As mobile phones enter the era of entertainment marketing, are fans willing to pay for celebrity phones?

In the era of fan economy, celebrities are everywhere.

As the entertainment industry in the mobile phone industry continues to heat up, various mobile phone brands have been keen on inviting popular stars to endorse their phones in recent years. For example, Korean movie star Lee Min Ho endorsed LG, Han Han endorsed OnePlus, Jun Ji-hyun endorsed Samsung, Zhang Jie endorsed Xiaomi, Huawei invited Messi, TFboys joined OPPO's celebrity endorsement team, and so on.

But have you ever heard of celebrity phones that are deeply customized for fans? Recently, the Internet mobile phone brand ZUK teamed up with the popular Korean star Kim Soo Hyun to launch the ZUK Kim Soo Hyun celebrity customized version of the phone. After the phone was listed on JD.com crowdfunding, the crowdfunding amount exceeded one million yuan in just three hours.

Some people say that the domestic mobile phone industry has entered the era of entertainment marketing, from competing on parameters and configurations in the past to competing on appearance today.

What is a celebrity deeply customized mobile phone?

The so-called deeply customized cell phones for celebrities are not mysterious. They refer to cell phone manufacturers adding celebrity elements to the appearance, configuration, internal software, etc. of the original cell phones based on the needs of fans. For example, celebrity signatures are engraved on the cell phones, exclusive ringtones and photos of celebrities are built in, and exclusive gifts for celebrities are randomly given. Although the forms are different, the common point is that the personal charm of celebrities must be fully displayed on the cell phones.

Taking the ZUK Kim Soo Hyun version customized mobile phone as an example, the back cover of the ZUK Kim Soo Hyun celebrity mobile phone is printed with Kim Soo Hyun's autograph. Other in-depth customization contents also include Kim Soo Hyun's exclusive customized lock screen wallpaper and original recorded ringtones built into the phone, and comes with exquisite Kim Soo Hyun customized scarves, customized diaries and other peripheral products.

ZUK's Kim Soo Hyun version of the Z1 has a 5.5-inch 1080p screen, a Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 chip, 3GB of memory and 64GB of storage space, and supports dual-SIM dual standby. In terms of lens, the Z1 has a 13-megapixel rear lens and an 8-megapixel front lens, supporting optical image stabilization. In terms of battery, the Z1 is equipped with a 4100 mAh battery and supports fast charging. In terms of hardware configuration, it is consistent with the regular version of the Z1, but the price is 500 yuan higher than the regular version of 1,499 yuan.

In addition to online crowdfunding, ZUK also held an offline meeting for the first launch of the Kim Soo Hyun celebrity phone on March 24, inviting Kim Soo Hyun to the scene to promote the phone, which caused a strong response among his fans.

Retain users through celebrity effect

In addition to the Kim Soo Hyun customized version of the phone, ZUK has also launched a Huang Bo customized version of the phone.

ZUK CEO Chang Cheng said, "This cooperation will undoubtedly have a very positive effect on both parties. ZUK is Lenovo's Internet sub-brand, and user retention rate is an important indicator for evaluating Internet mobile phones. Compared with the current situation of low loyalty in the mobile phone market, the loyalty of celebrity fans is higher."

As for the cooperation with Korean star Kim Soo Hyun, Chang Cheng believes that ZUK's cooperation with Kim Soo Hyun, who has tens of millions of fans, is not simply to launch a product, but also to bring a thoughtful work to the fans of both sides. Through sincere customized exclusive content, the distance with fans is further narrowed and deep emotional connections are established with fans.

In fact, the mobile phone + celebrity combination is not only popular recently. A few years ago, mobile phone brands sponsored variety shows, participated in reality show shooting, invited celebrities to speak at press conferences, and invited celebrities to serve in company positions. These are all ways for mobile phone manufacturers to attract consumers by leveraging the celebrity effect. Manufacturers hope to enhance brand value and strengthen fans and users' sense of identity and participation through the positive image of celebrities.

It is undeniable that using the celebrity effect and appeal to enhance brand image and boost brand sales is an immediate shortcut. However, for most mobile phone users, the performance, craftsmanship, configuration, price and other aspects of the mobile phone are still the dominant factors in their purchase. Customized mobile phones can only meet the needs of niche users to a certain extent. After all, in the wave of entertainment, the iteration speed of celebrities is also accelerating. It is difficult for anyone to guarantee that a star can remain popular forever. Mobile phone manufacturers must work hard on their internal strength while doing a good job on the surface.

As a winner of Toutiao's Qingyun Plan and Baijiahao's Bai+ Plan, the 2019 Baidu Digital Author of the Year, the Baijiahao's Most Popular Author in the Technology Field, the 2019 Sogou Technology and Culture Author, and the 2021 Baijiahao Quarterly Influential Creator, he has won many awards, including the 2013 Sohu Best Industry Media Person, the 2015 China New Media Entrepreneurship Competition Beijing Third Place, the 2015 Guangmang Experience Award, the 2015 China New Media Entrepreneurship Competition Finals Third Place, and the 2018 Baidu Dynamic Annual Powerful Celebrity.