The Amazon Fire Phone hasn’t been as popular as the retail giant was hoping. Though it’s a fairly nice phone with great features, people haven’t been willing to try it. Though this could be due to the fact that they are being loyal to a favorite brand or because they are worried about how well the new phone will work, it is also partly due to the $200 price tag on the Fire Phone. A recent price drop could make for a much more competitive market and bring in more buyers.

What do you get with the First Phone?

As a smartphone, you can expect access to all the things you already know and love about smartphones: access to calling, texting, and the internet. But you can also get a year of free Amazon Prime with the phone when you buy it. And though that might not be a great deal to get the 32-gigabyte Fire Phone at the $200 cost, it’s an amazing deal if you only pay 99 cents with a two year contract through AT&T. According to Wired, the phone also comes with things such as free downloadable videos for offline viewing, free cloud storage, music-streaming, video streaming, and access to the company’s Mayday Service (which is 24/7 live help). You might want to consider getting the Fire Phone if you only have to pay 99 cents for it!

How bad is Amazon really doing?

Many people are wondering how bad sales are really going for the Fire Phone, but Amazon does not release information on sales numbers. But it seems as if hardly anyone has purchased the phone, especially since the company is doing a last-ditch effort to try and push sales like this. Amazon is losing money when you get your phone and Amazon Prime services (especially if you take advantage of that free 2-day shipping on a regular basis). But it may be worth it if it leads to loyal customers who love their phones.

It seems that stockholders weren’t thrilled with the decision, as stock prices have dropped 1.3 percent since the announcement, according to Business Week. And if stockholders are worried, that means Amazon is probably pretty worried.

Marketing just got easier

As your customers are essentially getting a brand new smartphone at no cost to them, you’ll be able to more easily contact them with all the information they need. The ability to send texts that pop up right away and are seen within minutes is still available, but with smartphones and smartwatches becoming more popular, they will get those messages even faster and have the ability to click on links through the messages. On top of that, having an artificial intelligence system that responds to their questions asked through text will give them a quick and easy way to contact you for information. Smartphones are taking over the world, and you need to be on top of it if you’re going to stay competitive.

Sources:

businessweek.com/news/2014-09-08/amazon-offers-fire-smartphone-for-99-cents-with-at-and-t-contract

wired.com/2014/09/fire-phone-99-cents/