T-Mobile has made a very smart marketing move by offering kids ride free on the family plan. In our house, mom pays the phone bills for all family members so T-Mobile has done its homework when it comes to the whole decision maker buying experience.
What’s smart about the promotion is that most plans now offer unlimited texting at a flat fee and since kids only text, this is win-back play of some marketing magnitude. In print ads, T-Mobile compares their $59.99 plan for 5 lines to AT&T’s $59.99 Family Plan for 2 lines (mom and dad).
T-Mobile, who still has the nicest brand color palette on the market, has locked up the phrase “The Family Network” with its logo in print advertising in NY, yet the website still publishes “Stick Together” as the corporate line. I smell a bit of desperation amidst this new kids-for-free tactic. No doubt, the new idea is working and kids do grow into loyal adults if well-treated, but flip-flopping brand strategy and taglines is scary stuff.
I’d like for T-Mobile to stick around; it’s good for competition. And carving out a space as the “family” network is quite doable, but it will take more than one price promotion and some cutting and pasting. It’s going to take a massive plan. Peace it up (in the Middle East)!