Discuss the marketing strategy and tactical mistakes Google made when introducing the Nexus One.
Did you buy a Google Nexus One smartphone when it hit the market in early 2010? Didn’t think so—few people did. That’s why Google stopped selling them in the United States. The phone carried Google’s brand and was powered by the Google Android operating system, which was found on other manufacturers’ phones. With the Nexus One, Google made several mistakes. First, in an effort to get products to market faster and make more money through direct sales, Google tried to change the way wireless phones are distributed. Rather than the typical carrier distribution model (buying a phone through AT&T, Verizon Wireless, or another wireless provider), it used a Web-based sales model. The only way to buy a Nexus One was at Google’s Web site. Looking back, notes one executive, Google would probably have sold more of the phones through the traditional carrier network. To make matters worse, Google invested little in advertising for the Nexus One. And it was ill-equipped to handle customer service queries, attempting at first to handle them through e-mail instead of offering dedicated customer-service support. Finally, analysts said the phone wasn’t much better than other Android phones already on the market. No wonder the Nexus One failed. However, although Google discontinued the phone, its Android operating system remains strong, powering 27 percent of all U.S. smartphones, ahead of second place Apple’s 23 percent.