> If users don't have access to an old iPhone for jailbreaking in order to complete the registration process, that's okay – Beeper will rent them one for a small monthly fee
If nothing else, the ever expanding absurdity of the situation is kind of funny.
I cannot comprehend this. This is beyond parody. I am an iPhone user and I don't think I give 1/10th of a shit about iMessage that apparently a substantial amount of Android users do.
It's not worth it to me personally, but here's how I understand it:
Some iphone users have a bias against green bubbles. Either because the service is functionally inferior (pictures and videos are heavily compressed when sent via SMS) or because they perceive the green bubble to be a sign of poverty (that green bubble person couldn't afford an iphone).
I have no idea how common either belief is, how many iphone users carry any amount of bias, or how much that bias might weigh on their decisions. Nor do I know how many android users care enough about this bias to pay Beeper to try to avoid it, but it was enough that Beeper thought they could make a business out of it.
I suspect that if you worry that people will judge you for having a green bubble, then you must be under the age of 25, extremely insecure, working in an industry where image matters quite a bit, or some combination of all 3. It genuinely doesn't make any sense to me, but then again, there are a lot of things that don't make any sense to me that are deal breakers for our salespeople. Image matters a lot to some people and a green bubble is the equivalent of a used Toyota Corolla or a cheap suit.
As far as using a different messaging app: most people (both iphone and android) don't want to install another app if they don't need to. And the same iphone users who see a green bubble as a mark of poverty have the attitude that they shouldn't have to install whatsapp, you should just buy an iphone.
I think it depends on how much of the population have an anti-Android bias. If it's 10% sure let's not care about that at all. If it's 50%, it starts resulting in plenty of lost contact opportunities.
No idea how much it's a thing in the US; in Europe I would think nobody cares, and I sure hope that the ratio is not above 10% in the US.
I dont think anyone really cares about how their sales people look though. Sales people just love their expensive toys.
We have several sales people selling millions of dollars to our company and they would join conf calls from home in a T-shirt if it suits them. Nobody in work gives a shit.
Unless the sales person is a suit salesman I don't really see how it matters.
If nothing else, the ever expanding absurdity of the situation is kind of funny.