Still, RIM needs to make some major moves to jump-start and revitalize its prospects. Here are some ideas:

1. It should hire a chief operating officer with strong marketing expertise, as well as a kick-ass chief marketing officer. While no one is going to match the coolness of Apple, RIM’s marketing efforts in the pro-sumer marketplace have not been inspiring, creative or noteworthy. That said, there’s lots of potential to develop compelling campaigns that appeal to non-corporate users. Here’s a free one: the young’uns love the BlackBerry keyboard so they can pound out BBMs, text-messages, tweets and Facebook updates. How about a fun, quirky ad campaign that worships the keyboard?

2. BlackBerry’s Web browser needs to rock the house. I’m not talking about good, I’m talking awesome. For years, RIM ignored the sad reality it’s Web browser was crap. Now, people are surfing the Web anywhere and any time so RIM must make browsing on the BlackBerry easy, efficient and intutive. If need be, make a major acquisition to get it done.

3. It should make strategic acquisitions to enhance the BlackBerry features. The deals for Tungle, a scheduling service, and Scoreloop, a social and gaming application maker, were smart moves. RIM should make more small, but strategic, acquisitions so it can provide BlackBerry and PlayBook users with a strong suite of in-house applications.

4. Do whatever it takes to bring the developer community into the tent. With multiple devices and two operating systems – the upcoming BlackBerry OS 7 and the next-generation QNX – it is challenging for developers to play with RIM. While RIM will never have the same size developer ecosystem as Apple or Android, it has to have a big enough community to provide the BlackBerry and PlayBook with enough support. And, at the same time, RIM needs to bend over backward to keep its current developer partners.

5. Lose the hubris and arrogance. When I first started covering RIM more than 10 years ago, it was a friendly, accessible organization. As it grew, the company became more remote and impenetrable. At the same time, its co-CEOs, Jim Balsillie and Mike Lazaridis, seemed to become more cocky, which no longer goes over well when you’re no longer king of the hill.

6. Fix the PlayBook as quickly as possible. Without sugar-coating it, the PlayBook was launched as a half-baked product. Anyone who purchased one out of the gate was a fool. Sure, it has some nice features, including the ability to handle Flash, but there are also so many holes it’s nowhere ready for prime time. Yes, I can understand why RIM had to get the PlayBook out the door but it must bring out a ready-for-primetime PlayBook 2.0, along with an ad campaign that delights and entices.

7. Share the love with the blogging community. I’m only talking from personal experience but I find it strange to have almost no relationship with RIM even though I consider myself to be a modestly prominent member of the Canadian high-tech community. In the past five years, the only time I’ve been invited to a RIM event was a launch party for the Torch last year. Then again, nearly everyone was invited to that party, which was held at a nightclub in downtown Toronto, which struck me as odd. Other than that, RIM and I are strangers, which means I’ve never had a chance to check out the PlayBook, for example. Maybe it’s just me but I suspect RIM has a similar approach to the overall community.

Links:
- Last week, I had a blog post about why RIM is different from Nortel.
- Here’s a Globe & Mail feature on their suggestions to fix RIM.
- A RIM employee writes a letter to Balsille and Lazaridis, and provides eight suggestions about to get the company back on the right track.

“Interesting” is a good way to describe the Blackberry Torch VIP last night. It was a packed affair that attracted celebs such as Ben Mulroney, Jim Cuddy and the uber-cool George Stroumboulopoulos, as well as a couple hundred other “VIPs”. Of course, free drinks, food and your very own BlackBerry Torch likely encouraged the enthusiastic enthusiastic turnout.

Aside from the free Torch (just being honest!), one of the reasons I wanted to attend was I had never been invited to a BlackBerry event. In fact, I really had not spent much time with RIM for years, even when I was a technology reporter with the National Post. This was a sharp contrast to RIM’s early days when I used to talk to co-CEO Jim Balsillie on a regular basis, and get pretty quick replies to e-mails.

One of the things that struck me about the event, which took place at a nightclub, was how RIM took a low-key approach. After about an hour of networking while the music boomed, RIM’s chief marketing officer gave a very brief speech, before the hordes scrambled upstairs to the outdoor patio to pick up their Torches. All in all, the buzz seemed pretty good. People seemed pretty excited to be there, although free does get people stoked.

At the same time, RIM is an fascinating story right now given the ultra-competitive smartphone marketplace, which includes the iPhone and Google’s Android OS. Despite better-than-expected second-quarter results, RIM still has a lot of work to do that may force it to make some bold strategic choices to remain a top-tier smartphone player.

While I’m curious to check out the Torch, I’m more interested in the RIM’s marketing strategies, and how it appeals to new markets beyond the core corporate users. For example, the focus on younger consumers is interesting given the BlackBerry is not that cool, although the Torch’s touchscreen is nice.

Although younger people may think the BlackBerry is un-cool, a lot of them have BlackBerrys because the keyboard makes it easy to use text-messaging and social media services such as Facebook and Twitter. BlackBerry Messenger is wildly popular among younger users because it’s dirt-cheap compared with SMS. It does make you wonder why Steve Jobs doesn’t unveil a kick-ass messaging service for the iPhone.

