market don t have. So when fans see iphone, they see it more than its functionality, but sublime it to the level of aesthetic taste. That s why fans feel better about themselves, because using iphone implies they have better tastes than others who don t. In addition, iphone also delivers a lot of positive qualities the fans are willing to share. Interviewee 4

5 1 said, iphone is very reliable, and this is a good quality everyone wants to be defined by. When my friends using iphones, I know when I text them, they will reply sooner. But I m not sure with people who use BlackBerry. Form another point of view, the Apple culture celebrates diversities and embraces differences. This is an important reason why younger generations love iphone. Because young adults and the millennials need something to support them in being different, and Apple s motto definitely made them feel connected. Most of the users in this study think iphone represents a pop icon or a symbol, which reflects the attitude of enjoying challenges, cherishing every moment, and becoming a better person. These messages behind iphone extended the markets and built up Apple s reputation. Interviewee 1 also mentioned, he knows behind the advertising, iphone will lead its users to healthier lifestyles with the new Health APP, is all about sales volume. But he still bought that conception, because the way Apple presented the message is too convincing. Interviewee 2 said whenever mentions iphone, the word trendy comes to her mind first. iphone is always leading the smartphone market, since all the other phones just look like iphone more and more. And I love to use a product that keeps pushing the edge in smartphone industry with its advanced technologies. I told her there were a lot functions just added onto iphone already existed on Samsung s smartphones 2 years ago. She was shocked, and said she never heard about them from Samsung. Samsung just need to work on its advertisements. I think no matter what culture or symbol iphone represents, its something qualitative. Beneath it is the true value that builds up the connections with iphone fans. And I believe when regular users start to accept this brand culture, it could be the sign that they are becoming iphone fans, because they are willing to see what behind the product. 5

6 Peer pressure. Peer pressure is the only topic all five interviewees talked about directly or indirectly, which is also one of my initial assumptions of what are factors that make college students iphone fans (in the first analytic memo). Interviewee 1 said, It is peer pressure, because you want to fit in. Then he mentioned imessage, because imessage is actually a huge thing among college students. Besides texting, they share all kind of medias and do group chat with imessage. Without imessage, communication barrier could be built. Though other channel could still deliver messages, but not using the mainstream way of communication just makes you less approachable. Whenever I see people have a normal text send to me, I thought: Oh, there s someone who don t have an iphone, interviewee 1 added. Interview 2 mentioned the peer pressure of using iphone within her family. She said she started to use iphone just because all her family members and relatives are iphone users. They use iphone to Facetime each other, and use icloud to share family photos during holidays. It s very inconvenient if you don t have on iphone. Even my nephew who is still in middle school has one. For interviewee 2, peer pressure comes from the need of receiving synchronized information. Because that s how she feels connected and belong to her family by knowing what everyone else is talking about, and getting involved with other members at the same time. As a Chinese, interviewee 3 said iphone in China is a symbol of identity. Using iphone means you come from a middle class family, have good taste, and is a cool person to social with. This time, peer pressure isn t attached to functions anymore, but exists on iphone itself directly. She said, I want my friends and classmates to think I m just as good as them, so I bought my first iphone, though it was expensive, I can still afford it. Since China is developing quickly recently 6

7 and economies in major cities are keep boosting up, many millennials get confused with their values on money, and are trying to prove their self values by purchasing luxury products they can t afford. There were several cases that some college students will sell one of their kidneys to buy an iphone that they couldn t afford, just because they want to fit in. As I mentioned before, iphone is more than a product, it could be a culture, a symbol, or a quality. In China, it s the symbol of identity among millennials. Interviewee 4 and 5 said something similar to others. Interviewee 4 said iphone is a talking point of conversation on campus. iphone is also a fashion icon which reminding other I m under the mainstream, Interviewee 5 told me. I think these answers reflected peer pressure in one way or another. First of all, iphone s functions set up the standard of high-quality communication channel that can cause peer pressure within the same social circle. Second, since iphone is a symbol of advanced technology and other positive qualities, and people who use iphone are trying to project themselves onto these qualities, which made others who don t have an iphone want to fit in. The phenomenon that iphone fandom comes from peer pressure can be explained by Recognition. The millennials grow up under the explosion of Internet and social media where everyone wants to stand out, to be different, and to be remembered. They are very sensitive about their personal images, especially how does other people see them. So they are looking for attachments to get them into a higher level of social hierarchy. In this study, iphone became the attachment college students needed. iphone made them feel recognized, belonged, and accepted by people around them. Reflection: 7

8 During this study, I find out all the findings and phenomenon are very circumscribed. Because the fan base I chose are college students in Georgetown. Most of them have great family backgrounds and iphone to them may not be expensive and luxury at all. And they can only represent a very limited part of iphone fans. But why does all the fans in this study have the same idea that almost everyone around them are using iphone? Because according to the data from IDC, Android smartphone had 90% of the market share, whereas iphone only had 10% 1. I think it s because of the social class isolation. When most of your friends and relatives come from middle class families and had education level of college or above, it is true that they are all using iphones. And since they are the major components of your social network, it s almost impossible for you to pay attention to what are the phones people outside of your circle are using. That explained why iphone could be a peer pressure among college student, because a high-end smartphone to general public is actually the common sense within this study group. I m not saying this study is biased, since I m focusing on college students only. By doing this fandom on iphone, I can see the future of fandom based marketing. Because I believe communication in the future will be more and more cyber-based, at that time smart devices will become the necessities in our life. And if iphone represents an extraordinary way of thinking, a great taste, or a high-end lifestyle; people in the future will see iphone as a symbol of self-identity. Actually, Apple already started its fandom marketing these years. Take Apple Watch as an example. Apple corporate with Hermes in producing luxury watch bands for highend customers. This actually achieved a great success, because it empowered Apple Watch the attribution of fashion. And by combining two brand fandoms together, it s irresistible towards the targeted fans. In the future, this could be the trend of marketing. 1 IDC. (2016). Smartphone OS Market Share. Retrieved from 8

9 If given more time, I would like to expand my study towards Android fans as well, so I can compare the similarities and differences between iphone and Android fans, and study the culture and values those fans are sharing. Also, I d like to interview more fans to see if there s a pattern behind brand fandom within electronic industry. In general, I m satisfied with my current study. I think it reflected the typical iphone fans in college, and their sincere opinions about how they interpreted the value of iphone in their own social life. References IDC. (2016). Smartphone OS Market Share. Retrieved from Interviewee 1. Interviewed on November 15, 2016 at Georgetown University. Interviewee 2. Interviewed on November 27, 2016 at Georgetown University. Interviewee 3. Interviewed on November 29, 2016 at Georgetown University. Interviewee 4. Interviewed on November 29, 2016 at Georgetown University. Interviewee 5. Interviewed on November 30, 2016 at Georgetown University. 9