Three Types Of Droid Users

14.10.11 The Reporter 0 Comments

Most people have the impression that those who gravitate to the Android as an OS are only the geeks who love modding their phones. On the contrary, there are users who get attracted to the Android for other, possibly “simpler” reasons.

The Android partner companies have been working overtime to surpass the iPhone, so the new Androids that have been coming out have been looking pretty awesome lately. Thus, Androids are attracting users and prospective users from a varied array of backgrounds and perspectives.

We’ll try to capture their “cultures” in this post, and if you’re a friend of any of these, we’ve also put notes on how to deal with each kind of user so you guys can get the most out of your Droids and have the best Droid experience you can possibly have.

The Casual User.

Profile: This Android user bought his or her phone because it’s sleek-looking, the brand is making waves, and for some, they may have even bought the phone because it’s expensive. In short, the users who buy Androids with this mindset tend to not care that it’s an Android in the first place. They bought the phone first and foremost because it looks good and makes them look good. That it can call and text are the only things that are important for them. If they can Facebook using the phone, they’ll be happy. They probably haven’t even used up 50MB of their storage space. Heck, some of these users may even have 100+ MB left on their Androids.

What Now: If you’re a techie friend of a Casual Android User, sell them in on the idea of adding games and useful apps on their Droids. Let them know that you’d kill to have the remaining space they’re keeping idle on their Androids. Show them how your collection of GTD apps are simply awesome. Show them how the Facebook for Android app makes Facebooking simpler, faster and a whole lot more addictive.

Maybe when you’ve showed them the potential of their Droids, though, the next problem will be how to pry them from Facebook for Android.

The Power User.

Profile: This Android guy (or gal) probably has a Task Killer installed. If their Android has a huge ROM space, most likely, they also have a battery saver, a virus scanner and other system tools installed. These guys may have maxed out their ROM space and leave only the necessary 20 to 30MB free, to keep the systems from complaining of low space. These guys have their emails and social networking accounts perfectly synced, and may even work from their Droids. They’re on top of the trends and are already salivating on the next-generation Droids. They may even have upgraded their Droids’ Kernel Version, or even attempted rooting it. Short of re-coding their Droids, they’ve probably modded their Droids that these are almost extensions of themselves.

What Now: Since this breed of Droid users are the perfect balance of the n00b and the uber-geek, the only thing a Droid friend could do is to introduce this kind of user to a sales agent of a particular brand of Droid maker, and the friend could probably cash in on that referral. However, Power Users don’t get swayed easily, as they know what they want in their Droids and won’t compromise.

The Super User.

Profile: This is a Droid user who could write code from scratch. If he hasn’t done it yet, he must have tweaked and rewritten sections of the Android kernel code and suited it to his needs. His Droid has been rooted, and he probably has an app on the Android Market. As a consumer, he may not necessarily go for the biggest and baddest specs, but he will go for what will suit his needs: what he can modify and what will work with how he envisions his Droid to be.

What Now: If you’re the kind of friend who’s always on the lookout for the opportunity to make money, you can partner with your Super User Droid friend and ask him to build an app based on your ideas. Then, according to what’s fair in your estimation, split your royalties in percentages. You can go for 50/50, but if he’s fine with 65/35, with you getting the lion’s share, why not, right? After all, it was your bright idea in the first place. You can also agree on a project-based fee: ask your friend for his one-time rate for an Android App, pay that in full, and pocket all royalties thereafter. You may need to study how to monetize an Android app, however. AdSense has expanded to include app revenues, so you may want to look into that.

These are the three kinds of Android users. Hope you had fun reading this post, profiling your Droid-user friends and thinking about the ideas we brought to the table. Have a happy weekend!