What Do The Nook Product Managers Have To Do To Save Their Product?
How cool would it be working in high-tech consumer goods? We’re talking about smartwatches, smartphones, Kindles, Google Glasses, and – the Nook. Consumer electronics can be a fascinating market. However, it is a tough place to compete in. If your product development definition is not up-to-the-mark, you will soon lose your position in the game. The Nook division at Barnes & Noble (B&N) realizes they have a problem and must quickly solve it.
What’s wrong with the Nook?
To ensure that things start off right, I have to be honest and tell you that I own a Nook. There are actually three Nooks in my home. The one that lights up at night, however, is prevalent. My Nook was cheaper than a Kindle, and it wasn’t Amazon’s electronic book reader. The problem is, the Nook product managers have to deal with the fact that sales of Nooks and related accessories fell by 58% in the Christmas buying period compared to previous years.
This is clearly not a good idea. B&N had planned to separate their Nook and digital book sales into a separate business. This dramatic drop in sales could jeopardize their chances of being successful. They can’t sell the division with these numbers as nobody would be interested in it. This problem will be solved by product managers, or they will have to update their product manager resume.
It is unclear why Nook sales fell. Other market analysts believe that the problem is not a Nook problem. Tablet sales fell across the board during the Christmas season. Consumers aren’t buying tablets because there has been little innovation in this field recently. The Nook is no exception to this. Their model with backlighting, which allowed you to read a book even in a darkened room, was released last Christmas. This holiday season, there was no similar feature.
What do the Nook Product Managers Have to Do?
What would you do if you were a Nook product manager? Sales are clearly not at the level they should be. Or else, the doors to opportunities for your product will close. There are a few options available to you: lower your price, bundle your Nook with another product, or offer Nook customers free ebook content.
But, I think the Nook product managers should take a step back. B&N must realize that they don’t need to make a lot from the Nook sales. The Nook’s real purpose is to get people reading electronic books on the Nook and then able to shop online at B&N for books. The product managers cannot give away the Nook, but they could undoubtedly lower their prices.
A reader that doesn’t have any books can be useless. The B&N product managers must convince people to buy a Nook and then to purchase electronic books from B&N. They should also include free books (perhaps 4). This will result in every Nook owner downloading their free books from the B&N online store. They will be able to return to the B&N electronic store and download their free books.
What Does All This Mean for You?
All of your products will sell well and be a great success. If you are in a position where sales of your product have started to drop, then you will need to take action, just as the Nook product managers did. It is essential that you take the right actions.
Nook’s product managers have to deal with a general decline in tablet sales. Their product sales were down over Christmas, and they must do something to change it. B&N is a book retailer, so product managers must find a way for their Nooks to be sold at the lowest price possible. This will allow more people to buy electronic books from B&N.
Good news: The Nook can probably be saved. There are many successful products in the electronic book reader market. They must act quickly in order not to be left behind and get more Nooks to potential B&N customers. After the holiday sale, it’s time to get an eBook reader!
