"Cheap" is a misunderstanding of wearable devices

The wearable device industry seems to have encountered some difficulties on the road to commercialization, especially for some entrepreneurs entering the terminal application product stage, the market acceptance has not reached the ideal goal in the early stage of entrepreneurship as expected.

If we think rationally about the path that the wearable device industry has taken, there are actually not too many problems. This is because an emerging technology has outlined a commercialization outline in just two years in an environment where there is a lack of industrial chain support, a lack of business model reference, and a lack of user awareness. This is a very remarkable thing.

Google Glass undoubtedly contributed to bringing wearable devices from science fiction into real life. After the release of Google Glass in April 2012, the term wearable devices became a hot word in the fields of science and technology and financial media. With the help of media attention, the public began to establish awareness of wearable devices. In 2013, the wearable industry stood at the forefront of the trend of mobile Internet. A group of capital, talents, media, and entrepreneurs poured in. The entire industry was like a pig standing at the forefront. The domestic Huaqiangbei market even abandoned mobile phones and turned to the wearable device industry. In 2014, various application products were launched one after another, some of which were successful and some failed. Various exhibitions, alliances, and industry organizations were established, and some industry vertical media focusing on serving the wearable device industry began to take shape.

Although wearable devices have not replaced mobile phones and have not gained widespread public recognition, there are of course many factors that contribute to this, such as the lack of product innovation, insufficient battery life, and low value of monitoring data, which is very difficult for an industry that is only two years old. From the perspective of the entire industry, the wearable device industry has grown day by day in the past two years.

Of course, there are also some opinions that the factor that affects the popularity of the wearable device market is price. In fact, I don’t think so. The key factor that affects the popularity of wearable device users is not price, but value. Let’s take a well-known example. Is the subversion of mobile phones by Apple mobile phones due to their low prices? Obviously not. It is because Apple provides a user experience that Nokia mobile phones cannot provide, which is the key.

If we only understand it from the perspective of price, consumers have a common psychological cognition, that is, they hope it is cheap. When we shift the user's vision from the value of the product to the price, a very bad thing happens. No matter what price we set, consumers hope it can be cheaper. For example, if we set it at 1,000, consumers will definitely hope it is 800; when we set it at 800, consumers will definitely hope it is 600; even if we set the price at 100, consumers will definitely hope to get it at a lower price.

The most taboo thing in product marketing is to draw consumers' attention to price. When I teach in business school, I often say: "Those who win by price wars must die by price wars." Similarly, for wearable devices, I think the most critical factor affecting the current situation has nothing to do with price, but with value. In layman's terms, the price at which a product can be sold higher than the cost of raw materials is not determined by the production and manufacturing costs, but by the added value. For example, although many consumers think that the innovation of Apple 6 is not ideal, its price is still high and its market sales are still hot.

What is the reason? Is it just because it is called Apple? Obviously not. And from the perspective of hardware cost, some institutions have analyzed that the hardware cost of Apple mobile phones does not exceed RMB 1,500, but the sales price is more than RMB 5,000. Now that we know that Apple has such huge profits, will consumers stop buying it? Of course not. Because Apple provides some use value that other mobile phones cannot provide, such as Apple's photography, and the hard experience of its reaction sensitivity during use, etc. It is difficult for any mobile phone to surpass its reaction ability. This is the value, which is the value that others cannot provide except the price.

Today, some consumers think that wearable devices are expensive not because of the price, but because of the deviation between price and value. Therefore, in my opinion, the most important thing at present is not to consider the price of wearable devices, but the value. How can we give the product more value? These value parts are what consumers are really willing to pay for.

In today's environment where smart watches, smart bracelets, and smart glasses are copying each other, whoever can focus on value first will be the first to break through. Especially in today's economic inflation, the price of cabbage in the vegetable market is rising, and it has almost become a consensus among the public that the transaction value of currency is getting lower and lower. In the face of such an economic environment, how can wearable devices be expensive? If a smart watch or smart bracelet of 1,000-2,000 yuan can bring convenience to our lives and help our health, will there be no consumers to pay for such products? The key to the problem is whether we can focus on giving wearable devices more real value, rather than technological pets or toys.

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.