Prolific writer Neil Gaiman may not be at a loss for words, but a little inspiration could do more for his writing, and this time he has turned to tweets, seeking his followers’ thoughts and suggestions.

The fantasy fiction writer (acclaimed for Coraline, Stardust and The Sandman ) used select responses as pegs for 12 stories, A Calendar of Tales , with one each penned every month.

This is part of smartphone manufacturer BlackBerry’s global campaign ‘Keep Moving’, rolled out for its newly-launched operating system, Blackberry 10 (BB10). The Canadian handset-maker has roped in pop diva Alicia Keys and film director Robert Rodriguez (of El Mariachi , From Dusk Till Dawn and Sin City fame) as other ‘collaborators’ of the campaign.

“We have provided these people with Blackberry10 and they have started building up projects. Neil Gaiman is writing short stories using his Z10, which is being constantly updated on an online portal,” said Krishnadeep Baruah, Senior Director - Marketing, Asia Pacific at BlackBerry.

For Alicia Keys’ project, participants have to upload a photograph that captures themselves and their city. The pictures selected would be part of an onstage video projection of the diva’s stage show. Rodriguez’s project involves helping him create an action-packed short film. He needs actors, writers and artistes to finish a tale of two vigilante twin sisters on a secret mission.

“While they initiate the work, they are not going to complete it. We are trying to engage with the community, where you can come in with your ending to the story, to the song, to the film. This is a process that will go on for a few months, and will culminate in the best suggestion being taken to complete the project,” Baruah said.

The trio would be using BB10 handsets for their creative attempts, even as they solicit suggestions and opinions over social networking sites.

BB10 LAUNCH

The company launched its proprietary mobile Operating System (OS) BlackBerry 10 (BB10) globally in January this year, dumping the name Research In Motion in favour of its signature product, BlackBerry.

It has also launched two handsets globally on the BB10 platform – Z10 and Q10 – to take on Apple’s iPhone as well as devices using Google’s Android technology, with both faring better than BlackBerry phones.

“We really thought we need to re-invent ourselves as a company. More than 10 years ago, we were the pioneers when we brought in smartphones. We really needed a point to redefine the category and with the new platform, that is what we are attempting to do,” Baruah said.

The company launched the Z10 in India, its ninth biggest market, in February. It is a high-end phone priced at Rs 43,490. It intends to bring Q10 and subsequent products on BB10 platform later.

The features of Z10 include advanced predictive typing, Messenger with voice calling, Time Shift (an advanced camera feature) and supports eight Indian languages. Operators such as Idea Cellular, Aircel and Tata DoCoMo have also announced plans for the new phone.

“The launch of the new OS was necessary as the earlier version was not good for touch-screen operations. The positioning of the phone, which is presented at the high end, is also right,” said Anshul Gupta, principal research analyst with Gartner.

In the fourth quarter of 2012, the worldwide market share of Apple and Samsung put together grew to 52 per cent from 46.4 per cent in the third quarter of 2012. Samsung was number one in the smartphone segment followed by Apple and Huawei, according to Gartner.

“BlackBerry was way down in the list, and the company is banking on BB10 to move up the ladder,” Gupta added.

According to a Voice & Data survey, the company’s revenues dropped 25 per cent to Rs 1,460 crore from Rs 1,950 crore in 2011-12 compared with 2011.

“The attempt is to claw back its leadership position in the smartphone market, and the product, with all these features, is clearly positioned for the youth,” said Jagannadham Thunuguntla, head of SMC Global Securities.

BRAND AMBASSADOR

In December 2012, BlackBerry signed actor Ranbir Kapoor to promote its products in India, the first time it has roped in a brand ambassador anywhere in the world. The contract is for two years. The company did not disclose the financial terms of the agreement.

Even as a full-fledged global campaign has kicked in - with TV, print, out-of-home and over the Web – the company is yet to roll out India-specific campaigns for BB10. BlackBerry has appointed BBDO India as the creative agency and Starcom as media agency to roll out an India-specific campaign.

“We do have India-specific plans, we do have projects coming forward, but now what we are doing is getting the three global celebrities, using their content to engage the Indian community,” is all Baruah would disclose.

However, the company is not leaving any stone unturned on the marketing front. In March, BlackBerry organised a human chain in Bangalore and Chennai, and conducted roadshows and vendor meets in Mumbai, New Delhi and other cities.

“In India we have had a strong brand presence ever since we came into this market, and especially over the last four or five years we have done a lot to work to expand the brand from just being an enterprise brand to also include the consumers and within the consumers, the youth,” Baruah added.

BlackBerry has also beefed up its sales forecast in India by 40 per cent for its devices based on BB10, while it is treating this as its biggest launch till now to push up sales.

Coincidentally, ‘Keep Moving’ resonates with Johnnie Walker’s ‘Keep Walking’, even though BlackBerry is not commenting.

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