The Torch is also a social device, highlighted by an application called Social Feeds that you can configure to work with Facebook, Twitter and social media services, as well as access RSS feeds. Again, something aimed at younger consumers, which probably explains the decision to hold the VIP event at a nightclub.

The question facing RIM is “What next?”. Is really going to introduced an iPad-like device? (Something that likely be a huge mistake) Does RIM keep pushing into new non-corporate markets, particularly the younger demographic? And can RIM stay viable in the face of intense competition?

All of these questions will unfold in the next couple of years. In the meanwhile, most of the VIPs at last night’s event were pretty happy to be there, irregardless of RIM’s uncertain prospects. After all, everyone likes a good party, even on a Monday night.

After a slew of bad news that included troubles with governments in the Middle East and India over access to data, the launch of Apple’s iPhone4 and the stunning growth of Google’s Android wireless OS, there was the perception that RIM was on its heels after ruling the smartphone roost for so long.

While the second-quarter results will make everyone feel better about RIM’s prospects, it’s important not to get too carried away. It was one quarter in which expectations were battered down by the wave of negative news, including tepid reviews of the Torch. That said, the Torch seems to be a solid entry into the touch-screen market so while the critics may not be thrilled with it, it may have resonated with consumers, who still love the BlackBerry keyboard.

At the same time, one quarter does not a future make nor does it change the competitive landscape. The iPhone4 has continued to maintain Apple’s stature as the world’s most exciting smartphone maker. Meanwhile, companies such as LG and Samsung have been unveiling some stunning devices using Google Android. I recently used an LG phone that was so good, it made we question about an iPhone. And if Nokia ever gets its smartphone act together, it will make the competitive landscape even more intense.

While the Torch did a solid job of getting RIM’s smartphone mojo back, RIM still has a long way to go to make sure it remains in the first-tier smartphone makers. In some respects, it faces the same challenge Nortel faced trying to stay as a first-tier telecom equipment suppliers. While RIM’s financials are significantly better than Nortel’s, and it has strong leadership, RIM needs a lot more than the Torch to stay with Apple and Android (aka The Killer A’s).

The Torch moved RIM into the touchscreen market but BlackBerry still has its warts. For one, the BlackBerry App World store continues to be a nightmare for users and developers. This is a disaster at a time when consumers are personalizing their smartphones to match their professional and personal lifestyles. And while RIM’s Web browser is improving, it’s still not the fantastic experience that wireless users are coming to expect.

At the same time, RIM seems to be having a personality conflict between serving its core enterprise market and meeting the needs of younger, hipper consumers. The enterprise market pays the bills while the hipster market offers growth and cache. For example, RIM’s current advertising talks about a lot of its messaging features, which is an appeal to younger, instant messaging-crazy youngsters. Meanwhile, the BlackBerry continues to be a mediocre multi-media devices when it comes to music and video. This explains why PushLife, a music start-up, attract so much attention in a recent Financial Post article.

While it would be ill-advised to count RIM out, it’s too soon to jump back on the bandwagon. RIM still faces major challenges that will not go away any time soon. It means RIM needs to continue to bring it, otherwise it risks being the next Nokia in the smartphone market. And then there’s that nasty Nortel scenario of going from first to worst.

As a Blackberry owner, it’s impossible to argue with the survey. The Blackberry is a wonderful device but it’s addictive, consuming and, for many people, completely unnecessary. We all like to think the world is moving faster and every e-mail needs to answered in minutes but it doesn’t really work that way if you step back from the fray. People who have Blackberrys need to discipline themselves to check their e-mail once an hour or once every few hours, and resist the unproductive and annoying urge to check all the time.

And when it comes to being home, Blackberry owners need to put the device away until they’ve dinner with your family, put their children to bed, drank a glass of wine and asked their wife or husband how their day went. When I first met RIM co-CEO Jim Balsillie seven years ago, he said his wife made him put his Blackberry in a box near the front door as soon as he came home from wok. I wonder if he still does that. For more on the Blackberry, check out Ars Technia , Alec Saunders, and Slashdot, which provides a link to a radio story on the new workplace.

Update: For your let’s kill some time on Friday entertainment, here’s Rick Mercer’s hilarious video about the Blackberry helmet.

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Truth be told, it’s not the Blackberry or other portable devices in which you can input data that will reduce business card usage but the growth of blogs. If want someone to know more about who you are, what you do and how you think, a blog is doing to a lot better job than a little piece of paper with your name, e-mail address and telephone number on it. In a sense, blogs could take the place of the business card and the resume.

We may get to a point soon where business cards will simply consist of your name and the blog URL, or you could tell someone you met to just Google “Mark Evans and technology” to find you (assuming you’ve been writing for awhile about a particular topic). Then again, there is something formal about business cards that Blackberrys or blogs don’t have. A business card is a sign of a relationship just beginning, which is why in Asia you treat a business card with great respect, and study its information before talking to the person who gave it to you.

So, long live the business card! (For the history of the business card, click here.)

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