Moto X: Does Made in America translate into sales momentum?
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Over the long weekend in the U.S. Google's Motorola reminded us repeatedly that the Moto X would be made in America and customizable.
Will the Made in America tagline really matter? Manufacturing in the U.S. has been a big topic of late. The general theme is that manufacturing jobs are coming back because offshore factory costs are rising and infrastructure is tricky.
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Google and Motorola are upping the ante by noting that the Moto X will be made in the U.S.---and there's even a competitive advantage. That advantage is that the Moto X can be personalized. Apple has responded with its designed in California tagline to offset some of the Google ad assault.
More: Moto X: Will colors and fancy engraving help Motorola? | Moto X: Real smartphone personalization on tap?
All of this made in America ruckus is perfect fodder for the July 4 weekend. The biggest issue: Consumers may not care over time and the definition of Made in America is fluid.
For instance, Motorola's Moto X is assembled in America with parts from everywhere else. Does that count? Is it better to have U.S. parts compiled and manufactured elsewhere? Would we prefer a U.S. part percentage? Is the design more important than the assembly? Maybe the actual parts and assembly of a device is just a sideshow when the real win is U.S. jobs created.
Today, it's hip to tout U.S. manufacturing, but that's because costs in places like China no longer make that country a no-brainer.
As Andrew Nusca noted more than a year ago, the U.S. manufacturing dream is easier said than done.
Bottom line: Unless there's some competitive advantage and a kick-ass product---perhaps Moto X and an array of colors is the answer---few will care where a product is made. Nevertheless, give Google and Motorola some props---they're bringing manufacturing back and coming up with a competitive edge that may just work. But if the Moto X is a dud or comes in at a high price point you can rest assured that made in America won't count for much.